MAKING THE PITCH: Chicago Cubs

Will the Cubs win a lot more games in 2013?
(photo courtesy of Sharon P. Mancia)

Felipe M

We take a look at the projected starting rotations and closer situations of every MLB team.  Of course, this will come from a fantasy perspective.  All cited stats are based on 2013 projections.  

Check out the Colorado Rockies pitching staff, here. 

This is a bit personal, however.  As you may or may not know, the Chicago Cubs are my team (along with the Chicago White Sox).  But the bitter apathy and comical season that was the 2012 Cubs had one silver lining: at least the starting pitching was good enough to make them somewhat respectable.  This season, however, trying to figure out this team has been nothing but a major headache.  And I'm not even talking about their closer situation!  Not because they're a lot worse than last year; it's because they have so many potential starters, it's difficult to figure out who's a legit starter, and who will only be holding down the fort until Matt Garza and Scott Baker come back.  The Cubs had an impressive offseason picking up a lot of pitchers.  But from a fantasy standpoint, it's very frustrating to get an accurate gauge on these guys.  

Yesterday, the Cubs outlined their pitching rotation for the start of the season, but their forecast is still not any clearer than it was on Wednesday.  Therefore, I'm only taking a close look at the 3 pitchers who will be there, for certain, on the regular rotation in 2013.

PROBABLE STARTING ROTATION

1. Jeff Samardzija
• Good: 8.82 K/9: need we say more?  He also has overpowering stuff that helps limit the base-hits (H/9 of 7.98).  
• Bad: Has a little Kerry Wood in him; he won't give up many hits, but he'll give up plenty of walks (BB/9 3.78).  That brings his WHIP projection to 1.31.  Ouch!
2. Matt Garza
• Good: 8.43 K/9 and an approximate K/BB of 3/1 make him a legit pitcher in any format.
• Bad: Injuries and lack of run support have haunted him, especially since becoming a Cub.  1.13 HR/9 is nothing to fret about, but on those days that the wind is blowing out at Wrigley Field, might prove to be disastrous.  Matter of fact, Garza has a history of giving up a lot of homeruns and he's a career flyball pitcher.  However, based on his Groundouts/Flyouts ratio as a Cub, suggest that he is improving on forcing more groundouts than flyballs.
3. Edwin Jackson
• Good: One of the nastiest pitchers out there, Jackson is supposed to sport a K/9 of 7.73.  And after having a reputation of being a wild pitcher, he is projected to have a BB/9 of 2.81.  He won't hurt himself with the longball either (HR/9 of 0.92).
• Bad: 1.29 WHIP is a bit high.  Despite the improvements in the last 3 seasons, Jackson can still come off as a bit unpredictable as a starting pitcher.  

CLOSERs

1. Carlos Marmol
• Good: 12.95 K/9 and 0.68 HR/9 is what makes him a good closer.  He's almost unhittable (H/9 of 6.95. Craig Kimbrel is better at 6.49).
• Bad: Unfortunately, Marmol has a tough time controlling his walks (BB/9 of 6.68).  He seems to have trouble with command of his slider as batters are not biting on it like they were before.  The walks raise his WHIP to an alarming 1.52.  Currently, the Cubs are desperately trying to deal him.
2. Kyuji Fujikawa
• Good: He has enough experience at the role as he's racked up plenty of saves back in Japan.  Baseball America ranks him as the team's #9 prospect.  
• Bad: Tough to gauge if and how a pitcher from another league will be able to streamline success to the Majors.  His projections seem to project him as a low-level, second-tier closer.  The Cubs seem to like him enough for the 9th inning job as he will no doubt move up to that role as soon as they deal Marmol.

FANTASY ADVICE

The other pitchers involved in this claustrophobia-like starting rotation are Scott Feldman, Carlos Villanueva, and Travis Wood.  I hate Feldman so I'm not even going to bother with him.  I've always liked Wood, but can be very inconsistent at times.  

The intriguing guy of the group is Villanueva.  In 2010, he was exclusively coming out of the bullpen for the Milwaukee Brewers, but last season with the Toronto Blue Jays, he posted impressive numbers as both a reliever and a starter.  He posted impressive strikeout totals and an adequate WHIP.  Projections from various publications show that he's expected to continue with the impressive strikeout rates, but WHIP is ranged between 1.25 and 1.45.  Nevertheless, if he can control the walks and the H/9 numbers, he can become a deep sleeper for at least the first month of the season.

