After being extremely disappointed with the past two seasons, and not receiving a good value out of my Cubs tickets, I have already decided that if Mike Quade returns as Cubs manager for 2012, I will not purchase my usual package of bleacher tickets (15-20 games) next January or February.  If I want to go to any games, I’ll buy single game tickets for dirt cheap, when people are struggling to give them away, and the Cubs are running several promotions to discount tickets, just to get people in the stands.

I’m on the season ticket waiting list, and I typically purchase the Flex package that is offered (9 games or 13 games) several weeks before individual seats go on sale. Then, I usually purchase additional single games to some of the best series (Cards, Sox, Yanks, etc.), when tickets go on sale to the general public.

With BCB being a soundboard for Cubs fans, which often gets read by members of the Cubs organization, I was curious how others felt about the same thing. And so, I’ve decided to create a poll.

With the summer in full, and the Cubs competing for the worst record in the majors, the BCB faithful should be looking for better ways to spend their time. As always, the summer box offices are thriving, as the annual blockbusters hit the theaters. However, this summer, Hollywood is going Chicagowood... as Cubs themed re-makes are flying to box offices in groves.

Here are a some previews for movies you all might enjoy, instead of watching the Cubs turn into doormats. 

Feel free to copy any images and re-post in threads where applicable. And, of course, your own movie title re-makes are more than welcome.

WEEKEND AT QUADE'S
A pair of losers try to pretend that their dead manager is really alive.

SEMI-PRO
Mike Quade, the owner-coach-player of the American Baseball Association's Flint Michigan Tropics, rallies his teammates to make their MLB dreams come true.

THE PATH TO DEAD OCTOBER
In 1984, the USSR's baseball captain, with their newest club, violates orders and heads for the USA. Is he trying to defect from the National League, or to start a war with the NL West?

DUMB AND DUMBER
The cross-country adventures of two good-hearted but incredibly stupid baseball coaches.

REAL GENIUS
Teenage geniuses deal with their abilities while developing a laser that fails to pin-point the strike zone.

PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE
Eccentric man-child Pee-Wee Herman (Mike Quade) embarks on the big adventure of his life across the US mainland, as he sets out to lose against every team in the National League.

DUDE, WHERE'S MY MANAGER?
Two pitchers wake up from the seventh inning and can't remember if they even have a manger.

THE NAKED CUB 102 1/2 (The Naked Gun 33 1/3)
Mike Quade comes out of retirement, as a 3rd base coach, to help Minor League Baseball infiltrate a gang of terrorists planning to detonate a bomb at the All-Star Game.

I am absolutely furious and completely embarrassed as a Cubs fan over what just took place this weekend in St. Louis. It was obvious during week one of this season that manager Mike Quade was in over head. The eternal optimists were willing to give him more time. Well... all that time has proved is that he is currently worthy of the title of "Baseball's most incompetent manager."

It's bad enough to visit the mound and tell your pitcher how to pitch to Albert Pujols (The Player of the Decade), with 2 outs and nobody on base in extra inning (even though you shouldn't be pitching to him at all)! It's even worse to sound like a complete fool in the post-game press conferences when getting hammered about the decision, and then go out and do the absolute unthinkable the following day: Allow Pujols to walk-off a second day in a row.

To this Cubs fan... this moment... this weekend... is the single most embarrassing moment in Cubs history of the last 20 years.

What will this Cubs team look like next April? With several contract issues coming up, the kids on the farm knocking on the door, and huge dollars coming off the books, this upcoming off-season and free agency may be the most interesting and significant one in recent Cubs history.

Contracts:

• Fukudome, Pena, Grabow, Wood, and Johnson will be free agents.
• Ramirez has a $16MM mutual/vesting option for 2012 with a $2MM buyout. Dempster has a $14MM player option.
• Wells, Soto, and Garza will be arbitration eligible. Given the trade for Garza, we're likely to extend him on a new deal, and we could be extending Soto as well.
  

Per MLB Trade Rumors: Not counting Ramirez's buyout or Dempster's salary, the Cubs have a 2012 payroll obligation of $56.6MM, significantly below their typical $135MM range.  If Ramirez and Dempster have poor seasons, the Cubs might have to add another $2MM for Ramirez's buyout and $14MM for Dempster's 2012 salary, bringing the obligation to $72.6MM.  The team could have needs in the rotation and at both infield corners, plus a lot of money to spend, so it should be an interesting 2011-12 offseason.

So, prior to entering the outside free agent market, our payroll may be down to just $72.6MM, a 46% drop from $135MM. We may have vacancies in the rotation, and at 3rd and 1st. Plus, we'll likely have a serious infusion of talent from the farm.

Free Agency:

• Let's not kid ourselves, this free agency class will be all about Pujols and Fielder. There isn't really a pitching ace on the market this off-season, as the top pitchers heading into free agency are Mark Buehrle (33 next March), Chris Carpenter (37 next April), and Edwin Jackson (28 next September). One real interesting piece could be Robinson Cano (29 next October), who I believe has an option, and could test free agency. Darwin Barney looks like a nice player, but Cano is a huge difference maker in the lineup, however any deal he signs will take him until he's 34 or 35... a situation the Cubs need to avoid, not repeat.   

