Chicago Daily Observer

It’s almost enough to make you feel sorry for Sam Zell. All the guy’s doing is asking for a handout, the sort of thing Mayor Daley dishes out to developers all the time.

“The Trib’s Selling and We’re Not Buying,” read the front page of today’s Sun-Times. “Only Sam Zell and his Tribune Co., owners of the ballpark, stand to gain. And in an economic downturn, only the taxpayers stand to lose.”

The headline and accompanying editorial—which had me cheering over my morning coffee—are referring to the state’s proposal to use sales taxes to buy and rebuild Wrigley Field so whoever owns the Cubs can sell more tickets and concessions and make more money.

A girl can dream, can’t she?

So I thought as I read the just released “The Cubs: The Complete Story of Chicago Cubs Baseball” by Glenn Stout (photographs by Richard Johnson), Houghton Mifflin press.

Stout opens by recounting that as the 20th century opened, the Chicago Cubs was, in fact, THE powerhouse baseball team. They had won three straight National League Pennants and two consecutive world championships. “The Cubs were kings.”

“So,” Stought asks, “. . . what the hell happened?”

What indeed? As I write, we are two down to the Diamond Backs. I just asked a knowledgeable friend if any team has come back from this far down in post-season playoffs to still win. “Yes” he said. “Against the Cubs.”

Or at least mostly against the Cubs. (One instance? 1984, the Padres. The Cubs were up 2 games in the post-season play offs, the Padres came back ... Read More...