Scott Baker is a flyball pitcher who has a history of giving up a lot of homeruns.  However, he is known to do a great job of controlling his walks and can post respectable strikeout totals (career K/9 of 7.23).  If he can come back without any issues from Tommy John surgery, he can prove to be a useful pitcher in 2013.

The Cubs did a good job acquiring pitchers that can post good strikeout totals, but they all come with baggage: control, injuries, spells of inconsistencies, lack of run support etc.  Nevertheless, I would be comfortable drafting any of these pitchers to fill in the middle of my rotation, but I wouldn't reach to put any of these guys at my top 3 slots.  

Obviously, the closer situation becomes more clear as soon as they find someone willing to deal with Marmol.  I would still take a wait-and-see approach on Fujikawa, though.

More MLB content is available here. 

HOW I BECAME A BASEBALL FAN PART II: A Mid-1990s Dream

One of the most underrated ballparks in MLB, "The Cell."
(photo courtesy of Ricardo Ponce)

Felipe M

Part I of this saga explained how I became a Chicago Cubs' fan.  Part II, takes this story to an unpredictable conclusion.

Like many Chicago Cubs’ fans, I grew up hating the Chicago White Sox and during the 1990s, not only was it my “duty” to hate the White Sox, but I was also filled with envy because their team was actually winning. 

The first time I found out that Chicago had two MLB teams, I was very shocked.  “Why does Chicago need two teams?  The only team that matters is the Cubs,” I used to think to myself.  The White Sox might as well have been a foreign team from Mexico or Canada.  It’s as if they were the unwanted family member showing up to family gatherings making an awkward mess to what was an otherwise good time.  Who are these people?  There was so much to hate about them:

• They wore black uniforms. 
• Their uniforms didn’t even have a hint of “American colors.”
• White Sox TV broadcaster, Ken “Hawk” Harrelson used to (and still does) refer to the White Sox as the “good guys” and the opposing teams as the “bad guys.”  That used to irk me.  “Who does this guy think he is?”
• They played in the American League and used a “DH.” 
• “What the hell is a DH?”
• Their ballpark didn’t have the charm that Wrigley Field had.  Their outfield walls aren’t even covered in ivy or any other organically grown life form.  They just spew out a depressing, color blue to go along their, sad-looking blue seats.
• The South Side?  What the heck is the South Side of town?
• All of their players had nicknames and came off as bullies.
• Frank “The Big Hurt” Thomas
• “Batman” Robin Ventura
• “Black Jack” McDowell
• Lance “One Dog” Johnson
• Craig “The Little Hurt” Grebeck
• “The Pope” Donn Pall
• “The Rock” Tim Raines
• Carlton “Pudge” Fisk
• They played against weird teams like the Seattle Mariners, California Angels, Minnesota Twins, and the Milwaukee Brewers (back when they were in the AL).
• They are an evil, unlikable team.

In 1997, the Cubs were coming off another disappointing, ’96 season and I was getting tired of all the losing.  And then the White Sox do the unthinkable and sign Albert Belle.  That struck a nerve with me.  “Why can’t the Cubs go out and sign a hitter like Belle?” I used to ask myself as that signing really impressed me.  At least I couldn’t show the same disdain towards the White Sox as before.  See, I used to be one of those fans who root for a Cubs’ win and White Sox loss.  It brought this inexplicable joy.  But after this, I couldn’t go out and root against them anymore.  The Cubs are always losing and they don’t do anything to improve the ballclub.  But the White Sox have put themselves in a better position to win a title for 1997.  

I was not going to hate the White Sox, but I wasn’t going to start rooting for them either.  I was just going to focus on the Cubs and forget about the White Sox.  Not apathetic, not even indifference was the right word.  It was like one eye would kind of "lazy-eye" off into the White Sox’s direction, but quickly focused back on the Cubs. It was like acknowledgment without acknowledging anything.  That make any sense?

Then Robin Ventura broke his ankle during a spring training game.  I felt so sorry for them.  Here I was, a young adolescent now, rooting against the White Sox and getting joy at their misfortune, now feeling sorry for them when their star third basemen looked to be out for the rest of the season.  It wasn’t fair!  This team actually wants to compete and win and seemed to have put themselves in position for glory and then this happened?  

At this point, I was beginning to feel empathy towards the White Sox, but I was not going to root for them.  No, that would be just asinine!  I’m just going to focus on my team and forget about the Sox.  Yes, they are a Chicago team, but the Cubs are the Chicago team. 

