The 2013 Cubs Season Is Here, And I’m NOT A Happy Man
The Chicago Cubs kick off their 2013 season Monday in Pittsburgh and have their home opener at Wrigley Field a week later. This is going to be another rough year for the Cubs, and I’m using the miracle of multimedia to illustrate my thoughts on what I once called the “2013 Season Of A Dream”, before it became apparent that a club dedicated to rebuilding, on and off the field and mired in politics has no chance of even finishing over .500.
First, my thoughts on video. Like the Cubs themselves, the quality is kind of substandard, and for that I apologize.
And because all of us Social Media Ninjas or Social Media Gurus or whatever the people who really don’t know a thing about social media want to call themselves these days say that everything you post needs a visual, I’ve created this with the help of the good people at someecards.com.
2013 CUBS CLUB MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS
- Personalized membership card
- Membership sticker
- 2013 MLB.com Gameday Audio for your computer*
- Opportunity to participate in an exclusive Cubs Club members-only on-field event*
- Exclusive email newsletter
- Access to members-only website with exclusive content and offers
- Opportunity to receive a 30-day trial to the MLB Insiders Club*
Not a horrible deal, but basically handing a double Sawbuck to the Rickets Family for nothing, except the Gameday Audio, which comes from MLB Advanced Media. And for the same 20 bucks, about the price of a hot dog and a Budweiser at the St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium, I can get all this cool geeked out stuff for my phone, MLB At Bat.
At Bat for Android Phones
- Multi-platform live audio access for At Bat 13 subscribers (portable to Mac/PC with a valid MLB.com account)
- Universal support for At Bat 13 subscribers, accessible on Android smartphones and tablets and other supported mobile devices
- Re-designed individual team pages
- Re-architected news section navigation
- Expanded video highlight integration
- One-time annual fee of $19.99 for the entire 2013 season
- MLB.TV Premium subscribers receive At Bat 13 for free with log-in
- Access your MLB.TV Premium subscription to watch live video
- Listen to available live radio broadcasts
- Customize At Bat’s home screen to feature your designated favorite team.
- Favorite team home screen widget for one-click access to your favorite team’s At Bat homepage
- MLB home screen widget for in-progress scores around the league
- Follow batter-by-batter action for every game
- Enhanced video library archive, searchable by player, team or keyword
- Breaking news, schedules and interactive rosters and players stats for every team
DO I LOOK STUPID? If I’m going to give up 20 bucks this year, knowing that the Cubs will not be great, tickets will be easy to find when I go to the Friendly Confines Of Wrigley Field, and the Cubs Club gives me almost nothing special, who do you think is getting my “contribution” this year? You betcha, MLB Advanced Media and At Bat 2013.
I’m not looking forward to the 2013 Cubs season from a competitive basis for sure, and I’m not sure if I’m even looking forward to having to hear about all the off field distractions that will contribute to a poor performance on the diamond. It saddens me that I feel this way even before the first pitch is thrown out. Perhaps I’ve just been kicked in the teeth enough over the years. Perhaps I’m setting realistic expectations for the year ahead. Or perhaps the dreams of this kid have finally evaporated like the foam off of a pure brewed Old Style.
Mark Edwards Previews The Cubs 2013 Season
In his annual video preview of the upcoming Cubs season, Mark is joined by special guests, including the owner of the Cubs!
WGN TV Announces Schedule Of Cubs Broadcasts For 2013
Soon Cubs games on WGN might join these guys.
