Race To Wrigley 2010

The 5th annual "Race to Wrigley" 5K Run will be held on Saturday, April 24. The 5K Run, which starts and finishes at Wrigley Field, will help kick off the 2010 baseball season while benefiting Chicago Cubs Charities. All personal fundraising proceeds benefit Children's Memorial Hospital.

So it looks like Wrigley Field will once again be at the center of race. More like "Racists To Wrigley." Amirite?

It's Spring, Must Be Time To Talk About Race & Baseball

I'm sure everyone has heard the accusations that Cubs fans are racist by Milton Bradley, who forevermore will be referred to as He Who Shall Remain Nameless or HWSRN because I'm tired of typing his name. If you don't remember, HWSRN was nice enough to give an interview and talk about his experience in Chicago again. He was asked if race played a role in Chicago:

"I got the same mail LaTroy [Hawkins] probably got; the same mail Jacque [Jones] got," Bradley said. "Every time I got mail, I handed it to the PR guy and said, 'Here it goes.'

"I was getting so much until I didn't even have to open up the letter to know what it was, I could see from the envelope. I could just tell, you get an envelope, no address on it, no postmark, it's just in your mail. How does that get in your cubby hole? I don't know how that happens." Bradley was asked if he thought the mail with no postage mark was sent from inside the organization. "I would hope not, but ... who knows?" he said. "I don't know. I don't even care to know."

One possible theory could be that people in the organization were dumb enough to send HWSRN hate mail from inside the building, therefore the mail wasn't postmarked. Another possible theory is that HWSRN is fucking lying. I have to be honest, I don't care either way.

Bradley, who was traded to the Mariners for Carlos Silva and cash on Dec. 18, was asked if Chicago is a tough place to play for African-Americans.

"Well, I mean unless you go out there and you're Superman -- you're Andre Dawson, you're Ernie Banks, you're in the Hall of Fame -- then it's going to be tough," Bradley said. "People are just the way they are.

"When you get paid a lot of money to play this game, they expect miracles. And when you don't go out there and perform like that, then people don't like it. People don't want to see a guy that's brash and cocky and a little arrogant and kind of does his own thing making a lot of money. They were like, 'He doesn't deserve that.'"

I could argue that when you get paid a lot of money to play this game, the fans don't expect miracles, they only expect you to produce. If you don't produce, then yeah, I can see why people wouldn't want to see you walking around all cocky and arrogant because people don't like cocky and arrogant people who get paid a lot for doing very little. But I won't argue that, I'll let Ryan Dempster do that for me. Dempster used to get booed a lot when he was the Cubs closer. How does he handle it when he gets booed?

"Play as hard as I can," he said. "I think if you give 100 percent and prepare as hard as you can and take pride in what you do, that seems to work no matter where you're playing or who you are. I care a lot about winning and doing things the right way. I don't always do things the right way and I'm not perfect. They're fans, and they pay the ticket to come in and have every right to boo if they feel you're not giving 100 percent or your best effort."

LaTroy Hawkins and Jacque Jones also had a tough time while playing for the Cubs. Is it more difficult for African-American players there?

"I don't know. I'm Caucasian," Dempster said. "[Derrek Lee] seems to really like it there. He's really enjoyed Chicago and loves playing there. Some other guys I've played with have really had a good time playing there. I know Marlon [Byrd] is going to have a blast playing there. I think any time you struggle, it can be tough, no matter what color your skin is."

What does it say about a team when the guy who carries around a rubber chicken is the smart one?

Breathe Just Like The Lava Lizards of the Galapagos Islands, But in Spanish...

From chicagotribune.com:

One after another Wednesday at HoHoKam Park, the line drives exploded off the bat of Alfonso Soriano during Cubs batting practice.

Behind the cage hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo didn't see a single one land, his eyes focused intently on Soriano's hips and his words aimed specifically for his ears.

"Espidad, espidad!'' Jaramillo repeated.

Asked later for a translation, Jaramillo explained the command reminds the free-swinging Soriano to slow down his breathing, which slows down his mind and thus his approach to the ball.

This is why Jaramillo is so important to this team. When he speaks, his words are aimed specifically for people's ears and he reminds them to breathe. Eat your heart out, Gerald Perry.

Jaramillo doesn't necessarily have to speak the same language to connect with a hitter he mentored for two seasons with the Rangers. But, in Soriano's case, it improves his hearing as well as his hitting.

"Sure it helps," Jaramillo said. "I love teaching in Spanish.''

Although it confuses the hell out of Mike Fontenot.

All kidding aside, I am excited about the addition of Rudy Jaramillo to the coaching staff. In fact, while covering Spring Training for BLT, I was able to sit in while Jaramillo worked with Ryan Theriot in the batting cages yesterday in sunny Arizona. I have to tell you that it definitely looked encouraging. See for yourself:

Familiarity Breeds Contempt

I'm trying to remain positive, I really am, it just seems to be getting harder to do by the day. Yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times had an article by Gordon Wittenmyer that pissed me off but for once... it wasn't because of Wittenmyer. Here is the Cubs take on why it's so important to build a good farm system and how theirs is starting to bear some fruit.