As you can imagine by now, the Sox struggle with the loss of Ventura and didn’t look like World Series contenders anymore.  It’s understandable and I’m beginning to pity them a bit.  And then there’s the Chicago Cubs who start the year at 0-14.  They literally found new ways to lose games that season.  Their season was over before it even started, but just for good measure, they would go on two, 5-game losing streaks and one losing streak of 8.  Besides that, they played pretty well, I guess.

Ventura would eventually come back that same year, surpassing even the most optimistic expectations and would spark the White Sox as the trade deadline loomed and the Sox were only 3 ½  games behind Cleveland.  Then management decided that they were not going to catch the Cleveland Indians and decided to pull off the now infamous “White Flag Trade.”

After enduring a lot of frustration with the Cubs, my fandom finally reached a crossroads in ’97.  This performance was just unacceptable on the North Side.  But for White Sox management to give up on the season after the star third baseman worked his tail off to come back and play in order to help the team, was almost a crime in my book.  After I saw that, I said, “enough of this nonsense!”  I had decided that since both teams are from Chicago I was going to spend the rest of my summers living and dying with both teams.  I was now going to start to openly root for both teams.  Both teams are terrible and pretty much have the same history of failure.  If the Cubs were going to make me miserable every summer, then I might as well be doubly miserable and start pulling for the Sox as well.  Why not?  Status quo dictates that I must choose one or the other, but at that point, it just didn’t make any sense to me anymore.  Plus by then, after many years of watching ESPN showing highlights of every MLB game every night, I was hooked on baseball.  It got to the point where rooting for one team was not enough.

I have no regrets and my baseball experience has been very satisfying as watching both teams has also helped me branch out and help me check out the other 28 MLB teams.  I’m not limited to being just “an AL fan or NL fan.”  I’m a baseball fan!  Plus, the move would pay immediate dividends as in 1998, the Cubs would make the playoffs via the wildcard and in 2000, the White Sox would return to the playoffs as well.  And of course, in 2005, the Sox finally brought back the World Series title back to Chicago for the first time since 1917.

 

Nevertheless, this decision has come with a lot of negative reaction from friends and strangers alike.  Most call me a “fair-weathered fan” or a “bandwagon jumper,” but it’s clear to see based on my anecdotes that I truly love cheering for both teams.  The accusations for rooting for both clubs makes me out to be a double-crossing secret agent of sorts.  It reminds me of the story of the bat.  I have to allude to a children’s story because I believe forcing one to choose a baseball team is pretty childish in itself.  I may come off as “confused” as to which team I’m rooting for, but one thing’s for sure: my baseball knowledge is better than any exclusive Cubs’ or White Sox fan.  Probably better than yours, the reader.  And I'll "live and die" with that mantra as a "die-hard" baseball fan any day of any week of any year.

Since 1997, I have been rooting for both the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago White Sox.  2013 will mark 21 years of being a Cubs’ fan and 16 years since being a White Sox fan.  I’ve been to both Wrigley and U.S. Cellular Field; feel right at home at both venues.  More importantly, I can honestly say that my summers are much more enjoyable since I have been rooting for both teams.

So as you can see, after reading both Donny's entry and my Cubs' story, not all Chicago baseball fans are created equal.  There are many stories from numerous friends and strangers alike that started out as  Sox fans and later converted to the Cubs or vice-versa.  A lot of these people took advantage at the one chance to switch allegiances and never looked back.  I, on the other hand, refusing to follow conventional thought, decided to root equally hard for both teams.  It probably helped that my family didn't really care about baseball so there was no pressure weighing down on me to pick one or the other.  As mentioned, as a baseball fan, it's been probably the best "baseball decision" I have ever made.

So what's your story?

Read Johnny  J's story on how he became a Mariners' fan.

More MLB content is available here. 

