cubfan87

I know that most people get game updates on their cell phones, but I am only able to place calls on mine. I was wondering if there was any number to call to check game scores for the Cubs. Any help is appreciated.

Can anyone tell me when the gates open for a Smokies game and what fans are allowed to carry in with them? I've looked on the Smokies site and can't seem to find this information. Thanks!

I will be attending a Smokies game next Sunday (August 5). I've never been to a minor league game and was wondering if anyone had any tips in general or specifically about the Smokies. I have front row seats behind the Smokies dugout. Thanks!

I never saw an answer to the video question so here is my assumption. At Busch they have the ball under the hat game that they play on the video board. A baseball goes under one hat, the hats all move around as does the ball, and then the stadium tries to guess which hat the ball is under. I've been at a non-Cubs game at Busch where they have played this video and specifically put on the board that this was the Cubs version. At the end of the video there would be an arrow pointing at the hat that the ball was under. As I said, this is just an assumption about the video that TLR was unhappy with. I never saw it at a Cubs/Cards game but have seen the video several times at other games.

I would really love to see Zambrano get the extra rest. It's going to be nice to have a manager who wants a pitcher's arm to stay attached to his body. I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't crazy for thinking I had heard in the past that Zambrano actually pitches better on normal rest. The whole idea of less sinking action makes sense.

Wasn't there some discussion last year (I don't remember if it was on this board, WGN, or in the newspapers) that Zambrano is a much better pitcher on normal rest? I thought I remembered hearing that he is actually not as sharp when he has the extra day.

I'm not sure if this has been discussed, but I don't remember seeing a thread about it. Just received my Sports Weekly and discovered the rule changes. This year will be the first time since 1996 that there are changes to the official baseball rules. Tie games that are stopped because of weather or some other reason will be finished at a later date rather than be considered a tie. These games were originally considered official. Pitchers only have 12 seconds (used to be 20) to release the ball to home plate when no one is on base. If they go over that limit the pitch will be a ball. Hitters will have an automatic strike against them if they violate the rule that requires that one foot be in the batter's box durring an at-bat, with some exceptions. Any player that is caught scuffing the ball will get an automatic 10 game suspension. Any player that is caught putting "soil, rosin, paraffin, licorice, sandpaper, emery paper, or other foreign substance" on the ball will also get an automatic 10 game suspension.

Don't get me wrong, I love Wrigley Field. However, if advertising helps the Cubs win they can sell advertising on every seat for all I care. It's only when they don't win that I have a problem. It's not like Wrigley Field has always been free of advertising.

I'm going to go 5/25 @LA. Zambrano pitching a no-hitter, Cubs have runner on third in the 8th 0-0 score, runner gets thrown out on play at the plate for third out, Piniella goes crazy, Zambrano is fired up and gets the Dodgers out on three pitches. Top of the 9th Zambrano hits a homerun then goes out to pitch the bottom of the inning (has less than 100 pitches) and gets the side out for a no-hit win...........okay so it's a bit far fetched, but it would be a great birthday present for me :lol:

Does anyone know a website where I can find the payrolls of the front offices? I've been trying to find something like this for awhile to look at but have never had any success. Thanks

I was so excited before the 2004 season. Then I had tickets to the second to last game of the season. I just knew I was going to be there when they clinched. Instead, I was there on the day they were officially eliminated. Here's to hoping for another exciting season in 2007. I could use one, especially going to school in southeast Missouri with the campus 99.5% Cardinal fans.

That is my favorite quote out of the whole movie. Actually, as I type this, I am wearing a shirt with that last part on it. My grandparents took me to the Field of Dreams site this past summer as part of my high school graduation present. We were there on a rainy day, but it was amazing. That movie is what baseball is all about.

I probably have around 50-75 autographs of current and former Cubs, people in the front office, and announcers. I was a celebrity bat kid in 2001 and got my first autographs then (Sosa and Wood + 9 others). It led to me writing to each of the players and asking for autographs. I would send a 3x5 card and a SASE. Surprisingly most players sent them back signed. I did learn to put the names of the players on the return envelope because I still have an autograph from the first year that I have no idea who it is.

I've always wondered why the Cubs don't focus on speed more. They've tried power for years and it doesn't seem to be working too well. Any time they've had any sort of decent speed they have done well. You would think they would at least try it. Maybe they have finally realized that speed might help them win. Lets hope so.