From the “get it while you can” file, before Cubs games leave WGN Television after the 2014 season, the station has released the schedule of games they’ll be carrying or shuffling off to WCIU in Chicago this season. Here it is for your consumption:
WGN 9 (9.1) & WCIU 26 (26.1)
CHICAGO CUBS BASEBALL
2013 CHICAGO TV SCHEDULE
Central Time/Subject To Change
Day Date Game PregameGameCoverage Postgame Channel
Fri 03/15/13 Cubs @ White Sox (Preseason) 2:00 PM WGN
Sat 03/16/13 Cubs vs Kansas City (Preseason) 3:00 PM WGN
Sun 03/17/13 Cubs @ Oakland (Preseason) 3:00 PM WGN
Fri 03/22/13 Cubs @ Milwaukee (Preseason) 3:00 PM WGN
Sat 03/23/13 Cubs vs LA Angels (Preseason) 3:00 PM WGN
Mon 04/01/13 Cubs @ Pittsburgh 12:30 PM 3:15 PM WGN
Thu 04/04/13 Cubs @ Pittsburgh 11:30 AM 2:15 PM WGN
Sat 04/06/13 Cubs @ Atlanta 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Mon 04/08/13 Cubs vs Milwaukee 12:30 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Tue 04/09/13 Cubs vs Milwaukee 7:00 PM WGN
Sun 04/14/13 Cubs vs San Francisco 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 04/17/13 Cubs vs Texas 7:00 PM WGN
Thu 04/18/13 Cubs vs Texas 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Fri 04/19/13 Cubs @ Milwaukee 7:00 PM WCIU
Tue 04/23/13 Cubs @ Cincinnati 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Thu 04/25/13 Cubs @ Miami 6:00 PM WCIU
Fri 04/26/13 Cubs @ Miami 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Tue 04/30/13 Cubs vs San Diego 7:00 PM WCIU
Sun 05/05/13 Cubs vs Cincinnati 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Tue 05/07/13 Cubs vs St. Louis 7:00 PM WGN
Fri 05/10/13 Cubs @ Washington 6:00 PM WCIU
Sun 05/12/13 Cubs @ Washington 12:00 PM 12:30 PM 3:15 PM WGN
Mon 05/13/13 Cubs vs Colorado 7:00 PM WCIU
Fri 05/17/13 Cubs vs NY Mets 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 05/19/13 Cubs vs NY Mets 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 05/22/13 Cubs @ Pittsburgh 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Fri 05/24/13 Cubs @ Cincinnati 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Sat 05/25/13 Cubs @ Cincinnati 2:30 PM 3:00 PM WGN
Mon 05/27/13 Cubs @ White Sox 5:30 PM 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Tue 05/28/13 Cubs @ White Sox 7:00 PM WCIU
Wed 05/29/13 Cubs vs White Sox 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Thu 05/30/13 Cubs vs White Sox 12:30 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 06/02/13 Cubs vs Arizona 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Tue 06/04/13 Cubs @ LA Angels 9:00 PM WGN
Fri 06/07/13 Cubs vs Pittsburgh 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 06/09/13 Cubs vs Pittsburgh 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Tue 06/11/13 Cubs vs Cincinnati 7:00 PM WGN
Sun 06/16/13 Cubs @ NY Mets 12:00 PM 2:45 PM WGN
Mon 06/17/13 Cubs @ St. Louis 6:00 PM WCIU
Thu 06/20/13 Cubs @ St. Louis 7:00 PM 7:05 PM WGN
Sat 06/22/13 Cubs vs Houston 2:30 PM 3:00 PM WGN
Wed 06/26/13 Cubs @ Milwaukee 7:00 PM WGN
Fri 06/28/13 Cubs @ Seattle 9:00 PM WGN
Thu 07/04/13 Cubs @ Oakland 3:00 PM WGN
Sat 07/06/13 Cubs vs Pittsburgh 2:30 PM 3:00 PM WGN
Sun 07/07/13 Cubs vs Pittsburgh 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 07/10/13 Cubs vs LA Angels 7:00 PM WGN
Fri 07/12/13 Cubs vs St. Louis 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Fri 07/19/13 Cubs @ Colorado 7:00 PM 7:30 PM WGN
Sat 07/20/13 Cubs @ Colorado 7:00 PM WGN
Tue 07/23/13 Cubs @ Arizona 8:00 PM 8:30 PM WGN
Thu 07/25/13 Cubs @ Arizona 8:00 PM 8:30 PM WGN
Fri 07/26/13 Cubs @ San Francisco 9:00 PM 9:05 PM WGN
Sun 07/28/13 Cubs @ San Francisco 3:00 PM 5:45 PM WGN
Wed 07/31/13 Cubs vs Milwaukee 7:00 PM WGN
