Good Morning All.  I really hate to do this since we have discussed the steroid issue to death but another commentary was made in the Tribune today

Baseball Still Too Nonchalant about steroids

and frankly I wish the media would get over their righteous indignation.

1. Steroids should be banned because they are performance enhancing.

Performance Enhancing, what does this mean.  Changes in medicine and surgery have repaired broken players who in the past would no longer be able to be effective playing the game.  In some cases the players come back even stronger than before their surgeries.  Isn’t that performance enhancing?  Changes in training, nutrition, technology have all helped ball players enhance their performances.  We don’t call for an asterisk in the record books based on today’s facilities versus the good old days when players took trains to the games and maybe had a weight set to help them ‘bulk’ up.

Additionally, you can not take these drugs, sit on you’re a$$ and then magically hit a home run or pitch a no hitter.  Taking these drugs in ADDITION to working hard training will enhance your performance.  The drugs will make your body build mass and reduce your recovery time from the workout.  They are not magic pills.  They do not give you magic skills.

1. Steroids should be banned because they are bad for you.

Are steroids bad for you?  I’m not a doctor but from what I have read yes, there can be serious side effects and long term issues with some of the drugs.  However there are many things that ball players can do that are not good for them that are not banned from baseball; alcohol, tobacco, etc.   What about physical overuse?  Isn’t it bad for a ballplayer to overextend them (think pitch count) or play while they are hurt?  And yet we ask them to ‘man’ up in many situations.  Ballplayers make decisions about their health everyday why should this be different?  Let the ball player make the choice.  And before you say that they do not have a choice because this creates an uneven playing field, let me remind you that they make a choice to go into professional sports.  There are inherent risks in participating in the sport and how they chose to treat their body is one of those risks.

1. Steroids should be banned because they set a bad moral example for our children.

MLB should not be in the business of legislating morals

What about alcohol?  There is no punishment for drinking alcohol.  Baseball does not ban alcohol from their stadiums in fact it is a large profit center.  Yet it is illegal for minors to be drinking. 

What about tobacco?  There is no punishment for smoking or chewing.  Yet it is illegal for minors to have tobacco.

What about adultery?   What about racism or homophobia?

1. Steroids are cheating.

Cheating is wrong and should be punished.  Currently, taking these certain steroids as well as other so called performance enhancing drugs is banned by MLB.  

This is cheating just like betting on games, corked bats, spit balls, etc.  I am NOT comparing these forms of cheating.  I am saying that players who violate the rules should be punished and that the punishments should fit the crime.  I don’t think the way the media treats steroid users fit their so called crimes.

1. All players in the last 20 years are guilty and so is MLB management.

Notice that I said “currently” in the paragraph above.  You can not go back and retroactively punish someone if the rules/consequences were not established.  Also, we need to temper our judgment with the reality of the times.  A little understanding and forgiveness can go a long way.

Here is the letter from the Cubs regarding season ticket prices.  They have created a new category of games to rake in even more money.

Thank you for your record-breaking support in 2008. With more than 3.3 million tickets sold, more people attended Cubs games in 2008 than ever in our organization’s history. You saw the most home wins (55) by any Cub team in 73 years, the first back-to-back post-season appearances in 100 years, eight National
League All-Stars, the N.L. Rookie of the Year and N.L. Manager of the Year. In years past, this would qualify as a very successful season.

But times have changed. Because of the physical, emotional and financial investment by our fans, players, coaches and front office, regular season success is no longer enough. We know that without success in the regular season we wouldn’t have the opportunity to win a World Championship. But just as clearly, our
playoff performance has not measured up to our expectations or yours. We are committed to finishing the job and welcome raised expectations. In many ways, our level of disappointment following a 97-win season shows we are pointed in the right direction.

Our on-field improvement didn’t happen by accident—it is the result of significant investment in the organization. Our 2008 payroll was the second highest in the National League and is $50 million higher than in 2003. It will increase again next year. Our investment in both the domestic amateur draft and international signings, as well as upgrades to our coaching, scouting and player development areas, have
led to the rise of home-grown talent, such as Geovany Soto, Carlos Marmol, Ryan Theriot and Jeff Samardzjia.  Without the benefit of public funding like most teams in our sport, we have also made sizable investments in Wrigley Field. In 2008, we competed on a new $1.6 million playing surface and invested more than $3
million in capital projects to maintain Wrigley Field and improve fan amenities. In 2009, we will focus on renovations to some of our public spaces, such as the Friendly Confines Café. 

Recognizing the dire state of the economy, we looked at every possible avenue to avoid raising ticket prices for 2009. We are evaluating new marketing programs, like the Bud Light Bleachers, that weave corporate sponsorship into the ballpark without changing the fundamental character of Wrigley Field. We are planning to add new media opportunities and will continue utilizing the ballpark on non-game days, with
events like the NHL Winter Classic, the Road to Wrigley minor league game, Wrigley Field tours and concerts.

Despite these new initiatives, we are increasing ticket prices in 2009 for our highest quality seats. Overall, we’ve frozen ticket prices for 33% of our inventory, keeping some of our most affordable inventory flat with 2008 prices. But because our best seats are sold to our season ticket holders, you will see an increase over 2008. We hoped to hold the line on all of your seats, as we did in 2007, but it was not possible
without hurting the competitiveness of the team or the maintenance of our 94-year old ballpark. 

The biggest change for 2009 is the creation of a fourth category of dates -- the platinum games --that encompass 14 games against some of our most popular opponents. Historically, these 14 games are the most actively traded on Stub-Hub and other secondary market sites. Excluding the 14 platinum games, average ticket prices for 2009 are up 6%.

