Some common definitions of pre-gaming:

1. The time alloted before the start of an event where players and or coaches review strategy and overall  organizational coherence.

2. The time alloted before the start of an event dedicated to fans gathering and drinking heavily therefore avoiding outrageous stadium alcohol prices.

3. Two University of Wyoming coeds dancing and sipping from a bottle of crown while you wait four hours to go to a bar that oddly enough also hosted shots of crown and music for dancing(this is the one I’m stuck with since it was the first time I’d ever heard it used this way. Needless to say “pre-gaming” isn’t in my lexicon.)

…In an effort to keep this one short(The game starts in like twenty minutes) I am going to give you some basic things to look for: (more…)

…Or maybe not.

I was trying to post video directly to the page, thereby avoiding linking you to an outside source–BUT, as it turns out, I have no clue how to do that.

So here you go.

Onto Cub related news.

CUBS WIN!…SOME MORE…

The team rolled into spring training the way they rolled out of last season–winning( There was no October in 2008. Weird, I know.)

And the team that they beat?

Yep. (more…)

What? It’s science…

And in other out of shape, sweaty guy news, former Cubs closer Joe Borowski has decided to retire.

Borowski, a thirteen year veteran, pitched in both leagues as a reliever for a total of eight different teams.

But who cares about those guys.

Sweaty Joe will always be remembered by Cub fans as that one guy who was even scarier to watch close games than this guy.

And for his three years on the northside, most notably the 2003 debacle/division championship season.

So goodbye to you Joe, your mediocre fastball,  your “You’re a professional baseball player?–F%$K you” physique, and your “Really– Joe Borowski?” 2007 AL saves leading season.

And goodbye to this post that has been built upon being as lackluster and factually ambiguous as this guy.

I know what some of you may be thinking.

Or quite possibly none of you.

But why did I? Oh HOW. COULD. I. have not mentioned the departure of the one and only, slider low and away, slider low and away, slider low and away,

Slider low and away

Slider low and away tossing Michael Wuertz. It’s simple.

I forgot. (more…)

The Cubs are back!

Once again haunting Ho Ho Kam park in preparation for the 2009 season. Full squad workouts began at their Mesa, Arizona facility  on the 20th with only one notable name missing, that being their pirouetting, non-righty hitting, early season mania-inducing only to be disappointed/confused at WHAT EXACTLY IS HE SWINGING AT?! right center fielder Kosuke Fukudome.

But more on him later. (more…)

Sorry I haven’t been around as much lately. I was very busy over the holidays when the Cubs traded utility player Mark DeRosa to the Cleveland Indians for three pitching prospects. I’m like most Cubs fans out there that do not agree with the trade but not a whole lot we can do when we aren’t Jim Hendry!

Soon after the DeRosa trade, their were reports that Jason Marquis would be traded to the Colorado Rockies for a relief pitcher. Now, it looks like that trade will happen this week so look for Marquis to be moved while the Cubs will pick up part of his salary.

Last but not least, on Monday afternoon the Cubs and Milton Bradley agreed on a three year contract as long as he can pass his physical in Chicago. Bradley will be paid $30 million over the three years as long as he can stay healthy.

The Chicago Cubs and starting pitcher Ryan Dempster have signed a new four year contract ESPN.Com is reporting. The four year deal will pay Dempster $52 million total including a $4 million dollar signing bonus. The contract will pay Dempster $8 million next year, $12.5 million in 2010 and $13.5 million in 2011. Dempster has a 2012 option for $14 million

It is a decent contract, but I would have preferred for it to be around $45 million total and not so backloaded but I can see why Jim Hendry and management did it this way. They had to break the $50 million mark or you know Dempster would have been very serious about leaving Chicago and signing with another team. By back loading the contact, it also lets the team still actively look at trading for Jake Peavy.

Say what Cubs Fans?

The Cubs are on their last breath as they are down 0-2 in the best of five sereis to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Errors and not coming up with a big hit really hurt the Cubs on Tuesday night. I won’t get into the specificics of it because I’m still pretty pissed off about the game.

Our friends over at Chicago Cubs Blog . Net have their write up on the game and I suggest you go over there and take a look. Pretty good write up for such a crappy game..

The Cubs and Dodgers kicked off the NLDS on Wednesday night and the Dodgers came away with a 7-2 victory over the Cubs. Now the Dodgers have home field advantage on their side as they need two more wins to win the series and they will play two out of three games at home.

Ryan Dempster took the loss for the Cubs as he was terrible on the mound in his 4 2/3 innings. Dempster was not his usual self as he walked seven batters including there in the fifth inning before he gave up a grand slam to James Loney. The Dodgers also hit solo home runs off of Jason Marquis and Sean Marshall in the game while tacking on another run off of Jeff Samardzija.

The Cubs had nine hits in the game, they just didn’t get the big hits that the Dodgers did. Alfonso Soriano, Derrek Lee, and Aramis Ramirez only combined for two hits in the game. Mark DeRosa had both rbi’s for the Cubs when he hit a two-run home run in the second inning. The Cubs need more production and three or more hits in an inning to score some runs if they want to win game two.

Carlos Zambrano will take the mound on game two. Hopefully he comes out and gets ahead of hitters right away and the Cubs even up the series at one game each.

Cubs Baseball Blog

I’m a few days late so I’m sure everyon knows that the Chicago Cubs won the National League Central division with a win Saturday afternoon against the St. Louis Cardinals. It was the second year in a row that the Cubbies have won the division and the third time in the past six years.

Now the Cubs have series with the New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers this week. They will be resting starters here and there but still putting a good team on the field either way. The Mets and Brewers are both in playoff races so expect the games to be pretty night.

So now the question for the Cubs is who will they play in the NLCS?