DIE’D-HARD CUBS FAN or DEAD-HEART FAN OF CUBS

"Moonshots can be heard and seen over the Chicago night sky..."
(photo courtesy of Ed Mancia)

Donny R

As a kid, it's much easier to get into the lumber power of Frank Thomas and Bo Jackson and Co., fireworks at a brand new ball field and, gulp, winning, than it is to get behind the on-base percentage of the aging, early 90's Chicago Cubs’ teams.  Growing up in Chicago proper, your fandom is usually handed down from your DNA donor and incubators: my parents, however, liked both teams though my mom leaned towards the Cubs.  I'm not a parent but if I lived in the city with two “same-sport” team choices and had two young boys, I'd take them to as many Chicago White Sox games as my parents took me, because sports’ integrity is an impossible concept to teach your kids.  I strongly believe that my parents did the right thing nudging me to the winning side.  Why would you even subject your kids to the heartbreak that is the Cubs anyway?  As day baseball was being labored close to my Rogers Park home, the moonshots could be heard and seen over the Chicago night sky in the Summer of the early '90's, but that did not change my allegiance.  A couple of Big-Hurt chocolate bars, Robin Ventura t-shirts, and trips up and down the concourse ramps at the new Comiskey Park, I was obsessed with the White Sox.

Enter 1994. 

The strike ends the Sox World Series hopes and ultimately ends my love affair for the team.  I started playing organized sports at this time.  I, like most Hispanic boys (excluding Pathological Hate’s editor, Felipe), was really fast (For the record, I was my 8^th grade football team's fastest runner and one of the few players that never complained during sprints—Ed).  I thought I was Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez from the film The Sandlot (No relation?—Ed).  And I was probably as fast as the character who shared the same last name as me, except, unlike Benny, I had no coordination whatsoever.  During the pee-wee player assessment try-outs, I didn't field one pop-up or grounder.  I swung and missed on every batting attempt.  So I was put in right field, a safe haven for kids with fielding deficiencies.  You know who else played right field around that time? Sammy Sosa.  Right around 1995, with Michael Jordan attempting a comeback and my loyalty to the Sox just inexplicably wearing off just like things do for most eleven year-olds, I decided I was a Sosa/Cubs’ fan.  Chicks (baby chickens) dig the long ball.  Ok that joke was cheap, cheap.  Crap that was worse; my gags have flown over the coo--

Why did the rooster cross the road, Donny?
(photo courtesy of Ricardo Ponce)

You know where this story goes: 1998 was the most exciting year of my sports-loving life!  The Chicago Bulls had just three-peated, again, WWF (now the WWE-Ed) was embarking in its Attitude era, and Sosa could hit a football with one swing (perhaps even throw it) farther than Erik Kramer and Steve Stenstrom could do all that year, combined.  Jordan was now gone, leaving the face of the city in the hands of Toni Kukoc, Curtis Conway, Tony Amonte, Albert Belle, and Sosa.  

As a teen, just as a pre-teen, I was a front-runner.  Not proud of it, but as an adult now, I'm a fan of honesty.  In High School, tucked away in the suburb of Elk Grove Village, I always looked forward to the Cubs’ games back in the city I lived in the first 12 years of my life.  That's when you cement your allegiance.  Taking that Metra to the Blue Line is where some of my favorite memories are bedrocked.  

The rest is a sad an unfortunate history, with a blip of nice times spaced out on my Cubs’ sonar map:

• 2003 NLCS, I could have done without (The year my soul gave up on life and committed suicide—Ed).  I was in college at Columbia in Chicago, and remember taking the Red Line after class to Wrigley Field to stand outside on Sheffield Ave, for Games 6 and 7, and experienced the realest kind of dejection a sports' fan can ever experience.  
• Sosa "accidentally" grabbing a corked bat that same year (Among many stupid things he has done throughout his life.  Not even talking about the PEDs—Ed).  
• In 2005, from the bleachers, I saw Greg Maddux’s 3,000th strikeout on my brother's 21st birthday.  The Maddux game, aside from the random 2000 Sox game I attended where Mike Cameron hit four home runs, is the best time I've ever had at a game.
• Throw in a couple two-three Cubs vs Sox games, which now happen to be my least favorite sporting event because of everyone in the stands insisting on being drunk dicks to each other.  
• The recent playoff runs were also memorable.  

And now, here we are.  

I'm too old to jump ship to the South Side.  I'm a Cubs' fan from now until death does me part.  Or at least until I have a kid, I'll take "it" to both ball parks around age 7 and let "the child" decide who he roots for.  Hopefully, I can nudge the tyke to bleed “Cubbie Blue,” because after all, misery loves company.  Like father, like son.  Go, Cubs, Go.

To read how Felipe became a Cubs' fan, click here. 

To read how Johnny became a Mariners' fan, click here. 

More MLB content is available here. 

HOW I BECAME A BASEBALL FAN: A 1990s Cubbie Story

It's almost that time again!
(photo courtesy of Ed Mancia)

Felipe M

Part II of the story can be read here.

