Tag / Wrigley Field

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FB10: Week 31

A nice improvement this week thanks in part to multiple baseball games.  The week got off to a decent start on Sunday, coming only 8 steps shy of 4400.  Things fell off a bit on Monday, as I needed 21 more steps to reach 3800.  Tuesday bounced back up, surpassing 4300 steps.  A trip to Wrigley Field on Wednesday night left me a mere 7 steps away from 6400.  Another dip on Thursday dropped me back down to 2400 steps.  There was a big improvement on Friday thanks to Elvis night at Guaranteed Rate Field, which left me 17 steps short of 6500.  A slow day of recovery after on Saturday saw me needing 27 additional steps to get to 3300.

Total steps: 31,074

Daily average: 4439.1

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Your Latest Crosstown Pitching Leaders

cws-chiTwo months back, the 2024 Crosstown Cup series kicked off at Wrigley Field with the Cubs sweeping the two-game set as part of the first record-setting losing streak the White Sox posted this season.  With round two scheduled to get under way tonight across town at Guaranteed Rate Field, we look at the pitching leaders from the 90 contests I’ve attended in the annual match-up between the White Sox and the Cubs, starting with:

Wins

Name Total
Carlos Zambrano 4
Jon Lester 4
Mark Buehrle 3
Jon Lieber 3
15 tied with 2

Losses

Name Total
Kyle Hendricks 5
Carlos Zambrano 3
Mark Buehrle 3
Jon Garland 3
Jose Contreras 3

ERA (> 9 IP)

Name Total
Matt Thornton 0.00
Glendon Rusch 0.00
Reynaldo Lopez 0.00
Chris Sale 0.56
Ivan Nova 0.84

Strikeouts

Name Total
Carlos Zambrano 46
Kyle Hendricks 41
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Selling Your Soul

The Cubs made their deal with the devil, Motorola in this case, on Thursday, agreeing to add an advertising patch to their jerseys as part of a multiyear deal to make the company the team’s “official smartphone.”  The patches made their on-field debut Thursday night against the Cardinals at Wrigley Field.

For the home pinstripes and road grays, the Motorola logo will have a blue background with a white M.  The alternate blue jerseys will have a white background with a blue M, while the City Connect jerseys will have a white background with a navy-blue M.  Motorola is also the jersey sponsor for the Padres in MLB and, in Chicago, the Bulls.

The Cubs become the 23rd MLB team to strike a uniform patch deal, worth an average of $7-8 million with the largest deals, believed to be with the Yankees and Blue Jays, worth over $20 million.

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Looking Ahead To 2025

Last week, on the extra off day in the All-Star break, Major League Baseball released their tentative 2025 schedule while I was away in Amsterdam.  For the third year in a row, MLB is keeping with a balanced schedule, playing 52 games against division opponents, 64 games against non-division opponents in the same league, and 46 interleague games, with series against every team in the opposite league.  With the White Sox about to cement the worst season in franchise history and the Cubs trying to figure out what went wrong on their way back to contention, the 2025 season looks like it could be a long one for the city of Chicago.  So, for one day, at least, let’s turn our attention to next summer for both teams.

The White Sox celebrate the 125th anniversary of the franchise, opening their season on March 27 at home against the Angels, kicking off a six-game homestand that also features the Twins.  They will make their first visit to Sacramento, the new home of the A’s, in the last weekend of April.

The interleague schedule sees the Phillies, Marlins, Cardinals, Brewers, Diamondbacks, and Padres coming to Guaranteed Rate Field, while the White Sox will go on the road to face the Pirates, Reds, Dodgers, Braves, Mets, Rockies, and Nationals.  The rivalry with their north side foes continues with a three-game weekend series at Wrigley Field in mid-May followed by another weekend at Guaranteed Rate Field the last weekend in July.

After wrapping up the home portion of the schedule in mid-September against the Orioles and Padres, the White Sox wrap up the 2025 season on the east coast, battling the Yankees and the Nationals to finish up the year.

On the north side, the Cubs head to Japan to open their season on March 18 with a two-game tilt against the Dodgers in Tokyo.  They return to the US to face the Diamondbacks on March 27 before heading to Sacramento for the first time to face the A’s.  They open up the home portion of the 2025 season on April 4 against the Padres.

Aside from the A’s, the Cubs will head out on the road to face the Twins, Angels, Yankees, Blue Jays, and Tigers, while the Mariners, Orioles, Guardians, Red Sox, and Royals will be coming to Wrigley Field.

Only ten of their 25 games in September are against their NL Central rivals, which could make a difference should the Cubs find themselves in contention.  They end the year with a six-game homestand, facing the Mets and the Cardinals.