Here is my first draft of my essay. I don't necessarily agree with all the points I presented but I knew that it would be an interesting topic to look into and I tried to present many different views. Be prepared, it is kind of long. Not a World Series The baseball season has ended and I am watching highlights of the World Champion White Sox on SportsCenter. I am sitting at my desk in my dorm room doing homework on my computer and do not give a second to the thought that only American teams played in the World Series. A few days later, while watching SportsCenter again, I hear that the Japanese baseball champion has been decided. Why do the Americans claim that their champion is the World Champion when there are other baseball teams in the world? In order for the championship to be called a World Series, it should include any countries that have an active baseball team and want to participate. In Major League Baseball, the event that decides the ultimate winner of the baseball season is called the World Series. It is a best of seven series between the top American League team and the top National League team. The winner of this series is deemed the World Champion. The Major League Baseball championship series between the American League and the National League should not be referred to as the World Series or the winner as the World Champion. Major League Baseball is based in the United States. It consists of thirty teams. Twenty-nine of these teams play in the United States. The only team that does not have a stadium in the United States is the Toronto Blue Jays of Toronto, Canada. There are 122 National Baseball Federations throughout the world that could participate (“World Baseball Classic FAQ”). Some countries, like Japan, have a baseball league with a championship called the World Series. How can two countries that do not play against each other, except in exhibitions, both have World Champion teams? In order for a “real” World Champion to be crowned, the six continents that have baseball teams must be involved. The United States feels a sense of superiority because they had organized baseball in the late 1890s, before anyone else. This does not give them the right to claim they have a baseball World Series when usually there in only one country involved in the games. Major League Baseball does include players from several countries around the world. The teams are a melting pot of diversity and home towns of players stretch across the globe like rubber bands. On opening day 2005 there were players from seventeen different countries, excluding the United States, on Major League Baseball rosters. Some of these countries included Aruba, Colombia, Taiwan, and the Virgin Islands (“Foreign” D02). The theory is, if a player is good enough, no matter what country they come from, they will be recognized, scouted, and signed to a Major League Baseball contract. Their country would then become a part of the melting pot of Major League Baseball. Some of these countries do have teams of their own but the players receive very little if any money for playing on their national team. The prospect of million dollar contracts usually lures the best players away from their countries. Other countries do not have a large enough population to support a successful or any type of baseball team. Even though players from other countries play in the Major Leagues, not every country allows athletes to play for teams or leagues in the United States. One country that is known for this is communist Cuba whose leader, Fidel Castro, is a huge baseball fan. If a baseball player wants to play for a Major League team, they must risk their life and ride on a small and crowded raft in turbulent water to another country, and defect to the United States, knowing that they may never see their family again. Jose Contreras, a very popular Cuban pitcher and much sought after by American teams, risked his life in 2002 to defect to the United States. He was lucky because he was reunited with his family in 2004 after they defected. So even though players from around the world play, not all countries allow their athletes the opportunity to play elsewhere. In the case of Cuba, the players are expected to represent Cuba in exhibition games and the Olympics. Castro wants to see his players perform well against other teams but Cuba does not have a baseball league and lose some of their best players like Jose Contreras and Rafael Palmeiro to Major League teams and defection. The only way his team gets a chance to play is when they are invited to an exhibition game, play against local citizens, or play in the Olympics or World Baseball Classic. He wants his players to succeed, as long as they succeed for the Cuban national team. Many people argue that Major League Baseball is the superior league of all the baseball leagues because they draw the best talent from all over the world. This is one reason why many people feel that American baseball has the right to call their championship the World Series. They have the best players and would naturally beat the champions from other leagues and countries. Japanese players, team owners, and fans might disagree and say that their league is superior, but many of the best Japanese players are now coming to the United States to play after they have played their mandatory nine years for their original team in Japan. Ichiro and Hideki Matsui are the most recognized Japanese players who have elected to come to the United States and have succeeded in American baseball. Also, United States baseball players that are unable to stay in the Major Leagues sometimes opt to play for the “lesser” Japanese league. Karl “Tuffy” Rhodes, who only hit thirteen Major League homeruns in his five year career, hit fifty-five homeruns in one season of 130 games in the Japanese league. Major League Baseball may be the league with the most talented teams, but no one can really say that because no other countries participate against the American teams in games that count. When American teams play in exhibition games against other countries like Japan, they almost always win. These are only exhibition games though. Exhibition games are like the circus, they are played to entertain the fans rather than as a measuring stick for the quality of a team. If teams knew they were playing for the title of World Champion, they might take more time to practice and prepare for games. In order for the Major League Baseball championship to be called the World Series, it must involve other countries that want to participate. Now would be a great time to start a true World Series because baseball is no longer going to be an Olympic sport beginning in 2012 after the International Olympic Committee voted to have it removed. Baseball is headed in the right direction with the World Baseball Classic. The World Baseball Classic has sixteen different countries that will participate in round-robin play. Unlike the Olympics, which allowed only minor league and college players, the Classic will involve professional baseball players. The first Classic is to be held in the spring of 2006. Instead of having it during Spring Training, it should be moved to October or November, after baseball teams had finished their regular seasons and league championships, so it could become the World Series. These changes need to be made to include other teams or the Major League Baseball championship should change its name. The best possible solution would be to have a World Series, but if the United States does not want to lose their superiority in the baseball world and take the chance they might lose, they must change their name.