I hope you have had a chance to visit the new Web site constructed for season ticket holders at www.cubs.com\sth. The creation of this Web site results from input we received at our “Tell it to the Cubs” lunches held during the 2008 season for season ticket holders. We will again host these lunch forums in 2009 to get your feedback on our performance and to identify ways to improve your experience at Wrigley Field.
In the meantime, please use the new Web site to learn about promotions reserved for season ticket holders, such as the availability of tickets for the NHL Winter Classic, Cubs spring training games, concerts and our recently announced exhibition games that will open new Yankee Stadium on April 3 and 4.

We hope you will continue your support of Cubs baseball by renewing your season tickets for 2009. To do so, please return the enclosed renewal form to us by mail or fax on or before December 19, 2008, or send us an e-mail at  cubsseasontickets@cubs.com stating you intend to renew. A deposit is not required at this time but payment is due in full by January 19, 2009.
To retain your seats, it is imperative we hear from you by December 19.
Please also provide your updated email address to us at cubsseasontickets@cubs.com. Your email address
is the most efficient way to communicate with you regarding Cubs news and in-season updates, including changes in game times.
Once again, thank you for supporting the Chicago Cubs. We appreciate you sticking with us and are committed to earning your loyalty in everything we do. Please do not hesitate to contact the Ticket Office at 773-404-CUBS if you have any questions.

Sincerely,
Crane Kenney
Chairman

This post is an opposing viewpoint to Al's post concerning the AC sign on the rooftop club.  I thought about this idea before reading Al's post but it seems even more appropriate now. 

We need to Embrace the Curse! 

We've tried taking it off.   We've tried blessing the dugout.    We've tried to ignore it.  We've even blown up the ball.    But still the Cubs have not won.

We need to Embrace the Curse! 

The Cubs need to do the opposite.  Instead of ignoring the curse and saying that it doen't matter the Cubs should use it.  I propose the following promotions:

Black Cat Day - 1st 10,000 receive a stuffed black cat named Ronnie.

Billy Goat Day - 1st 10,000 receive a stuffed goat and a coupon for a 'Cheeze Bogger'

Bartman Bobblehead Day - 1st 10,000

Leon Durham Glove Day - 1st 5000 kids (13 years and younger)

Scapegoat Night - Dress as your favorite Cubs Curse

Fan Appreciation - Everyone gets a Cubs Hat with a set of headphones

I'm sure you guys can add to the list.

The point is that what the Cubs and their fans have been doing is not working and perhaps increasing the preasure for everyone.

Seinfeld said it best:

Jerry : If every instinct you have is wrong, then the opposite would have to be right.

George : Yes, I will do the opposite. I used to sit here and do nothing, and regret it for the rest of the day, so now I will do the opposite, and I will do something!

Let's do something.  Embrace the Curse!

P.S. Profits from the Embrace the Curse t-shirt  (because you know there will be one) should go to Cubs Care.

Here are the first few paragraphs from the Sun Times article yesturday.

Bars and restaurants around Wrigley Field that ignore the city’s call to voluntarily cut off liquor sales after the seventh inning could face a dire alternative: Area residents could vote them dry, Mayor Daley warned Tuesday.

One day after bar owners reacted angrily to the city’s proposal, Daley defended it as "common sense." He argued that Cubs fans who’ve been drinking up until the seventh-inning stretch of potential title-clinching games need, what he called, "some smoothing time" before the celebration begins in earnest.

"This is about the Cubs. This is about where they worked so hard all year to get to. This is not about a lot of fans and a lot of drinking. We don’t want to see any incident outside, because if there is, that whole area will be voted dry tomorrow. Those citizens will get together and say, ‘I’m gonna vote every precinct dry. I’ll even vote Cubs Field dry," Daley said.

First Mayor it's Wrigley Field not Cubs Field. 

Second, is this really going to help or just get people to load up on drinks before the temporary freeze on sales. 

Fianlly, doesn't this just provoke people into acting more crazy and more drunk in defiance of 'The Man'.

Get a grip Daley, we know you're a Sox fan but can you lay off the Cubs.

I used to like Stone for his thoughts and analysis but now I just think he is too full of himself.  I'm sure he would have agreed to be pulled from a no hitter when he was a pitcher.  Here are some comments from his appearance on the Mike North show:

Looks like ESPN analyst and former Mets GM Steve Phillips wasn't the only one who didn't think Lou Piniella should have let Carlos Zambrano finish that no-hitter on Sept. 14.

As Elliott Harris pointed out in today's Quick Hits, Sox analyst Steve Stone was on Mike North's Web show and echoed Phillips' sentiments.

They weren't the only ones who thought that because Zambrano was coming off a missed start due to rotator cuff tendinitis, Piniella should have limited his pitch count. Zambrano threw 110 pitches in the no-hitter.

''I don't agree with allowing Zambrano to throw 110 pitches,'' Stone said Tuesday on ''The Mike North Webio Show'' on wildfirerestaurant.com. ''I don't care if it's a no-hitter. The only job that Lou Piniella has to do, and still has to do, is make sure his pitchers are ready.

''I would have pulled him in the sixth. A manager is paid for some very tough decisions and no-hitters are delightful. You can always say you have a no-hitter.

''He is becoming Sammy [Sosa] Jr. They are creating another monster on the North Side.

''This is a really talented guy, but so was Sosa. But the point is, if you remain completely complicit, in guys you know in taking more and more, eventually the tail cannot wag the dog.''

What are your thoughts on the Cubs Ex-Analyst?