Something that was brought to my attention back in January when I was listening to The Score where they mentioned that 40% of the Chicago Cubs’ home attendance at Wrigley Field comes from out-of-town tourists.  After doing a quick search on the subject, the number is more like 37% although that figure is from 2011.  Regardless of the year, it’s highly doubtful that the figure dramatically changed in 2012.  So let’s just say that 35% of the Cubs’ home attendance is composed of tourists.  As far back as I can remember, Cubs’ fans have been citing larger home attendance figures to prove their fandom’s superiority in the city of Chicago (more on the “other” team later).  But this figure proves, once again, that the Cubs are more of a tourist attraction than a real, legit, professional team (although, I’m fully aware that things are changing rapidly). 

However, I’m not here to jump on the Cubs and beat them over the head.  That’s too easy.  No, this piece is a bit more personal than petty squabbles regarding the stupid cold war that Chicago baseball fans are enamored with (and the escalated violence that might occur from such squabbles). 

I have been a Cubs’ fan since 1992 and I was part of a generation of children who ran home after school to catch the last few innings of a typical, Cubs’ day game on WGN.

Having immigrant parents, baseball was a very exotic sport—at least in my household.  Not only that, it was quasi-prohibited, but as soon as I took an interest in being a spectator, it was tolerated, but not fully embraced.  So growing up, I learned the game from Harry Caray and Steve Stone. Obviously, Caray was one of my favorite baseball broadcasters of all time and hold very high reverence towards Stone.  I think the man is a baseball genius.  “Stoney” is still the best at predicting the outcomes of at bats and does so on a regular basis that one almost takes it for granted.

As big as a homer Caray was, he spoke his mind and often after drinking a few beers.  Heated baseball discussions and arguments were common between Caray and Stone, the biggest one involved Caray playing the role of “mythbuster” whenever Stone brought up the importance of pitching.  Stone, like 85%+ of baseball fans, experts, and personnel, believed in the old adage that “good pitching always beats good hitting.”  Caray, on the other hand, only believed in that notion when it was actually working and whenever he felt like it, Caray would bait Stone into arguing with him, on air, about why “good pitching” was highly overrated and why it was just as important to have a great offense as well.  “Look at the Atlanta Braves,” Caray once pointed out during a Cubs’ telecast in the mid 1990s, “despite all of the pitching talent, they have zero championships to show for it!” 

Caray would be the same guy who would “root, root for the Cubbies,” during the 7^th inning stretch and would rally the team to “get some runs!”  Nevertheless, when the team was going bad, he'd let the TV audience know about it.  When a player was not performing up to par, Caray was usually the loudest critic.  He didn’t care if it was Greg Maddux or Bob Scanlan, if the pitcher was not recording outs, Caray would be critical of the player (which would explain why I really didn't like Maddux the first few times I watched him on TV). 

Fergie Jenkins was also the pitching coach
during this era of Cubs' baseball.
(photo courtesy of Ed Mancia)

Or when Cubs’ fans acted like idiots (which happened a lot), Caray was the first one to call them out.  He loved the camera shots of bikini-clad, female Cubs’ fans in the stands, but when Cubs fans were wrong, he made sure everybody knew about it, TV ratings and home attendance be damned!  

One instance of this occurred, circa 1993, at a Cubs’ home game.  Defensive stalwart, Rey Sanchez, the Cubs’ starting shortstop at the time, came up to bat.  After the PA announced his name to the crowd for his first at bat of the game, he received a smattering of boos from the home crowd.  

Caray was livid.  “Boo?” Caray asked to no one in particular, “How are you going to ‘boo’ a guy who’s hitting well above .300?  That’s not a player that the fans should be booing.  If anything, they should be cheering for Rey.  He’s a slick, defensive shortstop who is hitting the ball well.  He should not be booed.  Shame on these fans for doing so.”  I’m mostly paraphrasing (he might have mentioned how much of a handsome, young man Sanchez was as well), but one thing Caray did not like was ignorant baseball fans. 

It is because of Caray and Stone that I was able to pick up the game of baseball rather quickly and instantly fell in love with the game.  I will always appreciate the duo for helping me gravitate towards the game and a lot of the pathos that I have for the game currently, comes from them.  They are part of my “baseball foundation,” so to speak.

Unfortunately, being a Cubs’ fan can be one of the most heartbreaking, frustrating, discouraging, and insane thing one can be in this country.  I grew up reading a lot about the New York Yankees in grade school and could've easily been a Yankee fan for life.  Technically, I was offered a clean slate as no one else in my family liked baseball.  I wouldn't have to face the grief from disappointing family members or friends. 

