Good morning, Chicago.
The Chicago Tribune report on the Cubs’ first home game of the 1876 season noted a crowd of around 5,000-6,000 went through “all sorts of troubles to get tickets and seats for Chicago’s opening game of the centennial year.” But the Cubs lucked out, the report added, as “the weather encouraged the attendance, for a finer day for a game was hardly ever seen.” The Cubs, then named the White Stockings, wound up with a 6-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds in the first season of the National League, spurring optimism for local fans and media.
150 years later, they’ll open the 2026 season today at Wrigley Field with similar optimism and a forecast that rivals the one for the 1876 home opener, albeit with a chance of storms.
Everything changes in Chicago, but the spirit of opening day remains the same. It’s traditionally the best time of the year to exude hope, and no one can extinguish that flame until at least the first loss.
Up the road in Milwaukee, the White Sox open their 126th American League season Thursday under the Brewers’ retractable dome, with lower expectations than their North Side peers but growing confidence that their painful rebuild finally has turned the corner.
Read the full column from the Tribune’s Paul Sullivan.
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including when to expect thunderstorms this week, how a Chicago snowplow came to have “Abolish ICE” emblazoned on its side and why stationery is booming.
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TSA boss warns of airport shutdowns, but no deal yet on day 40 of Homeland Security funding fight
The Transportation Security Administration may have to shut down operations at some airports if the budget impasse drags on, the agency’s acting head said yesterday, even as record wait times for travelers did little to end the standoff over the funding fight in Congress.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson vetoes tipped wage freeze, setting up City Council showdown
When Mayor Brandon Johnson pulled out his silver veto pen once again yesterday — this time to strike down the City Council’s plan to freeze scheduled minimum wage pay raises for tipped workers — he promised a fight.
Standing before supporters inside a restaurant in the Woodlawn neighborhood less than a year before his expected run for a second term, Johnson sounded like a candidate as he not only urged residents to call aldermen, relatives and even the governor to back him up but also cast himself in stark political terms as the city’s “organizer-in-chief” and a defender of working-class Chicagoans.
Chicago’s ‘Abolish ICE’ snowplow unveiled by Mayor Brandon Johnson as winner of annual contest
When a Chicago salt truck with a baby blue cab pulled up slowly behind Mayor Brandon Johnson yesterday, the mayor pointed to the newly christened vehicle’s name as evidence that the city stood together.
Emblazoned on its side: “ABOLISH ICE.”
Cook County population growth is flat due to decreased immigration, while Kendall County leads Illinois, census numbers show
Cook County saw little population change in 2025 due to reduced international immigration, new U.S. census numbers show, but Kendall County bucked that nationwide trend with the greatest percentage growth among all counties in Illinois.
Expect severe thunderstorms in Chicago
The Chicago area could see a severe thunderstorm today, with risks of large hail and damaging winds.
Just as the weather was starting to warm up, a cold front is expected to pass through northern Illinois and northwest Indiana this afternoon creating conditions for a severe thunderstorm category three out of five, the National Weather Service said.
Legal squabble over mysterious White Sox shooting winding down as sun rises on another season
As another season of baseball begins, the end may be near in the yearslong legal saga stemming from a bizarre shooting in the bleachers during a White Sox home game in August 2023.
But more than two years after the shooting, the central question remains: Where did the gunfire originate?
Chicago White Sox finalize 2026 opening-day roster for Will Venable’s second season as manager
The Sox placed outfielder Brooks Baldwin (right elbow sprain) and catcher Kyle Teel (right hamstring strain) on the 10-day injured list. Pitchers Prelander Berroa, Drew Thorpe and Mike Vasil were placed on the 15-day IL, each affected by Tommy John surgery.
- 4 White Sox storylines for the 2026 season
- White Sox players to watch in 2026
- Netflix swings into MLB with 3 marquee events, including Yankees vs. Giants on opening night
Chicago Cubs finalize opening-day roster: Dylan Carlson and Scott Kingery make it, Justin Steele to 60-day IL
Three nonroster invitees earned a spot out of camp as the Cubs added outfielders Michael Conforto and Dylan Carlson and infielder Scott Kingery to their 40-man roster ahead of Thursday’s opener at Wrigley Field, where left-hander Matthew Boyd gets the ball against the Washington Nationals.
- Cubs: For hitting-obsessed Alex Bregman, deep understanding could lead to another big year
- What’s the forecast for the Cubs home opener — and how has weather affected debuts since 1989?
- Photos: What to eat at Cubs games this season at Wrigley Field
Reginald ‘Reg’ Weaver, first Black president of the state’s largest teachers union, dies at 86
As a Black youth growing up in the largely segregated schools of downstate Danville, Reg Weaver knew firsthand about educational inequities when he declared years later that there was “no feeling like seeing children’s eyes brighten up as they discover the world of opportunity.’’
Make a note of this: Stationery is booming as we seek out a more analog experiences
Stationerycore, as many call the culture, is having its moment, with devotees flocking to events such as the recent Chicago Stationery Festival in Ravenswood.