Fri 08/02/13 Cubs vs LA Dodgers 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 08/04/13 Cubs vs LA Dodgers 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 08/07/13 Cubs @ Philadelphia 6:00 PM WCIU
Fri 08/09/13 Cubs @ St. Louis 7:00 PM 7:05 PM WGN
Sat 08/10/13 Cubs @ St. Louis 6:00 PM 6:05 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Sun 08/11/13 Cubs @ St. Louis 1:00 PM 1:05 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 08/14/13 Cubs vs Cincinnati 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 08/18/13 Cubs vs St. Louis 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 08/21/13 Cubs vs Washington 7:00 PM WGN
Thu 08/22/13 Cubs vs Washington 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sat 08/24/13 Cubs @ San Diego 7:00 PM 7:30 PM WGN
Sun 08/25/13 Cubs @ San Diego 3:00 PM 5:45 PM WGN
Tue 08/27/13 Cubs @ LA Dodgers 9:00 PM WGN
Fri 08/30/13 Cubs vs Philadelphia 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 09/01/13 Cubs vs Philadelphia 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Mon 09/02/13 Cubs vs Miami 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Fri 09/06/13 Cubs vs Milwaukee 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sun 09/08/13 Cubs vs Milwaukee 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 09/11/13 Cubs @ Cincinnati 11:30 AM 2:15 PM WGN
Thu 09/12/13 Cubs @ Pittsburgh 6:00 PM 8:45 PM WGN
Sun 09/15/13 Cubs @ Pittsburgh 12:00 PM 12:30 PM 3:15 PM WGN
Mon 09/16/13 Cubs @ Milwaukee 7:00 PM WGN
Thu 09/19/13 Cubs @ Milwaukee 1:00 PM 3:45 PM WGN
Sat 09/21/13 Cubs vs Atlanta 2:30 PM 3:00 PM WGN
Sun 09/22/13 Cubs vs Atlanta 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Wed 09/25/13 Cubs vs Pittsburgh 1:00 PM 1:10 PM 4:15 PM WGN
Sat 09/28/13 Cubs @ St. Louis 6:00 PM 6:05 PM 8:45 PM WGN
So there you have it, what will probably be the next to last season of exciting Cubs Baseball on the Big Channel 9 and cable systems around America. You may plan your sick days now.
Related articles
- Cubs may say goodbye to WGN-TV after 2014 season (wgntv.com)
- Cubs Looking For Tv Deal Like The Dodgers Got (contactmusic.com)
- Report: Brenly Wanted To Return To Cubs Booth (chicago.cbslocal.com)
Happy Cubs Valentine’s Day
I’m not ashamed to admit that I lifted this photo from the Cubs Facebook feed. Let’s hope their play this season is as interesting as their graphics.
Some Of Stan Musial’s Biggest Moments Happened at Wrigley Field
From the wonderful site Just One Bad Century, this tidbit about the special relationship the late great Stan Musial had with the Cubs and Wrigley Field.
STAN MUSIAL IN WRIGLEY FIELD
He was the star player of the biggest Cubs rival, and because of that, he played many games at Wrigley Field.
But it was a game he wasn’t supposed to play that led to his inadvertently making history at the Friendly Confines.
The year was 1958. The date was May 13th.
Musial had 2999 career hits, and the Cardinals decided not to play him so that he could get the historic hit in front of their home fans at Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis the following day.
But fate intervened. In the top of the 6th, with Moe Drabowsky (photo) on the mound and the Cubs leading the game 3-1, the Cardinals had one out and a runner in scoring position.
Cardinals pitcher Sam Jones (the former Cub) was up to bat. Cardinals manager Fred Hutchinson looked down the bench in his dugout and couldn’t resist. After all, he had a hall of famer sitting on the bench, and history be damned, the Cardinals wanted to win the game.
So, Musial pinch hit for Jones, and lashed a double down the line. It was the 3000th hit of his career. And it happened at Wrigley Field.
Cardinals fans were not amused.