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FB10: Week 20

A week of baseball helped pick up the slack after a bad start to the week.  Things started poorly on Sunday as I finished with just 2600 steps.  Things improved somewhat on Monday, jumping up to 3900 steps.  A big falloff on Tuesday dropped me back down to 2800 steps.  Things picked up on Wednesday thanks to another round of crosstown baseball at Wrigley Field, which left me 10 steps shy of 7100.  The baseball action moved to the south side on Thursday, as another game put me 9 steps away from 6600.  A third straight game on Friday had me needing just 6 more steps to reach 5500.  A haircut, but no baseball, saw me drop to 3500 steps on Saturday, ending the week on a down note.

Total steps: 32,073

Daily average: 4581.9

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Your Latest Crosstown Batting Leaders

The battle for the 2024 Crosstown Cup kicks off tonight at Wrigley Field, with the Cubs looking to take retain possession of the cup after winning it back last year.  The White Sox currently hold a slight edge in the overall series, going 74-68 over the past 27 years.  Let’s take a look at the offensive leaders for the now 89 (out of 142) crosstown games I have attended since the start of interleague play in 1997:

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 15
Carlos Lee 9
Aramis Ramirez 8
Sammy Sosa 8
Jermaine Dye 7

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 50
Carlos Lee 41
Jose Abreu 36
Sammy Sosa 29
Derrek Lee 28

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 26
Magglio Ordonez 19
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FB10: Week 16

Despite some pretty good days, the week overall fell below 30,000 steps after two weeks above.  A slow-ish Sunday got the week off to a poor start, finishing with 3300 steps.  Things improved nicely on Monday, jumping up to 4800 steps.  Things fell off on Tuesday, as I needed 27 steps just to reach 2000.  An afternoon trip to Wrigley Field on Wednesday for my first Cubs game of the year pushed me back up to 5900 steps.  Thursday fell off once again, dropping down to 2600 steps.  Another increase on Friday put me within 18 steps of 4500.  Graduation day for Danny on Saturday left me with 6700 steps, ending the week on a high note.

Total steps: 29,911

Daily average: 4273

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FB10: Week 14

An up and down week, starting strong and then building back up after work got in the way.  A trip to Purdue on Sunday for Danny’s last band concert got the week off to a good start, finishing with 5000 steps.  Things kept pace on Monday, coming just 39 steps shy of 5000.  A midday escape down to Wrigley Field for a photo op with Cody Bellinger on Tuesday left me with 4500 steps.  A dramatic crash occurred on Wednesday, as I needed 29 steps just to reach 3500.  Things improved on Thursday, rising above 3800 steps.  Friday continued the upward swing, finishing over 4100 steps, despite rainy weather which caused me to skip the White Sox game.  Saturday jumped up again, ending the week on a high note with just 36 additional steps needed to get to 4500.

Total steps: 30,442

Daily average: 4348.9

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Fifty Years Of Music – 1979

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1979, the year I started kindergarten and turned five.  I still have no knowledge of these songs from their original release, but we are starting to get to an era where the songs would become some of my favorites.  Only 16 of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with just five of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#95: Van Halen – Dance the Night Away
iTunes stats: 7 plays

Thought to be the only track written explicitly for the group’s second album, the track peaked at #15 on the Hot 100.

#92: Robert Palmer – Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)
iTunes stats: 16 plays

Originally recorded by Moon Martin the year prior, the cover version from Palmer reached #14 on the charts.

#81: Electric Light Orchestra – Don’t Bring Me Down
iTunes stats: N/A

Perhaps best known for the misheard lyric of “Bruce” following the title line, the track is the band’s highest charting hit in the US.

#78: Earth, Wind & Fire – September
iTunes stats: N/A

Peaking at #8, the song has become an Internet meme in the 21st century, becoming popular every year in September as we approach the 21st.

#53: Sister Sledge – We Are Family
iTunes stats: 14 plays

Chosen by Willie Stargell to be the official theme song of the 1979 Pirates on their way to a World Series title, the track topped out at #2 on the Hot 100.

#48: Village People – In the Navy
iTunes stats: N/A

The group’s final top 10 hit, it reached #3 on the charts.

#40: Kenny Rogers – The Gambler
iTunes stats: N/A

A crossover hit that reached the top of both the Hot 100 and the country charts, the song earned Rogers a Grammy for Best Male Country Vocal Performance in 1980.

#34: Cheap Trick – I Want You to Want Me
iTunes stats: 30 plays

After the original release from 1977 failed to chart, a rockier live version released eleven months later cracked the top 10, peaking at #7.

#31: Peaches & Herb – Shake Your Groove Thing
iTunes stats: N/A

The group’s first charting single since 1971, it spent 22 weeks on the charts, topping out at #5.

