Tag / Wrigley Field

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Fitbit 12 – Week 24

Despite the excessive heat warnings, it was another great week, finishing with my highest weekly total in nearly two years, multiple days above goal for the first time since January. and pushing my 40,000-step streak to three weeks.  Afternoon baseball at Rate Field on Sunday started the week off on a high note, finishing with 7600 steps.  Monday dropped down a bit, falling 28 steps away from 5200.  The overbearing heat arrived on Tuesday, so an early morning walk helped push me to 6200 steps.  A trip to Wrigley Field on Wednesday again pushed me over goal, ending the day with 8400 steps.  An appointment for blood work followed by a car wash left me with 5500 steps on Thursday.  A morning walk on Friday pushed me up to 6200 steps.  The week wrapped up on a high note on Saturday, using another morning walk to finish with 6700 steps.

Total steps: 45,941

Daily average: 6563

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150 Years Of Cubs Baseball – Relief Pitchers Part 2

Originally founded in 1869, the Chicago Cubs became a charter member of the National League in 1876.  Over the next 150 seasons, the Cubs have played more than 22,000 games, scored over 103,000 runs and recorded more than 200,000 hits, more than any other team in baseball history.  Nearly 2,300 players have worn a Cubs uniform, earning eight division titles, 17 NL pennants, and three World Series championships.

Fans have witnessed generations of unforgettable players, from historical heroes like Joe Tinker, Gabby Hartnett, Ernie Banks, and Billy Williams to more recent stars like Ryne Sandberg, Derrek Lee, Kerry Wood, and Anthony Rizzo.  The team has called Wrigley Field home for 110 of those 150 seasons.

To celebrate this milestone, the Cubs are holding a fan vote to select the franchise’s anniversary team.  Each week, we will go through the provided options for each position and declare who should, and, if different, who will, win the fan vote.  We continue today with the final eight selections for relief pitcher.

Carlos Mármol was signed by the Cubs as a catcher/outfielder in 1999 but was converted to pitcher in 2003.  He debuted in 2006, working mostly as a starter in place of the injured Kerry Wood.  Marmol resurfaced in 2007 as a setup man and helped the Cubs capture back-to-back division titles in 2007 and 2008.  Over those two seasons, Marmol battled Ryan Dempster and Kerry Wood for the closer spot, getting his opportunity in both years thanks to injury to the incumbent.  In 2009, he finally replaced an ineffective Kevin Gregg as closer, holding down that position for the remainder of his Cubs tenure.  Marmol’s strength was in his ability to strike out opposing batters, averaging 16 strikeouts per nine innings pitched, setting the record for highest K/9 ratio by a pitcher with at least 50 innings pitched.  Things started to go south in 2011, when he tied for the major league lead with ten blown saves.  The following year, he was designated for assignment in June after continuing to struggle.

Randy Myers spent just three seasons with the Cubs, from 1993-1995.  In 1993, he set a then-NL record with 53 saves.  His most infamous moment came in a late September game against the Astros in 1995, when a fan jumped onto the field and ran to the pitcher’s mound to attack Myers after he gave up a go-ahead home run.  Myers used his martial arts training to drop the attacker to the ground and then held him down until security could get there.  He led the NL in saves twice in his three years with the Cubs and was a two-time All-Star.

Phil Regan was traded to the Cubs in late April 1968.  He excelled at the back end of the Cubs bullpen, leading all of MLB with 25 saves and earning the Sporting News Reliever of the Year award.  A run-in with an umpire on August 18 in his appearance versus the Reds saw Regan accused of throwing doctored balls, with fourteen pitches deemed illegal by the home plate umpire despite no evidence of any foreign substance on the balls.  While later cleared by the NL President Warren Giles, Regan’s reputation was sullied for the remainder of his career.  Unfortunately, he was never able to repeat that dominance and found his usage decrease each season he remained with the Cubs until he left in June of 1972.

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #5

Music.  It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions.  It is the universal language that speaks to the soul.  It forms the soundtrack of our lives.

It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library, featuring the songs I have listened to the most since 2007.  It is time to do so again, seeing which performers still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray.  So, without further ado, here are my most listened to artists, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2026.

Today, we break into the top five as we approach the top of our chart.  Born out of the death of Kurt Cobain in 1994 and the subsequent breakup of Nirvana, our next entry is the Dave Grohl solo project that turned into the real live band known as Foo Fighters.

