Ten things I'm thinking about ... other than whoever that girl is .. after the jump.
1. Comparisons to Ryne Sandberg need to stop. Phil Rogers had the audacity to write this line, read it and think it was OK to be publishable. "(Baker) entered the weekend hitting .311 with an .819 OPS. Ryne Sandberg's career OPS is .795." Baker has done it since July 2. Sandberg did it over a 16-year career. A little difference there.
2. So do suggestions of the Cubs re-acquiring Mark DeRosa. For a long time, I wondered if I would ever live to see the day America elected a black president. Now, I long for a day in which Chicago baseball fans do not let their emotions dictate whether or not a player should be signed while completely disregarding said player's statistics over the course of a season and a career.
3. Portraying the idea that Micah Hoffpauir as a starting first baseman as a good one. Rogers strikes again. "It's a shame the Cubs don't have anywhere to play (Jake) Fox and Micah Hoffpauir. They could be a platoon combination at first base, but it would take a huge return to justify trading (Derrek) Lee." It's a shame that Micah Hoffpauir posted an OPS of .674 after May 31st. I think I can live with Fox and Hoffpauir being my power-hitting bench boppers, but the only way Hoffpauir should start is if every other player on the team breaks out in hives and has a near-death experience any time they are asked to play the position. Even then, I'd rather have the pitcher cover first on every play.
4. Jay Cutler is not Tom Brady. Tom Brady has Super Bowl rings and a supermodel wife. Jay Cutler has yet to even make a playoff appearance. And this is no knock on Jay, for he has all the intangibles that a Super Bowl winning quarterback needs. A strong arm, strong head and a little bit of bravado should take Cutler a long way. But it is waaaay too early to be throwing out those comparisons. Who knows, Cutler could be even better than Brady one day...
5. Take a side, stick with it and shut the f*** up. "Ozzie Guillen is too hard on his players, always throwing them under the bus," one writer will write. "Lou Piniella has gone too soft, he needs to go nuts on his guys," writes another. Then, these same guys will come back and say "Ozzie's being Ozzie is really helping the team come together" or "The old Lou showed up today and really sparked this bunch." Take a stand and don't waver. You either like batsh*t crazy managers or you don't.
6. Same thing for Lovie Smith. "The Bears need a guy like Ditka to run the show." Or. "Lovie Smith's cool, calm demeaner is exactly what they need." Apparently, they need a guy who is willing to snipe a deer in front of a child's eyes then caress the child who will be wounded for life.
7. Michael Jordan didn't to be there for the Chicago Olympic bid. Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player to ever lace 'em up, is a Brooklyn, N.Y., native. He spent his formative years in the state of North Carolina. Jordan played basketball and baseball during his Chicago years -- and in the offseason he went home to North Carolina. When he wasn't gambling of course. You know where he resides now? North Carolina. He also works in Charlotte, N.C., just to make things clear that Jordan's ties to the city are really only connected to the House He Built, Reinsdorf Paid For and Rose Rents.
Chicago needed to be less in debt and less violent than Rio. Not to mention, have a public trans system that was as efficient as a team led by JaMarcus Russell. But hey, they've go until 2020 to figure all of that out.
8. Why are Chicago's Blackhawks and Florida's Panthers playing in Finland? OK, maybe I'm the only one thinking this, so hear me out. For the first time in my lifetime, Chicago Blackhawks hockey is relevant throughout the city. The combination of young talent and home games that are accessible through my television set have got me hooked. So, why no outrage about the Hawks opening in Finland. FINLAND! It's like finding the love of your life, then voluntarily moving away.
9. "Michigan is back." News flash: Michigan never left. Yeah, Rich Rodriguez has turned the program around only one year after a self-inflicted year that included more sucking than room full of pacifiers. But it's not as if Michigan went anywhere. Two seasons ago, the Wolverines ended Lloyd Carr's run with an impressive win over Heisman winner Tim Tebow and the Florida Gators. Three seasons ago, Big Blue entered the final week of the regular season as the nation's No. 2 team. So, where did Michigan go again? That's what I thought.
10. Pretty girls. Lots of love for the Lucy Pinder pic from yesterday. If you're not a fan, see this post and become one. If that doesn't do it for you, this will.