Musial said at the time: “I never realized that batting a little ball around could cause so much commotion. I now know how (Charles) Lindbergh must have felt when he returned from St. Louis.”
On June 30, 1959, Musial was involved in another memorable moment at Wrigley Field–probably the most bizarre moment in his career–the infamous two balls in play at once play.
He was hitting against Cubs pitcher Bob Anderson. Anderson’s 3-1 pitch sailed back to the screen, and was called “ball four.” But Cubs catcher Sammy Taylor ignored the baseball‚ insisting to the umpire that it had ticked off Musial’s bat. As the Cubs manager joined the argument at home plate‚ Musial’s teammates assumed it was a live ball and shouted at Musial to run to second base.
Cubs third baseman Alvin Dark rushed in to retrieve the ball, but not before it was picked up by the bat boy, and tossed aside. Meanwhile, the home plate umpire had mistakenly given a new ball to the catcher. Dark grabbed the first baseball, while pitcher Anderson grabbed the new one, and both men simultaneously threw their baseballs to shortstop Ernie Banks, who caught one of them. Seeing one of the two throws bounce into center field, Musial got up to advance to third base, and was tagged out by Banks with the other ball.
In the confusion, Musial was sent back to first base, before being ruled out at second. (Here’s the audio play by play of that incredibly confusing moment).
In 1962, near the end of his playing days (he retired after the 1963 season), Musial had another moment at Wrigley Field that he considered one of the highlights of his career. His son Dick, who was a track star at Notre Dame, took the day off school and came to Wrigley to watch his father play. Musial not only hit a home run, he did something that really impressed his son. He stole a base.
He was 42 years old at the time.
Rick Kaempfer is the man behind Just One Bad Century, and I highly recommend both that site and his personal blog for your reading pleasure. And I thank him for sharing the story about Stan The Man from Just One Bad Century.
Related articles
- Fans remember Stan Musial as a ‘hometown hero’ (stltoday.com)
- ‘We’re not the same without Stan’ (stltoday.com)
- Bernie: Musial’s value as a person transcended statistics (stltoday.com)
I Can Almost Smell The Wrigley Field Bathrooms
From the good people at WGN TV, this photo:
If Ernie Says It’s True, Then It’s True
A Christmas Miracle From The Chicago Cubs
Being the person that I am, I do not really believe in the concept of a “Christmas Miracle”. Yes, there was that whole manger thing a couple of thousand years ago, and there was that “miracle” on 34th Street, but I’ve never had a Christmas Miracle happen to ME. This year, I was hoping for a hi tech iPod or Google Nexus 7 tablet.
But I got an unexpected and amazing gift in the mail today from my beloved Chicago Cubs. Look at this, something that took eleven years to arrive, and it arrived on Christmas Eve.
Yes, I can now buy my own Cubs Season Tickets!!!!! Of course, I no longer live in Chicago and I don’t think I can afford my own Cubs Season Tickets. BUT, I finally made it to the top of the waiting list and I can give thousands of my dollars to the Ricketts Family to watch the 2013 Season Of A Dream at the Friendly Confines Of Wrigley Field!
Now I just need Santa to bring me the cash to pay for my tickets and to bring Tom Ricketts a team that is worth me paying to see.
Related articles
- Cubs’ Sveum: Yount shot me in ear while hunting (tracking.si.com)
The Cubs are Number One (And Number Two) Ewwwwwww
On the day after losing their 100th game of the miserable 2012 season, here’s a bombshell (as it were) from today’s Chicago Sun-Times
.
Wrigley Field is the least clean ballpark in the majors
BY DAN CAHILLdcahill@suntimes.comLast Modified: Oct 2, 2012 02:15AMFinally, the Cubs can say they’re No. 1.
Our lovable losers have gained the distinction of having MLB’s least clean park, as voted by ufe.com, an upstart website that stands for “urine feces everywhere.”
The ratings are the brainchild of Bourbonnais dentist John Vallone, who — along with his wife and six others — rated every major-league park based on 79 health-related criteria. Much of their focus was on rest-room hygiene.
