Thoughts on a beautiful Labor Day
I echo Perry's plea to help out the people in New Orleans. I can't even fathom what these people are going through. All we can do is send a donation, some prayers, and hope for the best. Sports are so insignificant in the grand scheme of things, and its times like these that serve as a big reminder. That said, they do serve a purpose. The provide an excellent means for escape. Just a few minutes to forget about all our country's problems and ease the mind a bit. If we didn't save some time for leisure, we'd all probably go insane. I know I would.
So with that, its time for your daily escape. Here's whats been going on with Windy City sports the past few days.
- The Bears made their final cuts. Nothing really shocking, unless you're a Todd McMillon fan. I briefly scanned the waiver wire, and no Quarterbacks of significance were cut. There's a few minor names like Matt Mauck (Denver) and Bachelor Jesse Palmer (Giants) available, but nobody with any experience to speak of. Now its up to Angelo to find out if other teams scraps our better than our third course. One final note, ex-Bear David Terrell got cut by the Patriots. His legend continues to grow....
- The Cubs, hopelessly out of it, are on a mission to reach .500. Dusty Baker annoys the crap out of me. The season is over, yet he continues to start Neifi Perez, Jeromy Burnitz, and other proven-to-be-mediocre veterans over young talent like Ronny Cedeno and Matt Murton. Cedeno and Murton have proven themselves in the minors, and it'd be nice to see if they can play in the bigs to see if they're a legitimate option for next year. Nope, its more important for Dusty to keep his streak of .500 going. What a bum.
- The Bulls re-signed Tyson Chandler to a big contract. Good for the Bulls and good for Chandler. Tyson thus far has not lived up to his High School hype, and he's not likely to ever surpass the production of Elton Brand (whom he was traded for). But he's a good, scrappy, young kid, and he plays some Tenacious D. He hustles on every play, and he's a difference maker. If he wasn't the #2 pick in the draft, he'd probably be more of a fan favorite.
I suspect the other twin toddler, Eddy Curry, will be next to sign. He's still got that heart condition and the Bulls are pretty much the only team thats interested. So he's just going to have to take up the tailpipe and sign for whatever the Bulls are offering. All health risks to this young man aside, but I think this actually saves the Bulls from making a huge mistake. They don't have to gaurantee him 70+ million dollars for six plus years, and thus Eddy will never get too satisfied and return to his natural tendency to loaf. If he stays on one year contracts, it'll be like having a player with Contract-itis A every year. He had it last year, and was having an excellent year until the condition was found.
- The White Sox had a fever, and the only prescription was the Detroit Tigers. (Take three of these, and call me Monday.) Its amazing what a sweep will do to ease the minds of your fan base. Kenny struck out in finding some offense, so the Sox will just have to make do with what they got. It'll be an uphill journey, so try to stay positive, Sox fans.
- Northern Illinois University isn't located in Chicago, but its close enough. As a NIU alum, its my duty to mention that the Huskies put up a decent showing against Michigan this past Saturday. The final score doesn't tell the whole story, as NIU had four fumbles that led directly to Michigan points. If they could have just held the ball a little tighter, they might have pulled off the upset. That would have been monumental for the program. They get another crack at the Big Ten next week, as they travel to Evanston to take on Northwestern. Prediction: victory.
Thats it from me, I hope you've enjoyed your day off. Ciao!