The Same Old Played-Out Scenes

The first installment in a series of updates on Chicago sports focuses on the perpetually snakebitten yet dearly beloved Major League franchise residing on the North side of Chicago

Pretty much the only bright spot this year

Chicago Cubs (56-72, 5th in NL Central)

Without question, it has been a difficult and trying year for the Cubs, and that’s being pretty generous.  While nobody really thought that this team was anything special, I don’t think anyone expected the 2011 campaign to play out this poorly.  As for myself, I thought a final record anywhere around .500 would be a decent step in the right direction.  The Cubs must have thought so, too, because they hit every level of .500 (1-1, 2-2, 3-3, etc.) through 20 games before finally going under for good in May. In fact, from May through July, the Cubs were an impressively awful 31-51.  While pretty much everything that could have gone wrong in those three months did go wrong, in my eyes there are a few major areas that were greatly responsible for the early death of the 2011 Cubs.

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Welcome Back: A Re-Introduction

It's been far too long.


Summer was quite busy, what with work and the P90-X schedule (it does, in fact, work, in case you were wondering).  As a result, the blog output dwindled down to absolutely nothing.  Here, then, is a chance for a fresh slate (tabula rasa for all you Latin scholars). 


A quick refresher: this blog contains my thoughts, occasional rants, and opinions about my favorite pro franchises, all predictably located within the Chicago city limits.  Those would be the Cubs, Bears, Blackhawks, and Bulls, of course.  


I figured this would be as good a time as any to get back into the game, so to speak, as it is an exciting time in the Chicago sports landscape.  


The Cubs, while knee-deep in another lost summer on the North side, just fired longtime GM Jim Hendry, the first sign in a long time (ever?) that new owner Tom Ricketts has a plan for making the team an annual competitor moving forward.  


The Bears are just about to open the 2011 regular season and will defend their NFC North crown, all the while attempting to take the next step from last year and advance to the Super Bowl.  


The Blackhawks are mere weeks away from training camp, and look to be in better shape for a second Cup run after a restful summer following that heart-stopping first round playoff series against those villains from Vancouver.


And while things look bleak in regards to the 2011-12 NBA season even being played, things are certainly looking up for the Bulls, who with MVP Derrick Rose will be battling with the Heat for Eastern Conference supremacy for years to come (that is, once a labor agreement is reached).


As an aside, for those of you on Twitter, my account for this blog is @Reason_2Believe.  Give it a follow for my reactions during games, as well as to big news, trades, signings and whatnot.


In the coming days, I'll be posting more lengthy thoughts on the teams: their offseasons, their recent performance, big acquisitions, etc.  The coming year promises to be a good one - I look forward to sharing some thoughts on it with everybody.  


Until next time...