 

#5: Foo Fighters
iTunes stats: 1249 plays
Previous ranking: #5

Adding listens to an additional six songs, pushing them up to 54 tracks, helped the Foo Fighters raise their total by nearly 22%, leaving them static in their spot on the charts.  Their most popular song, a live version of My Hero from a concert in London’s Hyde Park in 2006, clocks in with 68 listens, while twelve different tracks bring up the rear with only a single play.

I’ve managed to see the band in concert twice: first in 2005 and again in 2015.  The first show was an indoor affair at the Allstate Arena, where they were touring with Weezer, who got things started by mixing a cover of Big Me into their set.  Once the Foo Fighters came out, they mixed in old hits with selections from their new album for a fun, 16-song set.  They also managed to break down some of their hits with elongated guitar solos that gave the audience an opportunity to thrash themselves as much as humanly possible.

Ten years later, I saw them for the second time at Wrigley Field.  Having broken his leg over two months earlier, Dave Grohl spent the show sitting in an electric throne that could bring him out into the crowd thanks to an extended stage.  The band wasted no time in getting things started, blowing out Everlong and Monkey Wrench straight out of the gate.  Over 2 and a half hours and 21 songs later, they closed down the joint with a rousing rendition of Best of You.  In between, they put on a hell of a show, featuring their own hits along with some snippets of hits from Van Halen, Yes, and Alice Cooper.

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150 Years Of Cubs Baseball – Relief Pitchers Part 1

Originally founded in 1869, the Chicago Cubs became a charter member of the National League in 1876.  Over the next 150 seasons, the Cubs have played more than 22,000 games, scored over 103,000 runs and recorded more than 200,000 hits, more than any other team in baseball history.  Nearly 2,300 players have worn a Cubs uniform, earning eight division titles, 17 NL pennants, and three World Series championships.

Fans have witnessed generations of unforgettable players, from historical heroes like Joe Tinker, Gabby Hartnett, Ernie Banks, and Billy Williams to more recent stars like Ryne Sandberg, Derrek Lee, Kerry Wood, and Anthony Rizzo.  The team has called Wrigley Field home for 110 of those 150 seasons.

To celebrate this milestone, the Cubs are holding a fan vote to select the franchise’s anniversary team.  Each week, we will go through the provided options for each position and declare who should, and, if different, who will, win the fan vote.  We continue today with the first eight selections for relief pitcher.

Paul Assenmacher, acquired for the stretch run in 1989 as the team was looking for their second NL East title, spent parts of five seasons as a member of the Cubs and was a perfectly reliable bullpen arm for most of that time.

Rod Beck spent less than two seasons with the Cubs.  Signed in 1998, he led the NL in games and games finished while saving 51 as the Cubs won their first NL Wild Card.  He made one appearance in the NLDS, giving up three earned runs in less than two innings of work.  Injuries combined with ineffectiveness the following year led to him being traded to the Red Sox in August.  He was re-signed by the team in 2003 while recovering from Tommy John surgery but was released before being added to the big-league roster.  Following his 2007 death, he was buried wearing his Cubs uniform.

Joe Borowski spent parts of five seasons with the Cubs, from 2001-2005.  His best year came in 2003, when he was named the closer.  He saved 33 games as the Cubs won their first division title in over a decade.  He gave up just one earned run across five games in the postseason, as the Cubs famously lost the NLCS to the Marlins in seven games.  Injuries marred his remaining time on the team, and he was designated for assignment in 2005.

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Fitbit 12 – Week 22

A great week, as I pushed past the 40,000-step mark for the first time in a month and extended my streak of weeks over 30,000 steps to nineteen.  The week got off to a nice start on Sunday, as I used a long walk through the neighborhood to finish a single step shy of 6700.  Monday kept the good times going, ending with 5600 steps.  A very small drop on Tuesday left me with 5500 steps.  Wednesday was the low point of the week, as a busy workday limited me 4300 steps.  Thursday saw a nice bounce back, falling 27 steps shy of 5900.  The Juneteenth holiday on Friday, spent getting a haircut followed by a Cubs rout of the Blue Jays at Wrigley Field, surpassed my daily goal and ended up 39 steps away from 8400.  The week wrapped up on a good note on Saturday, ending with 5400 steps despite a graduation party taking up the afternoon.

