Tag / Corona Virus

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The Rona Claims Another Victim

Jim Frey, the former Cubs manager and general manager, passed away on Sunday after battling the corona virus.  He was 88.  Frey became manager of  the Cubs in 1984, leading the team to their first ever NL East title and first post-season appearance since 1945.  An injury-marred 1985 season, followed by a slow start in 1986, led to his firing just 2 months into the season.

Frey spent the 1987 season working for WGN radio as a color commentator on Cubs broadcasts.  In December of that year, he was hired back by the Cubs to replace Dallas Green as the team’s general manager.  Frey hired his old friend Don Zimmer to manage the team and the duo led the team to its second divisional title in 1989.  After a disappointing 1990 season, Frey was active on the free agent market, acquiring George Bell, Danny Jackson, and Dave Smith.  When Jackson and Smith flopped in 1991, Zimmer was fired in May, on orders from Tribune Co. CEO Donald Grenesko, and, following the season, Frey was reassigned within the organization.

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Mets All Time Leaders – Through 2019

21st-CENTURY-METS_01With baseball shut down because of the corona virus, I thought it would be an interesting time to look back at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams.  We continue today with the New York Mets.

The Mets began life in 1962, joining the National League following the abandonment of the New York market by both the Dodgers and Giants in 1957.  I’ve seen them play 15 times, including Tom Glavine’s 300th career victory, their pennant clinching victory in the 2015 NLCS, and, most recently, on June 22, 2019

Name Total
Daniel Murphy 2
Cliff Floyd 2
16 tied with 1

Hits

Name Total
David Wright 7
Daniel Murphy 6
3 tied with 5

Runs

Name Total
David Wright 7
Daniel Murphy 4
Carlos Beltran 4

RBI

Name Total
Lucas Duda 6
Cliff Floyd 5
4 tied with 4

Doubles

Name Total
Carlos Delgado 3
Lucas Duda 2
David Wright 2
Jeromy Burnitz 2

Triples Continue reading →

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Trying To Come Back

Two weeks into what should have been the 2020 baseball season, MLB is looking at options to resume playing sooner rather than later.  The first proposal, to quarantine all 30 teams in the Phoenix area and play to empty ballparks, both Chase Field and the spring training complexes, leaked last week and was quickly pooh-poohed by Rob Manfred after some initial push back.

The newest proposal, which leaked out this morning, is even more radical: realignment for the 2020 season, with all teams based out of their spring training homes.  The American League and National League would be replaced by the Cactus League and Grapefruit League, with teams sorted geographically by the location of their facilities.  Like the earlier Arizona plan, games would be played in the team’s spring training stadiums, as well as the three major league facilities in the states.

Teams could play 12 games against each divisional opponent and six games against the other 10 teams in their league, creating a 108-game regular-season schedule, with the winner of each league facing off in the World Series in November.

This new plan removes some of the hurdles of the Arizona-only plan, with each team housed in familiar surroundings, but increases the risk of exposure to the corona virus by expanding the circle of quarantine necessary to keep players, staff, and other game day personnel safe.  While all of the Arizona-based teams are located in the greater-Phoenix area, the Florida teams are spread throughout the entire state.

As a fan, do I want baseball back?  Of course.  But bringing it back just to bring it back, before it is really safe to do so, not only puts players at risk, it puts the doctors and nurses in those communities at risk.  I don’t think that is worth it.

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Diamondbacks All Time Leaders – Through 2019

dbacksWith baseball shut down because of the corona virus, I thought it would be an interesting time to look at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. We continue today with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Diamondbacks began life in 1998, joining the league along with the Devil Rays. I’ve seen them play 15 times, starting in their inaugural season and most recently in 2014, including the final game of their 2007 sweep of the Cubs in the NLDS.

Home Runs

Name Total
Luis Gonzalez 3
Steve Finley 3
Stephen Drew 3

Hits

Name Total
Luis Gonzalez 10
Stephen Drew 7
Alex Cintron 7
Conor Jackson 7

Runs

Name Total
Luis Gonzalez 11
Steve Finley 6
Troy Glaus 5

RBI

Name Total
Orlando Hudson 7
Steve Finley 6
Eric Byrnes 6

Doubles

Name Total
Luis Gonzalez 4
Chad Tracy 3
5 tied with 2

Triples Continue reading →

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Fitbit 6: Week 10

Week 3 of sheltering in place due to the corona virus again yielded similar, yet slightly better results.  Things got off to a slow start on Sunday, with only 2600 steps.  Monday saw a marked improvement, despite PI Planning in the morning, as I got nearly 5000 steps.  Tuesday fell back down again, with only 2500 steps.  Wednesday bounced back up again, finishing just over 5000 steps.  Thursday was back down again, with only 3200 steps.  Friday saw a nice improvement in the weather, which led to me finishing 13 steps shy of 5900.  Saturday was a near repeat of the week before, with a trip to the bank and then the grocery store leading to almost 4400 steps.

Total steps: 28,687

Daily average: 4098.1

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Nationals All Time Leaders – Through 2019

nationalsWith baseball shut down because of the corona virus, I thought it would be an interesting time to look back at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams.  We start today with the franchise I have seen the least and the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals.

