Cubs and White Sox Fans Come Together to Kick Ass

Baseball can seem political at times, especially in Chicago where the rivalry between Cubs and Sox fans can get nasty. This isn't one of them.

According to the Chicago Tribune and Busted Coverage, a fan started a brawl and promptly got stomped during Saturday's Cubs-White Sox game at U.S. Cellular Field, the White Sox' home park.

The Tribune claims some money fell out of a woman's purse and the guy picked it up and refused to return it. Busted Coverage says the man had heckled the family of the guy in the Jim Thome jersey the entire game. Watch the video, the offender is wearing black, and the guy in the Thome jersey looks as big as Thome or Carlos Zambrano. Cubs fans and Sox fans came together and pummeled the guy for a long time before security breaks it up. Then the guy made a further spectacle of himself when he was led away by security, doing a bunny hop.

Cubs Sign Reed Johnson

Quick move today by the Cubs and Reed Johnson. He cleared waivers approx. noon Chicago time, was signed within 20 minutes, passed a physical, and was in the starting lineup two and half hours later. He even had two hits in the game and showed his hustle running the bases.

Tinker to Evers to Chance

Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance has been uttered in the clubhouses of baseball since the early 20th century.

These three baseball infielders were the mainstay standout playing trio of the Chicago Cubs during the 1906 and 1910 years.

The Chicago Cubs won four pennants and two World Series during this span.

Joe Tinker was shortstop and the slick fielder who initiated the starting action of double-play combination.

Johnny Evers was the 5'9" and 140 lb. quick as a mosquito and as fiery as a sword swallower turning on a dime there at second base and throwing rifle shots to first.

Frank Chance was a converted catcher playing first base who anchored the conclusion of so many double-plays generated by these legends.

The heroics of these baseball playing infielders and their ability to turn double-play opportunities with ease were immortalized by Franklin P. Adams with his Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance lyrical lament.

This trio of players were inducted into The Baseball Hall Of Fame in 1946 and enshrined into this august body as a unit. To my knowledge no other time in history have players been so honored as to be inducted into Baseball's Hall of Fame as a playing unit of individuals.

In the annals of sports history the only group of individuals honored comparably as a unit would be the "Four Horsemen Of Notre Dame".

The quickest way to kill a rally by opposing teams is to execute that finely tuned double-play or twin killing. Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance were proven masters at this art and skill.

Batter Up ! Let's Play Ball...

Cubs Send Down Cedeno, Designate Koyie Hill

Ronnie Cedeno returns to Iowa for a week before rosters expand and Koyie Hill could be playing for a new team soon. Both were moved off the Cubs roster to make room for the return of Cliff Floyd from the bereavement list and Henry Blanco from the disabled list.

Hill has to pass through waivers where he can be claimed by any team. If he clears waivers he has the option to refuse the assignment to Iowa and become a free agent.

Cubs vs Mets Pitching Matchups

All times central

Friday 1:20pm
Orlando Hernandez (RHP, 7-4, 3.02) vs. Carlos Zambrano (RHP, 14-7, 3.47)

Saturday 2:55pm Fox Game Of The Week
John Maine (RHP, 12-5, 2.92) vs. Ted Lilly (LHP, 11-5, 3.60)

Sunday 7:05 pm ESPN Sunday Night Baseball
Tom Glavine (LHP, 9-3, 4.38) vs. Jason Marquis (RHP, 8.6, 4.22)

note: Glavine will be going for his 300th career win.

The Worst Baseball Team In History

The 1899 Cleveland Spiders went 20-134. In the previous 7 seasons they had a .570 winning percentage and 6 Hall of Fame players in their prime, including Cy Young. The previous season they won 81 games, so what happened?

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Cubs Pull Into First Place Tie

The Cubs won a wild and sometimes sloppy game on Wednesday night to pull into a first place tie with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Shortly after finding out the first place Brewers had been defeated by the New York Mets, Matt Murton dashed home from third base on a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth to knock off the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4.

The Cubs moved into first place for the first time this season, and it is the latest date in history for a Cubs team to move into first place for the first time in a season. Hopefully they stay hot for the next couple of months and we should be enjoying playoff baseball, something unthinkable after 2006's disastrous campaign.

In other Cubs news, Kerry Wood is expected to be activated either Thursday or Friday and join the Cubs bullpen. Rookie reliever Rocky Cherry is the likely candidate to be demoted to open a roster spot for Wood.

Wednesday's Box Score