Total steps: 41,861

Daily average: 5980.1

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150 Years Of Cubs Baseball – Starting Pitchers Part 3

Originally founded in 1869, the Chicago Cubs became a charter member of the National League in 1876.  Over the next 150 seasons, the Cubs have played more than 22,000 games, scored over 103,000 runs and recorded more than 200,000 hits, more than any other team in baseball history.  Nearly 2,300 players have worn a Cubs uniform, earning eight division titles, 17 NL pennants, and three World Series championships.

Fans have witnessed generations of unforgettable players, from historical heroes like Joe Tinker, Gabby Hartnett, Ernie Banks, and Billy Williams to more recent stars like Ryne Sandberg, Derrek Lee, Kerry Wood, and Anthony Rizzo.  The team has called Wrigley Field home for 110 of those 150 seasons.

To celebrate this milestone, the Cubs are holding a fan vote to select the franchise’s anniversary team.  Each week, we will go through the provided options for each position and declare who should, and, if different, who will, win the fan vote.  We start today with the final eight selections for starting pitcher.

Rick Reuschel, a native of central Illinois, spent parts of twelve seasons across two stints with the Cubs, from 1972-1981 and again from 1983-1984.  From 1975-1978, he was teammates with his brother Paul, also a pitcher.  His best season came in 1977, when he won 20 games, made his lone All-Star team as a Cub, and finished third in Cy Young award voting.  After being traded in 1981, he returned to the Cubs in 1983 following a rotator cuff injury.  He is a member of the Cubs Hall of Fame.

Charlie Root spent the majority of his major league career with the Cubs, from 1926-1941.  In 1927, he led the National League with 26 wins, 48 games, 309 innings pitched, and, unfortunately, 117 walks.  In the 1932 World Series, Root was on the mound for Babe Ruth’s infamous called shot home run, though he would dispute the account.  Overall, he appeared in four World Series as a Cub and received some MVP support in five of his sixteen seasons.  He is a member of the team’s Hall of Fame.

Bob Rush debuted with the Cubs in 1948, spending ten seasons on the north side.  A two-time All-Star, he led the NL with 20 losses in 1950.  He was a steady, if unspectacular, mainstay of the Cub rotation during the fallow period following their final World Series appearance of the 20th century in 1945.

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #7

Music.  It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions.  It is the universal language that speaks to the soul.  It forms the soundtrack of our lives.

It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library, featuring the songs I have listened to the most since 2007.  It is time to do so again, seeing which performers still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray.  So, without further ado, here are my most listened to artists, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2026.

Formed in 1990 after the demise of Mother Love Bone following the death of singer Andrew Wood, Pearl Jam checks in today at #7 as we continue with the top ten.  The new group burst onto the Seattle grunge scene in 1991 and, by the second half of 1992, became a worldwide sensation.

#7: Pearl Jam
iTunes stats: 874 plays
Previous ranking: #8

The grunge godfathers move up one spot thanks to a nearly 34% increase in plays.  Their 874 plays, an increase of 221, come from 42 tracks spread between twelve different albums.  Go, my most listened to of their songs, benefited from being used as the walkup song for White Sox star Paul Konerko’s final seasons and its inclusion on my various victory playlists.

I’ve seen them in concert twice: at Soldier Field back in 1995 and Wrigley Field in 2018.  The first show took place during the tour they put on without using Ticketmaster, which led to a lottery for tickets. Pearl Jam came out and performed an astounding 29 song set, including 2 encores.  My favorite memory of the night was during the performance of Better Man, when my friend Joe, not understanding the meaning of the song, said that all of the girls sang it about him, that they couldn’t find a better man.  Ironically, this was my last visit to old Soldier Field, which would be “renovated” in 2001 and 2002.

The second show, more than 20 years later, came a long time since I had last considered myself a Pearl Jam fan.  The show, while entertaining, certainly dragged for long periods between songs that I knew as the last album that I owned came out prior to the 1995 show.

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150 Years Of Cubs Baseball – Starting Pitchers Part 2

Originally founded in 1869, the Chicago Cubs became a charter member of the National League in 1876.  Over the next 150 seasons, the Cubs have played more than 22,000 games, scored over 103,000 runs and recorded more than 200,000 hits, more than any other team in baseball history.  Nearly 2,300 players have worn a Cubs uniform, earning eight division titles, 17 NL pennants, and three World Series championships.