Alas, due to arbitrary loyalty to the city that I live in, I naturally became a Cubs’ fan.  For those that don’t understand what it’s like to root for a team that since the day I was born, up until I became a fan in 1992, had 3 combined playoff wins, it’s like this: it’s like Married…with Children and how Al Bundy really doesn't care about Peggy Bundy, and it’s doubtful if he even really loves his wife, but due to a common bond, history, and loyalty to Peggy, Al risks his neck and constantly swallows his pride for his wife.  He does it because he feels it’s his duty in doing so, but more often than not, he does it out of pure instinct as well.  Like he involuntarily protects and defends the honor of his less than spectacular wife and kids for no other reason than the simple fact that there’s a mechanism inside his head that tells him to unhesitantly do so.  That’s basically what it’s like to be a Cubs’ fan: I’m Al Bundy and the Cubs are my Peggy and my kids.

Let’s Rock!

The Hawk!
(photo courtesy of Ed Mancia)

I grew up watching players like:

• Mark Grace
• Ryne Sandberg
• Andre Dawson
• Greg Maddux
• Paul Assenmacher
• Bob Scanlan
• Kal Daniels
• Sammy Sosa (he was my favorite player almost instantly when he was acquired in 1993 despite being a bonehead on the field and on the bases...and off the field...)
• Derrick May
• Mike Morgan
• Randy Myers
• Bob Patterson
• Kevin Foster
• Mike Harkey
• Steve Buechele
• Rick Wilkins
• Doug Dascenzo
• Luis Gonzalez
• Jose Guzman

The list can go on forever!

Unfortunately, the losing was damn near unbearable.  As mentioned before, I grew up reading a lot about the Yankees and there was one common theme in that franchise's history: they're always winning!  So when my mom bought me a Cubs' Almanac at a dollar store, it was interesting to see how successful the team was in the first half of the 20th century, but how sour and terrible the team got after 1945.  I remember how sick to my stomach I was after reading blunder, after blunder, after blunder....

Eventually, however, the losing finally go to me...  The false sense of hope finally got to me… The digging through a tunnel and finally see a light at the end of it…only to find out that it was a train coming my way to crush me finally go to me…the history of losing… the bad trades…not being real players in the free agent market…refusing to re-sign good players…the bad draft picks…the terrible farm system…all of this finally got to me. 

1997, after 5 seasons of being a Cubs’ fan, I finally had enough! So what happened?

Part II of the story will be available soon.

To read the rest of our MLB content, click here. 

THE GREAT AMERICAN BALLPARK: The Name Says It All

One of the coolest ballparks in the MLB. 

The Cincinnati Reds were awarded the 2015 All-Star Game last week.  So we asked our sports panel If they have ever been to the Great American Ballpark; what did they think of that stadium?  If not, would they ever consider going there to see their favorite team play against the Reds?  Here is what they said.

"Yes, I would go just to check out the stadium. If I went to see the Seattle Mariners, I might be able to lay-down in the seats due to vacancy"--Johnny J

"Chicks dig the long ball: see Todd Frazier in 2012 hit a home run by throwing his bat at a pitch."--Dan P

"If Pathological Hate covers my expenses, I'll drink at any ballpark."--Donny R

"No. The only thing great in OHIO left for South Beach years ago."--C. McLain

In response to Donny, "nice try."  

And from what I hear, Ohio can be a pretty boring place and I really didn't take advantage of checking out the tourist sites in Cincinnati, but the ballpark is simply majestic.  I absolutely loved it when I went there in 2009 when the Chicago Cubs were finishing up their series against the Reds.  Driving there was another story.

See, it's about a 5 hour drive from Chicago to Cincinnati.  Even worse, one must drive through I-65 through Indiana.  If anybody out there wants to see a total wasteland, go ahead and drive through I-65 in Indiana.  Simply depressing.  There were more stalled, abandoned cars on the side of the road than houses adjacent to the freeway.  

One would think that once you get to Indianapolis, things would get better in terms of city views and signs of life--it's not.  Indianapolis, when driving right through its heart, is just as depressing as I-65.  There are all of these small to medium, old, rustic, buildings that can be spotted from the freeway.  It was like going back in time 30 years--no, it was more like being in a set of a movie where the setting takes place in the 1970s.  And then--BOOM!  The enormously, gigantic Lucas Oil Stadium appears on the horizon.  It just simply, in a comical way, overwhelms and blankets the rest of the city.  It truly is a magnificent sight to see, but it's funny that when driving on the highway, the "House that Peyton Built" becomes the default largest artificial structure in town.  

