wrigley field | The Baseball Zealot

Things always look better after an Illini win

I may have come off as a tad grumpy when I insinuated that the Big Ten modifications to Wrigley Field for the Illinois-Northwestern football game were a “joke”. Funny what an Illini 48-27 win and a Mikel Leshoure 300+ rushing performance can do to temper one’s opinion.

Bleed Cubbie Blue’s Al Yellon, who attended the game, had a more positive spin on the whole affair:

But when the Cubs, Northwestern, Illinois and the Big Ten put on a spectacle as entertaining as today’s 48-27 blowout by the Illini over the Wildcats, it shows off Wrigley to a national audience as the terrific place it is…

…For those of you who cried, "travesty", "joke" or "disaster" yesterday when the rule changes were announced, I say: kwitcherbitchin. Playing every offensive series facing the west end zone had absolutely no impact on the flow of the game. The officials seemed briefly confused the very first time they had to reposition the ball, but after that it all went smoothly.

Boy, it’s almost like Al’s talking to me. I will indeed kwitmybitchin’.

Rumor has it that there was a lot of good-natured Cubs-Sox trash talkin’ going on between the Illini players. No word on which contingent was larger.

Congrats to the Illini who are in line for a bowl bid for the first time since 2007.

Cubs reacting to Wrigley safety measures by Big Ten

A last minute decision based on safety has turned the Illinois-Northwestern football game at Wrigley Field tomorrow into somewhat of a joke. To put it simply, there will be one end zone and whenever there is a switch in possession, the teams will turn to the opposite direction so the offense will face that said end zone.

The end zone is on the west side of the football field now desecrating Wrigley Field.

Maybe this Wrigley Field idea wasn’t such a great idea after all.

Wrigley Field was modified to Big Ten standards. Earlier, Big Ten officials did a walk-through at Wrigley and didn’t raise a fuss. Both of those points were raised in a rather terse even passive-aggressive statement issued by the Chicago Cubs organization after the Big Ten decided to make their changes:

“This game would not have been scheduled if it did not pass the strict and meticulous standards of everyone involved, a process that began more than a year ago. All are in agreement Wrigley Field is a safe venue to host a football game. Other baseball parks, including tomorrow night’s game in Yankee Stadium, feature similar football field-to-venue grid dimensions and rule changes are not considered for football games played in other baseball parks.

“We have reached out to the Big Ten to further discuss the playing field. While we are surprised by this morning’s last-minute statement, all agree that tomorrow will be an historic event and a wonderful experience for the fans, the schools and the student-athletes.”

Well, it doesn’t bode well to upset your hosts. Play Ball!

oh and Go Illini!

Fake Umps Take Center Stage at Wrigley Field

fake umps Watching the Cubs host the Diamondbacks at Wrigley this weekend I couldn’t help but notice the extra umpires seated behind home plate. Turns out the fake umpires are Tim Williams & Joe Ferrell, two traders on the Toronto Stock Exchange, in Chicago on business. It was their seventh big league appearance. They bought their seats, but received several complimentary beers from nearby fans. It’s hilarious, they actually call the game, even down to reaching into their pocket for a baseball & acting like they’re throwing it to the pitcher. The fans are particularly delighted by their strike three calls. Although MLB has instructed their umpires not to engaged the pair, they secretly admire their act, so do the players & the fans. Popular umpires? What will we see next!

Hockey at Wrigley: but where were the Blackhawks?

A rather exciting day at Wrigley Field, no doubt… if you ignore the final score.

Over 40,000 fans showed up in the freezing weather today to watch the Detroit Red Wings take on the Chicago Blackhawks at the Cubs home field. The fans were mostly of the Blackhawk nature but otherwise it was you could say it was neutral territory.

I watched the second and third periods on TV. By that time, the Blackhawks had already done their damage and the Red Wings were just getting warmed up. Detroit scored five unanswered goals to win the game 6-4.

But from NHL’s and MLB’s point of view, it doesn’t matter who won. They are really promoting this as some sort of historical event. A “Winter Classic” it is. And it looks like it won’t be the last New Year’s event at a baseball park. They are already talking about where to hold next year’s New Year’s event.

PS Al Yellon from Bleed Cubbie Blue has some nice photos of the event.

Skating at Wrigley

The Cubs with the help of the National Hockey League will host a “neighborhood skate” on January 4th, 2009. This comes on the heels of the Blackhawks-Red Wings match on the temporay rink set up at the Friendly Confines which will be played New Year’s Day.

Don’t bother looking for tix for the game… they’re already sold out. It’s the first such hockey game at a baseball venue.

As for the open skate, invites were sent to local residents and groups. The $10 charge will go to Cubs charities.

Bleed Cubbie Blue has some photos of the construction going on for the events.

Cubs get Ballpark envy?

After enjoying two days as the host team in another ballpark, some Cubs players are fanaticizing about a new park in Chicago especially one with state-of-the-art locker facilities. Zambrano was the most blunt about his comparison between the two parks:

"(Miller Park) is a beautiful ballpark. Gosh, I wish we could have a new ballpark."

Though Jason Marquis also enjoyed his Miller Park stay, he had more appreciation for the fan’s love of Wrigley and had a creative idea:

"You never want to see a landmark taken down, a place with so much history," Marquis said. "The fans love it. That being said, the game is changing, stadiums are getting updated. There are better facilities, not only for the players, but for the fans—better food concessions, comfortable seats, better views. …

"If I had a personal choice, I think they should knock Wrigley down and build a replica in the exact same spot to give it that same feel. The same colored seats, same ivy, same wall, and throw up a Jumbotron, but have it look like a replica of the scoreboard that’s up there now, try to give it the same feel, in the same spot. I wouldn’t be opposed to that."

I suggest to the Cubs that before they get too concerned about grandiose ideas like new parks and locker facilities that they realize that they have a division to clinch and playoffs to be more concerned about. They’ve come this far with the Friendly Confines as their home base. Their two-day stay in Milwaukee was awesome and in some ways, historic. But let’s not lose sight of why it was important to win those games.

Hint: it wasn’t for "The Locker Rooms that Zambrano Built.