Chicago Cubs

I am a Chicago-area native and have been a fan of all things Chicago for years.  I was born in 1983, the year before the Bears won the Super Bowl.  While I do not remember the game as I was too young, I am just happy I was alive for the win.

In Chicago there are legacies that simply cannot be touched by any other team or city, when you put all those things together you get a city known for sports excellence and I'll tell you why.

1.  Chicago Bears

So much was made of the fact that while, yes, Carlos Zambrano pitched terribly on Monday, at least he didn't act like a maniac on the mound.

Oh yeah, that has been the source of much of the criticism levied against Big Z over the years.

That is, he has acted immature at times, and that his behavior on the mound is part of the reason why he has failed to live up to his status as the ace of the Cubs.

So a slimmer, calmer Zambrano showed up in camp this spring and most everyone said that he was headed for a monster season.

Meanwhile, what happened?

It was a tale of two Opening Days for Chicago's two Major League Baseball teams.  One club impressed in every way possible, the other not so much.  All of it took place before the sun even went down.

The White Sox were the first team to show off their 2010 selves and their premiere couldn't have been more perfect.  A combination of solid pitching, hitting, and defense translated into an easy 6-0 win over the Cleveland Indians.  Every Sox fan in the stands at sold-out U.S. Cellular Field would tell you afterwards that they got their money's worth.

Filed:April 5th, 2010

What were you expecting exactly? Consider me fairly non non-plussed about the Cubs 2010 opener, a 16-5 shellacking by the Atlanta Braves down at Turner Field, for a couple of different reasons actually.

Starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano endured the worst outing of his career Monday, surviving just 1 1/3 innings and surrendering eight runs, an inauspicious beginning to what became a downright ugly loss for the Chicago Cubs on Opening Day.

The Atlanta Braves got nine RBI combined from shortstop Yunel Escobar and rookie sensation Jason Heyward en route to a 16-5 win.

Too bad there's no such thing as mulligans in baseball. Carlos Zambrano's first two innings were just about as bad as they come, as the Atlanta Braves pounded on the Cubs in the season opener.

You really have to squint to see anything good in this one, but there are some promising remarks to be made.

First, the bad.

All of the promise of offseason trades and unbelievable expenditures culminated on Monday afternoon as the Chicago Cubs traveled to Atlanta to face the Braves.

It only took an inning to ruin the Cubs' season.

Jumping out to an early 3-0 lead in top of the first inning, the Cubs looked like they were ready to stake their claim and end the streak of something like 500 straight years without a World Series title.

This article is the final part of a five-part series of articles breaking down the Cubs' roster. You can view part four, which covers the starting lineup, here.

In the first four parts of this series, I laid out the Cubs' roster as it currently stands and projected out many of the different decisions that will need to be made during the season.

Even from the writer who told you that the Cubs' pitching is the teams' Achilles heel, I will not say "I told you so."

That's right, for even with the White Sox, who I picked to win the AL Central this year, they may have won easily but you won't hear any gloating.

Why? Repeat after me, IT'S ONLY ONE GAME.

I know, Carlos Zambrano was horrible and the defense was bad. Alfonso Soriano played as if he couldn't care less.

Ready for the first pitch?

The Chicago Cubs open up the 2010 campaign facing the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field at 3:10 PM CST today for the first time in the club’s history. Only four other times have the Cubs and Braves met in an opener.

The most recent matchup was at Wrigley Field in 1993, when Greg Maddux pitched his first game as a Brave and shut out the Cubs, 1-0, in 8 1/3 innings of work. Maddux went on to win the Cy Young Award in ‘93, and in ’94...and in ’95.