In terms of the scenic view, things get better once you get closer to Ohio as rolling hills and deciduous woodlands fill the surrounding landscape on I-74/I-465.  I love road trips, but the idea of driving back to Cincinnati kind of makes me cringe, simply because one would have to drive through Indiana.  Nevertheless, the destination is a major reward in itself.

Cubs vs Reds; June 7, 2009--"The Rubber Match"

Located nearby Paul Brown Stadium, home of the Cincinnati Bengals, and adjacent to the Ohio River, the ballpark is simply an architectural beauty.  Yes, it has a theme park feel to it, but that's ok. The aesthetics more than make up for it. 

It feels like a theme park because the day I went, there were these video game trucks that were set up just outside the ballpark.  Technically, there's this area by the Ohio River where its still part of the ballpark, but it's outside the view of the field.  There's a food court, the video game trucks for the kids who were bored by the game, and for an extra fee, you can pay an admission fee to check out the Reds Hall of Fame. 

Portions of the center field stands is shaped like a riverboat and I believe that structure doubles up as an exclusive restaurant to certain ticketholders.  In right field, there's an area where fans can go to cool off.  About 30-40 fans can fit underneath the "cooling area" as cool, mists of water sprinkle down on people standing underneath the water apparatus.  

You cannot walk around the entire concourse of the park as certain areas are only accessible for fans designated at those seats.  However, you're never too far from a view of the city.  We were sitting in the centerfield bleachers and as I was getting hot dogs and beer, I could get a great view of the Ohio River: I can even see Kentucky from my vantage point.

That's the other thing I didn't realize: Cincinnati is kind of "redneck-y" due to its location on the Ohio-Kentucky border.  As a minority citizen, when I hear people scream out "yee-haw!" I kind of start to panic.  But we were not once harassed by any of the locals and they proved to be friendly.  Then again, I would say 30-40% of Cubs' fans made up the attendance figures on that day so we were well represented.  

Overall, I definitely wouldn't mind going back to Cincinnati to catch a Cubs/White Sox game.  I hate the idea of driving back through Indiana, but The Great American Ballpark lived up to its reputation.

Cubs won 6-3 as Alfonso Soriano the game-winning homerun.
The Cubs would add two more insurance runs before
closing out the Reds. 

All pictures courtesy of Ed Mancia. 

For more on the Reds, click here. 

For more on MLB, click here.

MEMORABLE SPORTS' BROADCAST CALLS

The living legend: the great Vin Scully on the jumbotron (Source: Mike McCann's Field of Fotos)

Felipe M

This past week, ESPN paid homage to the “Sunshine Showdown,” a boxing event that pitted two all-time greats in Joe Frazier and George Foreman 40 years ago.  More importantly, this is where the iconic Howard Cosell’s signature call (well, one of many signature calls) of “Down goes Frazier!” was born.  Even though Cosell would be known for that call, it is worth mentioning that he was fantastic throughout the fight, giving us memorable quips such as:

• “I think [Foreman] hurt Joe Frazier. I think Joe is hurt.” (moments before the first knockdown)
• “AND FOREMAN IS AS POISED AS CAN BE!” (after the first knockdown).
• “Frazier is DAZED! HE is getting hit AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN!”
• “FRAZIER IS DOWN AGAIN and he may be—NO! HE IS RISING! HE IS DAZED! HE DOESN’T KNOW WHERE HE IS!”
• “DOWN AGAIN! NO SAVING BY THE BELL!”
• “HE IS DOWN! HE IS DOWN FOR THE FOURTH TIME IN THE FIGHT!”
• “IT IS TARGET PRACTICE FOR GEORGE FOREMAN! IT IS TARGET PRACTICE!”

Bleacher Report did a pretty good countdown of memorable sports’ calls.  So I asked our sports panel to share what their favorite broadcast call of all time is.

“’The Music City Miracle’: Titans pull off a win against the Buffalo Bills in a Wildcard game thanks to a trick play on special teams.”—Johnny J.

Signature Call: Mike Keith and Pat Ryan were calling the game for the Tennessee Titans and Johnny acknowledges Keith’s call of “There are no flags on the field” and “Tennessee has pulled a miracle” as the calls that make the play memorable, but Ryan commenting “He’s got something,” as Kevin Dyson runs it back down the sideline towards the end zone makes this a prime example of two broadcasters with great chemistry calling an exciting play. 

