There was no outbreak of fan excitement when David Ross signed with the Cubs. No grand press conference where dozens of cameras flashed as he put on his new uniform for the first time. The Cubs Shop didn’t offer a sale on authentic number 3 jerseys for Christmas of 2014. And even if they had, […]
Category: Articles
Unfinished Brilliance: The 2016 Regular Season
“I don’t want to sound like an asshole or anything, but we really haven’t done anything yet.” – Jon Lester Lester’s words following his final start of the regular season on Saturday probably encapsulate the central question of being a Cubs fan in 2016. How success is determined is a different measure for the Cubs this year, […]
Slighter Sliders: The Curious Case of Hector Rondon’s Missing Pitch
As Tom Petty once said, the waiting is the hardest part. As the Cubs have capped off their successful 2016 season with lineups that include Javier Baez at first base, Tim Federowicz catching, and the likes of Rob Zastryzny/Jake Buchanan starting, fans have cast about for reasons to continue to pay attention, all the while constantly glancing down at their […]
Game 162 Recap: Cubs 7 Reds 4
The Cubs won 103* games this season. Top Play: The Cubs’ ninth inning made your humble author laugh out loud with a variety of emotions, the least of which being pity for the lowly Reds, who never figured out the 2016 Cubs (but who can blame them). Rafael Iglesias got two quick outs to begin […]
Why Do We Care About Bandwagon Fans?
By clinching their postseason spot before any other team, the Cubs earned a special privilege: first crack at The Bandwagon Conversation. Even as people were gathering in celebration around a vacant Wrigley Field, others were noting archly that many of them were Johnnies-come-lately who only started following the team when it was clear this year’s […]
Series Preview: Cubs vs. Reds, September 30-October 2
If a Series Preview is written for a 100-win team on the last weekend of the regular season and everybody is looking towards the postseason, does it really exist? After all, the division has been clinched. The league’s best record is all sewn up. The season’s closing weekend is a final victory lap for what […]
Game 159 Recap: Cubs 1 Pirates 1…A Tie?!?
A day after Jake Arrieta and Miguel Montero expressed some displeasure for the Spring Training type vibe in Pittsburgh, Joe Maddon decided to trot out the Spring Training split squad B team lineup anyway. Not only did the Cubs go with a bullpen day on the mound, starting with Rob Zastryzny, they also emptied the bench […]
Transaction Analysis: Cubs Extend Theo and the Gang
This piece originally ran, in full, on the BP main site. We hope you enjoy this preview of it here. Chicago Cubs Signed president of baseball operations Theo Epstein, general manager Jed Hoyer, and senior vice president of player development and scouting Jason McLeod to five-year contracts. [9/28] Wednesday night the Cubs announced that they […]
Willson Contreras: Solid Major-League Catcher
It’s been just over three months since Cubs catching prodigy Willson Contreras made his MLB debut at Wrigley Field. Though he wouldn’t register a plate appearance in that particular game, two days later Contreras would come up to the dish for the first time and, in true Cubs rookie fashion, hit a first-pitch, two-run home […]
Game 158 Recap: Pirates 8 Cubs 4
Women who have experienced the final month of a full-term pregnancy will tell you those last few weeks are the longest of their lives. So close to the realization of nearly a year’s worth of expectations, time grinds to a halt as the conscious waiting, and worrying, takes over. The Cubs have been eying a […]