Once Joe Maddon takes his perch at the edge of the dugout on Opening Day 2019, he will become the first Cubs skipper to manage five consecutive years with the team since Jim Riggleman (1995-99). That fact is at once astonishing for what it reveals about the franchise’s ineptitude and yet not surprising at all […]
Tag: History
Ben Zobrist: Changing History Instead of His Footwear
In retrospect, it’s going to be awfully amusing that Ben Zobrist’s 2018 is mostly going to be remembered for the shoes controversy. Somehow, MLB decided that in a league full of Josh Haders and Roberto Osunas, it was going to make an example out of a player who seemingly exists to answer the question: “What […]
Chicago’s Poor and Baseball at the Turn of the Century
The Chicago of the mid-1800s that prided itself on its cleanliness and relatively high standard of living for its poor had disappeared by the turn of the century. Connecting the East, South, and West, Chicago rapidly bloomed due to the expansion of the railroad, its population growing from 360,000 in the 1880s to 1.7 million […]
A Recent History of Defending Champs
In case you missed it, the Chicago Cubs won the 2016 World Series. While few Cubs fans have tired of seeing Kris Bryant throw to Anthony Rizzo to break the drought, the start of the 2017 season draws ever closer, and soon the Cubs will have to get on with the business of defending their […]
The Brilliant Meaning of July 2, 2013
This is a story about one of the most important days of the Theo Epstein Era in Chicago, and perhaps in Cubs history. It was July 2, 2013, and while that day will always be famous as the day the Cubs stole Jake Arrieta from the Baltimore Orioles, there was more to it than that, […]
What Does The Cubs’ Hot April Mean for October?
“I think the 100 thing, at some point in my career, would be cool to be part of, but it doesn’t mean you’re going to win the World Series. I’d rather us just play good baseball, and at the end of the year if we win 100, we win 100. Great. But if we don’t […]
Jake Arrieta: An Inhuman Monster’s Greatest Games
At some point, at an unknown time between October of 2013 and May of 2014, Jake Arrieta made the transition. I don’t mean simply transitioning from a starting pitcher just trying to stay in a major league rotation to one of the best pitchers in the game, but transitioning. We have all the evidence we […]
Munenori Kawasaki and the History of Racial Mascots
At the end of last week, Cubs fans experienced their first taste of the exuberance of Munenori Kawasaki. A Spring Training invitee, Kawasaki displayed his singing chops with a rendition of Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing.” You know, that song from Armageddon. While his song choice was no doubt troubling in and of itself—“Mama […]
Heyward, Wainwright, and Being “The Man”
It’s been a banner offseason for the Cubs, who have improved significantly both at primary positions and at the margins, all the while keeping a tight grip on their top prospects. The biggest coup of the offseason was clearly signing three top free agents—Jason Heyward, Ben Zobrist, and John Lackey—to contracts that were reportedly less lucrative […]
Cubs, Cardinals Writing New Chapter in Old History
The Cubs have had a captivating history. Granted, the story is often like a Shakespearean tragedy. But each time they pop up with a great season, it gets ingrained into Cubs lore and the hearts and minds of their fans in a way that few other franchises in the sport can claim. This season has been […]