It finally might mean producing enough position players to establish a big-league core of regulars talented enough to contend. A core raised in the system, familiar with each other and able not only to lessen the need for big-money free agents every offseason, but also to help ease the transition of those who are brought in from the outside.

I'm sure familiarity is great and all but I'm not sure how that really promotes winning. You know what is better than familiarity? Talent. I think I'd rather have talented players who are unfamiliar with one another.

With few exceptions, championship teams are built from within. And no team since the earliest days of free agency in the 1970s has been able to sustain success for more than a year or two at a time without a core of homegrown players, including a core of position players.

I would say the Yankees are doing pretty well by bringing in A-Rod, Teixeira, Sabathia, Burnett, Matsui, etc. I wonder how long it took them to become familiar with one another?

''Four to six. I use that,'' said Cubs bench coach Alan Trammell, who played on perennial contenders with the Detroit Tigers that were built around him, Lou Whitaker, Lance Parrish, Jack Morris, Dan Petry and other homegrown players. ''That's ideally what you'd like to have.''

Will somebody please tell the Yankees they're doing it wrong?

The value of homegrown position players shows up in their stature as every-day players, where team leaders usually come from. Get a group of talented players who came up together and know one another's personalities, flaws and strengths, and trust doesn't require a transition period. A culture is formed, and those who enter from the outside more easily fold into it than if almost all the regulars are from somewhere else.

Again, at the risk of being redundant, PLEASE JUST GIVE ME SOME GOOD GODDAMNED PLAYERS! I don't care if they all come from different planets and get their powers from the yellow fucking sun or if they are called up from Iowa. Makes no difference to me. Let's just keep in mind that the object here is to win, not to hold hands and sing Kumbaya.

And just as important looking ahead, the Ricketts family has spent hours in meetings with the executives running their new ballclub and are on board with the philosophy and direction already under way. ''Our commitment -- and what Tom Ricketts I think is extremely comfortable with -- is: 'Let's spend more money on scouting and player development and get out of the free-agent business for the most part,''' Bush said.

Get out of the free-agent business for the most part? What. The. Fuck? How the hell are you going to charge me $100 a ticket and then tell me you're not going to spend money? I'm tired of the excuses of why a big market team wants to act like a small market team. I'm not a Royals fan, quit fucking treating me like I'm one!

Dan McNeil Sucks At Proving A Point

We're slowly starting to awake from our winter slumber here at BLT as all the usual signs of spring are here. Pitchers and catchers have already reported, regular season tickets go on sale today, and there are already pointless articles about Carlos Zambrano.

Today's article in question comes courtesy of Dan McNeil in today's Chicago Tribune. I don't really care if he chooses to be pessimistic about this Cubs team, he and others can probably find some very valid reasons to not be too excited about this upcoming season. But, if he's going to be pessimistic he better bring something better to the table than this garbage:

It's a good thing Zambrano found a gym and learned to push himself away from the table this winter, but Lilly has been the only bulldog on the Cubs' staff in each of the last three seasons. Even if Zambrano fit comfortably in 34-waist pants, I wouldn't trust him. The Cubs didn't in 2006 when they settled on a one-year deal to avoid arbitration with him before they caved and signed him to a long-term $91.5 million deal in August of 2007

Uh, teams don't cave and spend 91.5 million on a player they don't want. The Cubs did want him and they paid him to stay. You don't like him and want him to go. Point taken, but let's not rewrite history here.

In the last three seasons, Lilly has won 44 games to Zambrano's 41, while both posted 26 losses. You can trust Lilly to pass on craving oohs and aahs from on-lookers with tape measure home runs in batting practice at Coors Field when he's nursing a bad back. He's compliant when he needs treatment.

Ted Lilly = Trustworthy
Carlos Zambrano = Not Trustworthy
Trustworthy = 44 wins in 3 years
Not Trustworthy = 41 wins in 3 years
The difference between trustworthy and not trustworthy is 1 win per year?

You trust Lilly to throw strikes. The lefty walked only 36 in 177 innings last year while Zambrano walked 78 and plunked nine others — in fewer innings. While Zambrano was crawling to his nine victories last year — at almost $2 million per victory — opposing hitters batted .230 against Lilly

If you are going to use a useless stat such as wins for your barometer of what makes a good pitcher, it would probably be fair to mention that while Zambrano crawled to his 9 wins, Ted Lilly sprinted to 12. Maybe it also would have been fair to point out that last year's team didn't hit all that well in Zambrano's starts? Of course, that wouldn't help McNeil's slanted take.