On the Farm:

• OF: Our system is loaded with some big time OF prospects right now. Brett Jackson is likely penciled in for a spot in 2012. And other top prospects like Jae-Hoon Ha, Michael Burgess, and Matt Szcuzr will be in camp next spring.  This is the best group of OF prospect bats that I can ever recall in our system. Odds are very good that more than one of these guys becomes a stud for us.
  
• IF: We have some nice hitting prospects in the infield in Josh Vitters, Ryan Flaherty, and DJ LeMahieu. But it's really uncertain what position any of these guys should be playing at the major league level. And, we'll really need a position filled on the corners, with Castro locking down SS, and Barney looking like a quality 2B. The only way I see Barney getting moved aside, is for a serious signing like Cano, or a hot power bat like Flaherty, that we just can't keep out of the lineup.
• C: Hopefully the Koyie Hill era will finally come to an end, as Wellington Castillo looks like a major league catcher. Lower down on the farm, Steve Clevenger continues to hit the ball. The Cubs organization has been deep at catcher for a little while now, promoting Soto to the majors, and dealing Robinson Chirinos to Tampa in the Garza trade.
• Pitching: Our top two potential rotation arms right now are Trey McNutt and Rafael Dolis... in AA Tennessee. Considering the poor free agent crop for starting pitching, it will be important for one of our prospects to make an impact in the rotation. Casey Coleman (who's in the majors right now) Jay Jackson and Chris Carpenter would be our next three most ready options, but neither of them are really exciting. Last year's #1 pick, Hayden Simpson has to work his way through the system. 

There's going to be a lot of turnover, prospects moving up, and some huge dollars available to spend in free agency. Then, there's the question of who's going to manage this team? When it's all said and done, the 2012 version of the Chicago Cubs could look drastically different than this year's version.

Lovie Smith is a lame duck... running out of excuses and options. Ditto for Jerry Angelo.

The rap sheet:

1. No playoffs in 3 seasons.
2. Promoting and then demoting himself as defensive coordinator.
3. Cleaning out the entire coaching staff.
4. And finally going on a spending spree to fix a laundry list of bad drafts and personnel decisions, which will ultimately be the worst decision, as he and Angelo set back this franchise even further, by giving money to guys on the wrong side of 30.

The Bears will likely use a 5th round pick in this year's draft on a WR... they could have just used it on Holmes. I hope to find out later, that the Bears at least inquired about Holmes. If not, then they've completely missed the boat.

From the Chicago Tribune

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Jets acquired wide receiver Santonio Holmes from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night for a fifth-round draft pick this month, according to a person familiar with the deal.

The person spoke with The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the teams had yet to announce the trade.

Holmes, the 2009 Super Bowl MVP, gives quarterback Mark Sanchez another big-time target to throw to in an offense that already had Braylon Edwards, Jerricho Cotchery, promising tight end Dustin Keller and recently signed running back LaDainian Tomlinson.

I think all of us here at WCG can find truckloads of humor in the Josh McDaniels QB rollercoaster. He caused the ruckus that led to Cutler's trade to the Bears. And now, he's still searching for Cutler's replacement, as apparently Kyle Orton's performance last year wasn't good enough for him.

Per ESPN on March 14 7:16PM ET

Brady Quinn will get a chance to start over in Denver. Whether he'll get to start is up in the air.

The Broncos acquired the former first-round draft pick from the Cleveland Browns for fullback Peyton Hillis, a 2011 sixth-round draft pick and a conditional pick in 2012.

The teams announced the trade Sunday and said the deal is pending physicals.

Ostensibly, Quinn will compete with Kyle Orton for the Broncos' starting job, although coach Josh McDaniels was unavailable Sunday to comment on the trade, according to a team spokesman.

Tick tock, tick tock. No, it's not Captain Hook's alligator. But, Lovie Smith should be afraid of the hook... cause that's what might be coming after the Bears conclude another disappointing season in Detroit on Sunday. This marks the 3rd consecutive season that Lovie's Bears will miss the playoffs. That's not exactly a recipe for job security after a Super Bowl appearance. But, it could be worse... we could all be Lions fans. Actually, some could argue that we should be Lions fans on Sunday. The countdown to Black Monday begins at 12:00 CT on FOX.  

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The Lovie Smith era gets closer to an end, and the Brad Childress and Brett Favre show visit Soldier Field on Monday night, as the Vikings try to clinch the division. It really should be criminal for the Bears to be on prime time television once again this year. I think the American public has been forced to watch enough of them by now. The destruction will begin at 7:30 CT on ESPN. A loss next week to the Lions in Detroit should bring the axe to a swing.

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A website called Bear Fans United was set up in recent weeks, with the goal of raising enough donations via PayPal to erect a billboard advertisement in Arlington Heights. Well, the group has met their goal, and the billboard is being put up today! The billboard itself was donated by a fan, and the website raised $3,000 to pay for the ad creation and installation. The billboard reads "Do the right thing. Hire an entirely new coaching staff and general manager."

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Lovie Smith, Ron Turner and Co. escape from the Chicago microscope for one weekend and head to Baltimore.  The Ravens are a team fighting for a wild card birth, but the only wild card on the Bears is: which player will throw the coaching staff under the bus next? 3:15pm CT on FOX. 

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