The Nationals began life in 1969 as the Montreal Expos.  When the Expos missed out on their best opportunity to win a World Series due to the work stoppage of 1994, followed by years of alleged mismanagement, fan support dropped away, and the team moved to Washington in 2005.  I’ve seen them play 17 times, 5 as the Expos and 12 as the Nationals, most recently on August 24, 2019.

Home Runs

Name Total
Danny Espinosa 2
Terrmel Sledge 2
Trea Turner 1
Adam LaRoche 1
Tony Batista 1
Michael Taylor 1
Vladimir Guerrero 1

Hits

Name Total
Maicer Izturis 6
Ryan Zimmerman 6
Ian Desmond 5
Endy Chavez 5

Runs

Name Total
Trea Turner 4
Maicer Izturis 3
Ian Desmond 3
Juan Rivera 3
Nyjer Morgan 3
Brad Wilkerson 3
Juan Soto 3

RBI

Name Total
Terrmel Sledge 5
Michael Taylor 4
Danny Espinosa 3
Brian Schneider 3
Tony Batista 3

Doubles

Name Total
Juan Rivera 2
17 tied with 1

Triples Continue reading →

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200 Things To Do In Illinois – Ravinia

Illinois celebrated its bicentennial as a state in December of 2018.  To celebrate, the Chicago Tribune published the Bicentennial Bucket List: 200 Things To Do In Illinois, celebrating the best the state has to offer in history, food, architecture, culture, sports, nature, drink, and oddities.  With the state still shut down due to the corona virus outbreak, I figured this was the second-best time to look through this collection and cover the ones I’ve done/eaten/seen.

We kick things off with one of the entries from the Culture category: Ravinia, from Highland Park, IL.

 

The oldest outdoor music festival in North America draws 600,000 listeners each summer – many touting picnic baskets, blankets, and lawn chairs to stake their claim on the manicured grounds of the 36-acre park.

Performers across a panoply of musical genres have graced the pavilion stage at this summer crib of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Ravinia is a summer tradition for people on the North Shore.  Growing up on the south side, it really didn’t enter my consciousness at all, at least until I started working up north after college.  Even then, I managed to avoid going for 20 years.  Until Garbage and Blondie came to town in 2017 for their Rage and Rapture Tour.  This was my 6th Garbage show, and the first outdoors.  Shirley Manson and the boys did not disappoint, putting together a strong set and overcoming a crowd that seemed more interested in sitting down and relaxing than rocking out.  We abandoned the pavilion for Blondie’s portion of the show, roaming the grounds before eventually heading back to the train for the ride back in to Chicago.  I’m sure I’ll go back again someday, but nothing has drawn me up north just yet.

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London Calling No More

The latest casualty of the corona virus pandemic is the June series in London between the Cubs and the Cardinals.  Commissioner Rob Manfred made the announcement yesterday in a message sent to MLB employees.  The league had previously announced the cancelation of series in Mexico City and San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Assuming the season starts at some point, those games will be played in St. Louis.

MLB played in Europe for the first time last June, when the Yankees swept a pair of games from the Red Sox in London.  No official word on 2021, but there is at least one report that MLB will try again next year with the Cubs and Cardinals.

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Fitbit 6: Week 9

Week 2 of sheltering in place due to the corona virus yielded similar, if slightly better results.  The week got off to a slow start on Sunday, as I managed to barely surpass 2000 steps.  Monday was a little better, as I got up to 2500 steps.  Tuesday was another improvement, going up over 3000 steps.  The weather cooperated on Wednesday, leading to an after-work walk around the neighborhood with put me up over 6600 steps, my highest total since this whole mess started.  Despite colder weather, I managed a shorter walk on Thursday, which left me around 5200 steps.  Friday brought rain, which kept me inside all day and left me back down at 2600 steps.  I got out of the house on Saturday for a trip to the bank and the grocery store, which netted me steps despite the rain.

Total steps: 26,260

Daily average: 3751.4

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200 Things To Do In Illinois – Chicago Sports Museum

Illinois celebrated its bicentennial as a state in December of 2018.  To celebrate, the Chicago Tribune published the Bicentennial Bucket List: 200 Things To Do In Illinois, celebrating the best the state has to offer in history, food, architecture, culture, sports, nature, drink, and oddities.  With the state still shut down due to the corona virus outbreak, I figured this was the second-best time to look through this collection and cover the ones I’ve done/eaten/seen.

We continue things this week with one of the entries from the Sports category: Chicago Sports Museum, from Chicago, IL.

Take a break from the sport of shopping to check out this museum on the seventh floor of Water Tower Place.  Peruse an impressive collection of Cubs 2016 World Series memorabilia, including Grandpa Rossy’s Game 7 catcher’s gear.

All of the city’s major sports teams are represented in interactive exhibits and virtual reality games, where you can shoot hoops with Scottie Pippen and do a quarterback challenge with Richard Dent.

On July 5, 2018, the family headed down to the city to see Heartbreak Hotel at the Broadway Playhouse.  Before the show, we ate dinner at Harry Caray’s 7th Inning Stretch, which is connected to the Chicago Sports Museum on the 7th level of Water Tower Place.  While there were some interesting pieces in the museum, including Steve Stone’s Cy Young Award and Sammy Sosa’s corked bat, I wouldn’t necessarily call it a must-do attraction.  If you’re looking to kill time while in the mall, sure, but it isn’t somewhere I feel the need to visit again.