“Think about it,” Vallone said. “A guy goes into a bathroom and leaves without washing his hands, then stops to get his wife a hot dog. He pushes on the ketchup dispenser. He clicks on the mustard. Then you and hundreds of other people use the same dispensers. That’s disgusting!”
The “ufe” team of inspectors collected their findings over four months before compiling their ratings. Vallone admitted it was a bit awkward, even “creepy” standing in rest rooms and watching people’s habits. He and his wife inspected 26 of the 30 parks, but in fairness to the integrity of the data, the lifelong White Sox fans did not rate Wrigley Field or U.S. Cellular Field.
As a dentist, Vallone lectures regularly at conferences about oral hygiene. It was after a trip to the Wrigley Field troughs and seeing how few men washed their hands that he decided to apply his bacterial knowledge to this cause.
“We tried to come up with some universal truths when we did this,” Vallone said. “Here’s one: If a man walks into a bathroom with a beer, he’s not washing his hands.”
In fact, ufe.com found that 79 percent of the men at Wrigley did not wash their hands after going to the bathroom; 8 percent of women failed to scrub.
The “ufe” grading system awarded parks that had touch-free dispensers, automatic rest-room doors or, even better, no doors.
Vallone will soon send his findings to each major-league team, hoping to raise awareness about these health concerns.
Dan Cahill
Copyright © 2012 — Sun-Times Media, LLC
Like Cubs Fans didn’t know that already? I for one never make a trip to the Friendly Confines without a pocket sized container of Purell. And the belief that someday my heroes will stop letting me down. Yeah, it’s a way of life.
Papa Ricketts May REALLY Make Things Bad For The Cubs
Joe Ricketts via New York Times
From Friday’s St. Louis Post Dispatch:
ST. LOUIS • Leave it to the woeful Northsiders to get caught up in an attempted political hit job that landed with a thud on both sides of the aisle.
The latest source of misfortune for the Chicago Cubs is not Bartman or a black cat, but an abandoned blueprint for a smear attack against President Barack Obama.
On Thursday, the New York Times reported that billionaire Joe Ricketts — whose family bought the Cubs in 2009 — was considering financing a bare-knuckle campaign against Obama drawn up by “Demon Sheep” Fred Davis.
The $10 million “Ricketts Plan to End His Spending for Good” focused on Obama’s ties to controversial pastor the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and sought to show “the influence of that misguided mentor” on the president.
“Our plan is to do exactly what John McCain would not let us do,” the plan states.
Apparently, Joe Ricketts won’t let them do it either. The same day the leaked plan was printed in the Times, Ricketts, founder of the online brokerage TD Ameritrade, declared he would not be bankrolling the proposal.
The plan was also panned by Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who called it “the wrong course for a PAC or a campaign.”
It’s not that Republicans are against attacking the president, of course. It’s that the approach proffered by Davis does not offer any groundbreaking information, and has more potential to spark a backlash against the GOP than it does to win over voters.
The billygoat, er, scapegoat, in this scenario could end up being the Cardinals arch rivals, whose chairman is Ricketts’ son Tom. The Cubs are working with the city to get millions in tax incentives to help revamp Wrigley Field.
And just who is it that holds the reins at Chicago City Hall? Mayor Rahm Emanuel, otherwise known as Obama’s first chief of staff in the White House.
Emanuel is said to be “livid” at the proposal and has cut off communications with the Cubs controlling family.
Ricketts and the Cubs may have to wait until the uproar settles down before continuing their pursuit of public help to spruce up the Friendly Confines — as they say in Wrigleyville, there’s always next year.
Related articles
- Family drama leads to PR mess for Chicago Cubs (prdaily.com)
- Billionaire Cubs Owner Joe Ricketts Commissions Study To Destroy Obama (chicagoist.com)
- Cubs’ Ricketts calls anti-Obama tactic ‘divisive’ (espn.go.com)
- Joe Ricketts’s Retreat From Obama Attack Campaign: Are the Chicago Cubs to Blame? (thedailybeast.com)
- Latest GOP Ad Player: A Lover of Bison, a Hater of Earmarks (abcnews.go.com)
Mark E.
mlblogsmarke
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