Fans have witnessed generations of unforgettable players, from historical heroes like Joe Tinker, Gabby Hartnett, Ernie Banks, and Billy Williams to more recent stars like Ryne Sandberg, Derrek Lee, Kerry Wood, and Anthony Rizzo.  The team has called Wrigley Field home for 110 of those 150 seasons.

To celebrate this milestone, the Cubs are holding a fan vote to select the franchise’s anniversary team.  Each week, we will go through the provided options for each position and declare who should, and, if different, who will, win the fan vote.  We continue today with the second eight selections for starting pitcher.

Ken Holtzman was selected by the Cubs in the fourth round of the 1965 draft and made his major league debut that September after just twelve minor league appearances.  He joined the starting rotation the following year, and, serving in the National Guard, was only available to start on weekends in 1967, going 9-0 in his twelve appearances.  He threw two no-hitters, the first in 1969 against the Braves and the second in 1971 against the Reds.  He asked to be traded following the 1971 season.  He is a member of the team’s Hall of Fame.

Bill Hutchison spent seven seasons with the franchise now known as the Cubs, from 1889-1895.  He led the National League in wins from 1890-1892 and strikeouts in 1892.  He still ranks fourth all-time in franchise history in wins, second in innings pitched, sixth in strikeouts, and first in loses, complete games, walks allowed, and wild pitches.

Fergie Jenkins spent ten of his 19 years in the big leagues across two stints with the Cubs, first from 1966-1973 and again from 1982-1983.  A three-time All-Star, he led the National League in victories in 1971, strikeouts in 1969, and earned the Cy Young Award in 1971.  Jenkins was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 1991 and his number 31, shared with Greg Maddux, was retired by the club in 2009.

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150 Years Of Cubs Baseball – Starting Pitchers Part 1

Originally founded in 1869, the Chicago Cubs became a charter member of the National League in 1876.  Over the next 150 seasons, the Cubs have played more than 22,000 games, scored over 103,000 runs and recorded more than 200,000 hits, more than any other team in baseball history.  Nearly 2,300 players have worn a Cubs uniform, earning eight division titles, 17 NL pennants, and three World Series championships.

Fans have witnessed generations of unforgettable players, from historical heroes like Joe Tinker, Gabby Hartnett, Ernie Banks, and Billy Williams to more recent stars like Ryne Sandberg, Derrek Lee, Kerry Wood, and Anthony Rizzo.  The team has called Wrigley Field home for 110 of those 150 seasons.

To celebrate this milestone, the Cubs are holding a fan vote to select the franchise’s anniversary team.  Each week, we will go through the provided options for each position and declare who should, and, if different, who will, win the fan vote.  We continue today with the first eight selections for starting pitcher.

Pete Alexander spent parts of nine seasons with the Cubs, from 1918-1926.  He missed the majority of 1918 after being drafted into the Army and being deployed to France.  In 1920, he won the pitching triple crown, leading the NL in wins, ERA, and strikeouts.  That turned out to be his last dominant season, thanks to injuries sustained in World War I, though he continued to be an effective pitcher for the remainder of his Cubs career.  In 1938, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame with 80.9% of the vote.

Jake Arrieta was acquired by the Cubs in July of 2013, making seven starts for Iowa before being recalled to the rebuilding big league club.  He turned into an ace for the team in 2015, winning the NL Cy Young Award, and was a key contributor to their World Series championship in 2016.  He threw two no-hitters, one in 2015 against the Dodgers and the second in 2016 against the Reds.  After leaving as a free agent following the 2017 season, he re-signed with the Cubs in 2021, with disastrous results.  He set the team record for highest ERA for a pitcher in a season with at least 20 starts.  He followed up his final appearance before his mid-August release, where he gave up 8 hits and 7 runs in the first inning, with a post-game tirade where he berated a reporter for wearing a mask, which he was required to do by city regulation, during a Zoom press conference.

Mordecai Brown spent two tours with the Cubs in the early 20th century, from 1904-1912 and again in 1916.  Nicknamed “Three Finger” due to a farming accident in his youth which mangled his right hand, the disfigurement gave him an unusual grip on the baseball, which gave his pitches extra topspin.  During his Cubs career, he topped the 20-win plateau six times and helped the franchise to their first two World Series titles in 1907 and 1908.  His 2.06 career ERA is the third best amongst Hall of Famers and the best amongst pitchers with at least 200 wins.  He was elected to the Hall of Fame posthumously in 1949.

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