Put me down for the first week in May for not-so-Big Z's first implosion. Not sure if it will be getting tossed for undressing an umpire or pulling up lame trying to stretch a double, but an eruption is a certainty. Until the man-child proves he's as right between the ears as he is in the hips, I'm betting against the Cubs getting this cat's potential actualized.

Hello, kettle? It's me, pot. McNeil pointing out other people that can't control their tempers and chastising them for it is a little ironic considering this, this, and this.

And the pressure is on Zambrano now more than ever. The staff is missing its most-prized asset until at least May. Tom Gorzelanny, Sean Marshall, Jeff Samardzija (who's still learning on the job) and maybe the reborn Carlos Silva are vying for spots in Lou Piniella's rotation. That leaves Randy Wells, with one year of major-league success on his resume, as the Cubs steadiest starter.

Look, I love me some Ted Lilly and I would never want to anger the esteemed Ted Lilly Fan Club, but I can probably make a case that Ted Lilly isn't the "most-prized asset." Does losing him until May hurt? Absofuckinlutely. But I'd rather lose Lilly, who plays once every five games, until May than someone like Ramirez again. Oh, and the steadiest starter is Randy Wells? Must be because he had 12 wins last year which is 3 more than Zambrano. Ryan Dempster only had 11 wins so he obviously gets passed over in favor of Wells because 12 is steadier than 11. Is everyone following along?

Did I mention Carlos Marmol still is an enormous question mark? Or how much of a suspect the high-priced Alfonso Soriano remains? No worries. Sam Fuld was in camp several days before he was required. And he will be among all of those Cubs on the top step of the dugout when the scrimmages commence. It's all for one and one for all. Boy, how nothing changes even after Tribune Co. yielded to the Ricketts family.

He's right, nothing changed after the Trib yielded to the Ricketts family. White Sox fans like McNeil are still assholes.

I'm With Theriot On This One...

Yet Another Reason To Hate Phil Rogers

As I'm sure everyone has heard by now, the Hall of Fame has decided that Andre Dawson will wear an Expos hat when he is enshrined into the Hall next July. While I found the news mildly disappointing, I saw this as an issue that could've gone either way. It just happened to go the way that I didn't prefer.

Well, Phil Rogers saw this as an issue that could've gone only one way and in his eyes the Hall of Fame got this no-brainer decision correct. The reasons, however, are astonishingly stupid.

Given the popularity of the Cubs, Dawson's preference and the relocation of the Montreal franchise to Washington, the easy call would have been to point to Dawson's MVP season in 1987 as the reason to use a Cubs cap for his plaque. But Dawson gave Montreal 10 extremely good seasons, including eight in which he either won a Rookie of the Year award, made an All-Star team, received votes for MVP or won a Gold Glove.

Fun fact: Andre Dawson won the Rookie of the Year award a record 8 times during his 10 seasons in Montreal.

Along with guys such as Tim Raines, Gary Carter, Steve Rogers, Jeff Reardon, Ellis Valentine, Warren Cromartie, Larry Parrish and Tim Wallach — among others — he was part of a remarkable run for the Expos' player development staff and, no matter what he thinks about the turf at Olympic Stadium, belongs more to Montreal's fans than any among us in Chicago.

I defy you to make any sense of that sentence. It's impossible.

Dawson's legacy in Chicago lies in the blank-check contract, the MVP season — never mind that last-place finish — and the consistent good vibes between him and fans who were basking in the development of Wrigleyville bars and restaurants, the charisma of Harry Caray and the retro cool of a ballpark that avoided lights until 1988.

I love this argument. Montreal = Pure baseball crazed fans. Chicago = Outdoor beer garden goers who love the sun. Advantage: Montreal!

These are all great things, for sure, but for Dawson there was no Carlton Fisk moment in Chicago. He somehow had seven more playoff hits in Montreal (of all places) than he did with the Cubs, as he was 2-for-19 in the '89 NLCS against San Francisco.

Very true, he did not have a "Carlton Fisk" moment in Chicago. I've always held it against him that he never hit a game-winning home run in Game 6 of a World Series. He also never had a Kirk Gibson moment, a Don Larsen moment or a Bobby Thompson moment. Oh well, at least he never had a Bill Buckner moment either.

Give the Hawk a significant role in getting the Cubs to the World Series and I would join him and you in arguing that he should be immortalized as a Cub. Sadly, the lasting memory of Dawson in that '89 series is the agonizing look he wore on his face limping back to the dugout after too many strikeouts and popups.

After reading Phil Rogers' take on this, I'm not sure if we're debating whether Dawson should wear a Cubs or Expos hat when he is enshrined, or if he should even be enshrined at all?

Jim Hendry Press Conference - Marlon Byrd Signing

Jim Hendry has called a press conference to announce the typical ridiculous idiotic shrewd contract he negotiated to sign super-duperstar Marlon Byrd. The video can be seen below.