Dan Plotsky chose Al Michaels’ call on the 1980 USA Hockey Team’s upset of the hated, rival Soviet Union as not only his favorite broadcast call, but also “the second most important moment in American [sports outside of] Jesse Owens in Germany 1936.”

(How about Jackie Robinson breaking the color-barrier?--Ed)

Signature Call: “Do you believe in miracles? YES!”

C. McLain picked Johnny Most’s “Havlicek Stole the Ball” call of Game 7 of the 1965 Eastern Conference Finals.

Donny Rodriguez shares this little anecdote with us:

“My memorable call was the Ron Santo and Pat Hughes radio call from the Brant Brown dropped fly ball in Milwaukee that almost cost the Chicago Cubs a shot at the 1998 wildcard.  I was in the nurse’s office after school hours, waiting for my parents to pick me up after ralphing in the bathroom and the nurse had the radio on.  When Santo screamed like a whipped dog, "Oh No!" the nurse said to me, no lie, “Well, you won't be the only one throwing up today."

Ron Santo lived his life a die-hard Cubs' fan;
He died as a long-life Cubs' fan.
Currently residing in Cooperstown.
(photo courtesy of Ed Mancia)

I too remember how devastated I was when Brown dropped the ball, but I did not panic like most Cubs’ fans.  A lot of people called the local sports radio shows and were ready to call off the season, commit suicide, or pull off other melodramatic stunts when Brown dropped the ball.  But I remembered, as a 15 year-old kid, trying to figure out why so many people were frantic about this one game.  As far as I was concerned, the Cubs still had a good chance of making the playoffs.  What I didn't expect was that they would have to play a one-game playoff for that playoff spot, but regardless. 

But fans, everywhere, were quick to point out the goofy Cubs’ history about being cursed and how good, winning seasons can’t be enjoyed because the Cubs will find a way to “Cub it up” in the end.  I, on the other hand, thought it was a new age and era in 1998 and it was time to distance ourselves from the bad history and make our own history.  It is an ethos I carry to this day as a Cubs’ fan, but, admittedly, I sometimes wonder about this team and their string of bad luck.  2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, etc…

I have a few of my own to share.

June 2, 1992, Harry Caray was calling an extra-inning game between the Cubs and the San Diego Padres.  Ryne Sandberg is at second; Andre Dawson is at first; Mark Grace is at the plate.  This is how the rest of the game went:

“There goes a double! CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN!”

Typical Harry, making every game seem like it was the World Series.  Grace drove the ball down the right field line scoring Sandberg from 2^nd base.  Even though Harry is known for his “Way back, way back…it might be…it could be… IT IS!” homerun calls, any ball that he saw go down the 1^st or 3^rd base lines or hit the wall in the gaps, was an automatic “double” for him.  Even though Grace gets credit for a single, as far as Harry was concerned, any ball hit down the lines, should be an easy double. 

The Chicago White Sox play-by-play announcer, Ken “Hawk” Harrelson, is notorious for his array of catchphrases: 

“He gone!”

“Mercy!”

“Duck snort”

“There’s a can of corn”

“Sacks packed with Sox”

“You gotta be bleepin’ me!”

“Dag gummit”

“Stretch…stretch…he looks up…you can put it on the bbbooooooaaaarrrrdddddd…YES!!!”

“This game is OVAH!”

But ultimately, my favorite broadcast calls of all time involve Vin Scully.  Might just be the greatest broadcaster of all time.  I envy Los Angeles for having this treasure right in their own backyard.  Game 6 of the 1986 World Series call of Mookie Wilson’s dribbler down the first base line, which eventually goes right through Bill Buckner’s legs, still brings me chills:

“Behind the BAG! IT GETS THROUGH BUCKNER!”

Nevertheless, one of the greatest moments in MLB history involves two, outstanding, nationally aired broadcast calls.  Game 1 of the 1988 World Series where Kirk Gibson hits a homerun off Dennis Eckersley provided us with two legendary broadcasters giving us two of the greatest calls of all time.  One from Scully and the other one from Jack Buck:

• “In a year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened!”
• “UNBELIEVABLE…I don’t believe what I just saw! I DON’T BELIEVE WHAT I JUST SAW!”

Feel free to share your favorite sports’ calls in the comments’ section below.