Cubby-Blue

X-Ray Shows Derrek Lee's Wrist Is Feeling Good

You can see it in his swing.
He's all the way back, finally, after that broken wrist that ruined everything a couple years back.
Hitting .400, slugging .833.
That's a pretty red hot start.
Not unlike 2005, when he stayed like that all freaking year - this is real good news.
Okay, the Cubs are sort of on an ugly little winning streak.
How about a laugher today, Ryan Dempster?
Take it into the 8th and stay keep the pen out of the game.
I could use a day without my nerve endings going haywire.

Kosuke Fukudome: The Bunt

It was such a perfect day to be at Wrigley.
Did you see what Kosuke Fukudome did to Astro 3rd baseman Ty Wigginton?
In the 6th inning with Derrek Lee on 2nd, Fukudome put down a bunt that was so perfect and breathtaking and unexpected I don't believe Wiggington even got off his heels.
Like he was hypnotized.
Fukudome has magic skills, and a bunt like that really ought to open some eyes.
Opposing managers are all going, "uh oh" and hopefully some other Cubs can try to pick that up (Felix).
Plus, that crazy liner he caught that so should have been extra bases was a-ma-zing.

D Lee looked fantastic, and it's just not that hard to imagine what this team could do if everybody starts to hit.
This could be an offensive team that legitimately gives other teams The Fear.
Marquis? Not so good.
Howry? Same (god - the boos come so quickly).
But if these bats wake up I'll be so happy.
And Kosuke The Magnificent - it's April 5th, and I can't imagine where the Cubs would be without him.

I Wish Steve Bartman Could Punch Moises Alou

"You know what the funny thing is?" said Moises Alou, "I wouldn't have caught it anyway."
He was talking about that foul ball.
Pardon my language, but you know...what a dick.
I've been feeling rotten about Steve Bartman for a looong time now because he's such a punchline.
And now this.
I'm also pretty sure, based on what I've read, that if Mr. Bartman were to see this illustration he'd tell me not to put it out there.
I really think he's that nice a guy.
But I'm doing it anyway Steve, because it was a thoughtless thing to say.
Because I believe Moises lacks judgement when it comes to talking.
(Note the peeing on hands thing, which we never would have known had he not...opened his mouth.)

Lastly, I'm not gonna say anything about the sucky game the Cubs suckily lost to the sucky Brewers.
Too sucky.

The "It's Gonna Happen" Snafu

(This is my first GIF on the blog, so I hope it works...)

I read in yesterday's TRIB that there was an "It's Gonna Happen" sign at the Home Opener made with Japanese characters.
They'd translated it.
But somehow, they messed it up so that if you could read Japanese it said, "It's An Accident".
That's perfect.
I think I made it clear last year (here and here)what I thought of this particular slogan.
That "It's Gonna Happen" can easily mean "Collapse is Gonna Happen" or "Injury is Gonna Happen"...
It's a slogan that can mean something the authors did not intend, not unlike what happened at the Opener.
When I see people walking around with these signs or t-shirts or whatever, it makes me...not happy.
It's bad mojo.
Please make it stop.

On another, waaay cooler note, there is this store called Posh, and they sell unique antiquey-type things they find.
I got an email from one of their people, Carrie, telling me this cool story (in her words):

"Back in the 1920's when William Wrigley purchased the Cubs from the Weeghmans he decided needed a logo for his newly acquired team. At that time he belonged to the Chicago Athletic Association. The Association's logo was a red "C" surrounded by a blue circle. Wrigley appropriated this symbol for his team logo back before people made much of a fuss about trademark property. The rest is history...now when you see that unmistakable "circle C" you think of the Cubs.

The Chicago Athletic Association (CAA) was closed last October. In January we here at POSH (a little Chicago shop), acquired the last of the Association's china and silver (most of it dating from the 1920's to the 40's) . So, in essence we have vintage club china and silver with the "Cubs" logo...although it is really the CAA logo on it."

The store is at 613 N. State, and the site is here.
This stuff would be a really cool gift...

Okay, on to today.
Ted Lilly vs. Jeff Suppan.
How's about the bats wake up today - it's beautiful out.
I'm gonna not be so patient with the whole "it's early" thing this year.
Go Cubs.

Domo Arigato, Kosuke Fukudome

Yeah, the Cubs lost 4-3.
But Kosuke Fukudome had a nice welcome from the right field bleachers, then he commenced to give us the gift of a lefty bat in the 5 slot that produced a double, walk, single and gigantic 3 run game tying homer in the bottom of the 9th.
I'd left, of course.
It was my son's birthday (yes, I'm aware of what a colossal jerk I am for not taking him, and I'm sorry Wyatt - we'll get to Wrigley this weekend).
He asked for burgers and donuts (hey, it was his birthday) for dinner, so I wanted to be home about 5:30 to man the grill.
I was about Montrose and Western when Kosuke hit the dinger, and probably the people on the sidewalk and surrounding cars thought murder was happening when I let out the spontaneous Ron Santo-yell.
I decided that when I got home, I'd look up how to say "thank you" in Japanese.
It's "domo arigato".
Go here - there's other phrases too.
What an opener.
Rainy but warm as you could hope for.
The ground crew went through a trial by fire with the first rain delays, but the new drainage system?
Awesome.
And tell you what, I think Kerry Wood's gonna get better at closing (should that not happen, we've got options).
But this year's nemesis, the Brewers, they've got a world of trouble at that closer position.
When I was out by the grill listening to the radio, they were interviewing Lou and Carlos and finally got around to Kosuke.
Hysterical.
He spoke through an interpreter, and everything took way longer than I think the interviewer was anticipating.
So they kind of just shut it down.
If I was a radio guy here, I'd at least learn how to say thanks in our new right fielder's language.
Domo Arigato, Kosuke.