ChicagoSportsBlogs : Non Compete

One of the biggest problems I have with the Crosstown Classic is the utter uselessness of the series. I can't think of a single reason why this White Sox v. Cubs series is beneficial to anyone but the hot dog and beer vendors at the ballpark. I can list for you here, a rehearsed list of reasons people use to disagree. Here goes:

1. It's good for the city.

2. It brings out the best in both teams! Lighten up! It's fun! It's as if they were playing in our dream world series! (A Chicago only World Series)

3. Slingshot Theory - (aka catapult theory) Which states that winning the series against the opposite side of town will slingshot you back into contention.

That last one is the one everyone I know, whether they wear blue or black are anxious for this series at the Cell to start today. The White Sox come into this series playing the worst baseball I have seen in the past decade. They're hurt AND injured (there is a difference). They also have had absolutely no talent come up from the minors that could help get over the hump. When the struggles first began on the Southside we all thought that the Sox were going to be ok. They were holding their own when they were only 4 games back. Now, it's in the double digits and the Tigers are getting hotter and hotter.

The Cubs have a different reason for their struggles. They hate each other. So much so that they traded away Michael Barrett to San Diego after he basically got his ass kicked by Zambrano. This team has bad chemistry. They aren't the Yankees of old who used to fight in the dugout. Lou isn't Billy Martin. I can prove it. ESPN is making a freaking movie about those Yanks. If you were to make a movie about the Cubs season this year I would have to say it would be Driving Miss Daisy. A sorry tale of a man who knows he is driving a hearse. That would be Pinella.

That's why this Sox/Cubs series is important to both sides of the city this year. It could be the spark that gets their engines roaring. You'll hear a lot about how this has happened before in past Crosstown Classics. That seems so long ago, I can't remember the last time it mattered. (2003? 1998? 2005? Oh fuhgettabout it) Here's hoping I am wrong. Deep down White Sox fans know that beating up on the Cubs this weekend may be the last chance they have before being forced to write off the season officially. Erstad will be back and we've heard grumblings that Pods might make an appearance too. The Sox will eventually get healthy, and their bats will heat up but it won't matter in late August.

The Cubs have a different set of issues. With the Tribune company sold, all the money they would like to spend on an impact player is locked up. The Trib says don't guarantee future salaries until we sell this pig off. Besides, they still need to sign Zambrano, right? I mean, why trade away an admittedly below average catcher with experience if you're not going to sign Zambrano? This series is going to seal the fate for a lot of current Chicago ball players. Most of the changes are going to happen on the Southside. History is on my side with that prediction. So is Kenny Williams. The Cubs won't be movers or shakers. Instead they will be forced to man up in the league's worst division with what I consider pretty darn good ballplayers.

To wrap it all up, if this series isn't about bragging rights amongst below average baseball teams and their fans then it could be about something recently mentioned by the press: The Ken Griffey Jr. Lottery.