#9: Anita Ward – Ring My Bell
iTunes stats: N/A

Sampled by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince in 1991, the song, which reached the top of the charts, was Ward’s only major hit.

#8: Village People – Y.M.C.A.
iTunes stats: N/A

Peaking at #2, the song has long been used at Wrigley Field when the opposing team makes their first mid-inning pitching change.

#6: Gloria Gaynor – I Will Survive
iTunes stats: N/A

Released in October of 1978, the anthem spent three non-consecutive weeks atop the Hot 100 in 1979.

#5: Peaches & Herb – Reunited
iTunes stats: N/A

A huge crossover smash, it spent four weeks at #1 on both the R&B singles chart and the Hot 100 chart.

#4: Rod Stewart – Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?
iTunes stats: N/A

Ranked at #301 in Rolling Stone’s 2004 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, it spent four weeks atop the charts in February of 1979.

#3: Chic – Le Freak
iTunes stats: N/A

The group’s third single, it became their first #1 on both the Hot 100 and the R&B charts.

#1: The Knack – My Sharona
iTunes stats: 34 plays

The band’s debut single, it spent six weeks at the top of the charts in the summer of 1979.

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Should I Even Worry About A 10,000 Step Club?

My world was very different four years ago, as I was finishing up my fifth year using a Fitbit.  I had just added 45 new 10,000 step days, my third best year to date, and, with upcoming trips to Boston and California already on the docket, things were looking good to add a good number more and add some new tales to this list of my Top 25 step days.  Then, the corona virus happened, the world basically shut down for the next year or so, and I stopped needing to leave the house.  I’ve worked from home since March of 2020, which theoretically gives me plenty of free time to go out for walks, but, in practice, leaves me homebound more often than not.  I managed just two 10,000 step days for the just completed ninth year of Fitbit usage, which is my worst total since I started this whole step tracking thing some thirteen odd years ago, leading to a total of 285 since I started keeping track back in 2011.  With that in mind, here’s the list of my Top 25 step days, which has now stayed static for four years.

1: 4/14/2018 – 27,470 steps

My best single day total is from my April 2017 trip to New York to see Angelina.  The day’s excursions included trips to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, the Museum of the City of New York, Central Park, the Guggenheim Museum, and the Empire State Building.

2: 7/21/2018 – 27,278 steps

My July 2017 trip to Virginia, to hike up Catawba Mountain to McAfee Knob with Jeff and Val, fell just short of the top spot.

3: 6/6/2013 – 24,988 steps

2013’s trip to Disney World, which spent 5 years as my single day best, included excursions to both Epcot Center and the Magic Kingdom, and yes, falling 12 steps short of 25,000 still irks me.

4: 6/3/2019 – 24,665 steps

The first full day of 2019’s summer trip to Washington DC spent most of the day at the Smithsonian Zoo.

5: 8/8/2019 – 23,866 steps

Late in the summer of 2019, I spent two weeks in San Francisco for a work trip.   On my last full day, I went out after work, walking to Pier 39 and then back the other direction to Oracle Park to see the Giants take on the Phillies.  My totals would have been even higher, but I was dead tired and took an Uber back to the hotel after the game.

6: 3/18/2018 – 23,780 steps

My first day in Las Vegas for the 2017 IBM Think conference, the day’s totals include gallivanting around town, including a late night trip up to Caesar’s Palace from the MGM Grand to see Absinthe.

7: 10/24/2018 – 23,362 steps

My October 2018 trip to Boston to see Angelina for our birthday gives us our next entry.  While she was in class, I took tours of Fenway Park and Harvard, before meeting up with her for a late lunch and then heading to the airport for the trip home.

8: 3/22/2016 – 22,493 steps

My one-time second highest day took place during the ill-fated trip to Disney World in March of 2016.  The day’s excursion started at Hollywood Studios before heading over to Epcot Center with Jeff and Val.

9: 7/27/2013 – 20,592 steps

Still my highest total at home in the state of Illinois, the next entry comes thanks to the 2013 BTN 5K and a, for lack of a better word, misunderstanding about where I should be picked up after the race.

10: 12/29/2018 – 20,374 steps

We wrap up the top 10 with 2018’s trip to California and the trip to Disneyland to see Danny perform with the Lincoln-Way Marching Band.

11: 8/5/2017 – 20,218 steps

The next entry came in August of 2017 on the first day of my trip to Boston with Danny and Michael.  After landing in town, we traipsed to the Science Museum, a breakfast joint, our hotel, and, finally, Fenway Park.

12: 7/14/2017 – 20,208 steps

Down to #12 is my 2017 trip to Disney World, a one day journey with Angelina to celebrate her high school graduation. Continue reading →