Chicago Sports

In the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Chicago Bulls are one of the most well-known franchises with a Chicago state affiliation. During the period from 1991 to 1998, the Chicago Bulls’ popularity skyrocketed due to their six NBA championships. The squad is most famous for being captained by Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player of all time, who dominated the NBA for over a decade. The triumphant tale of the Chicago Bulls in the NBA has been inspiring. Bettors can bet on incredible range of games by the Bulls.

The Presence of Nikola Vucevic

Nikola Vucevic signed with the Chicago Bulls in March of 2021 and immediately had a significant impact on the team’s pursuit of a spot in the play-in tournament. The European pays more attention to the team because he is present than they would have otherwise. Vuevi’s performance against the Milwaukee Bucks, who were the defending NBA champions, in Game 2 of the first round of the playoffs on April 20 resulted in a 114–110 victory for his team. Vuevi’s stat line included 24 points and 13 rebounds. [112] The Bulls would end up losing to the Bucks in a best-of-five series. He has also done very well in other games, which has made the people of his continent proud of him and eager to see him compete for his side. It is anticipated that he will be one of the major scorers for the club. Vucevic is a willing passer who also poses a shooting threat. His proficiency in the pick and roll has been his most significant contributor to the Bulls’ success this season; he now leads the league in pick and roll efficiency.

The Legacy of Micheal Jordan

Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls gave a whole new meaning to the concept of being a sports superstar, not only in the United States but all across the globe. The Chicago Bulls were the first team in the National Basketball Association to become a global phenomenon. This recognition came from all corners of the world. Michael Jordan, the standout guard for the Chicago Bulls, was largely responsible for all of this. It’s not that Jordan was the greatest defender or the top scorer on the team; rather, it’s that he was the best at everything he did, and that encompassed both offense and defense. It was easy for him to shoot the ball and drive in for an easy layup. He was able to make three-point shots consistently over the course of the game. He was an excellent facilitator when it came to sharing the ball. And if he wanted to, he could defend almost any position. Because Jordan was such a formidable opponent on defense, all of the players on the opposing side were required to always keep a close watch on his whereabouts on the court at all times. With Dennis Rodman and Scottie Pippen, with whom he had formed a deadly overpowering duo, Jordan went on to win six NBA championships with the Bulls, giving them their only championships ever. He did this alongside Scottie Pippen, who could easily play point as well and did a wonderful job of facilitating the ball.

Conclusion

The Chicago Bulls have already built a legacy that has made them famous in Europe even in the present age where teams like the Bucks and Lakers are in the limelight.

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I am 75 years old and have been a loyal Chicago Cubs fan for close to 70 of those years. I grew up and suffered through the years of the Wrigley family. I saw the collage of coaches, the collapse of ’69 and the dashed hopes of ’84, ’89, ’98 and into the new century.

When the current ownership came to control the franchise, my first reaction was that this was a family whose sole agenda was to make money. In 2016, the Cubs caught lightning in a bottle and won it all. Shortly after the euphoria wore off, things changed.

It began with Theo Epstein leaving, maybe because he saw where the franchise was headed. Shortly after that, the team began what only can be referred to as a “salary dump.”

First it was Darvish, getting little in return. Then, in the off-season, the only move was to sign a utility infielder who previously played for the Cardinals. And then they let Swarber walk away and then of course the trading of Rizzo, Baez and Bryant, all due to be free agents at season’s end.

Add to this the Cubs approach to pitching, similar to the practice of the Oakland Raiders some years ago. They would sign virtually any and every player available, hoping to find players with still something left.

To be clear, I mean no disrespect to the players. I respect them for doing what they can under the circumstances. I especially feel bad for David Ross. But anyone who follows baseball agrees that a mix of veterans and young players usually lead to a winning formula. The Cubs simply don’t have that.

The Ricketts are more concerned with their network, hotel and other developments while hitting the fans with some of the highest ticket prices in major league baseball. Needless to say, I’m beyond disappointed. As long as the current ownership is in place, I will not set foot in the “friendly confines.”

If the Ricketts family truly has any interest in doing what is best for Chicago and especially Cubs fans, do one thing — sell the team to somebody who cares.

Dan Pupo, Orland Park

Add more seats to the Supreme Court

Nowhere in the Constitution does it say we have to have nine Supreme Court Justices. Nor would it require a constitutional amendment to add more seats. In fact, Congress has expanded the Supreme Court five times throughout American history.

Congress should use its constitutional authority to rebalance the Supreme Court, which has been taken over by a supermajority that holds extreme views. Congress must pass the Judiciary Act, which would add four seats to the Supreme Court and help stem the right-wing supermajority’s attacks on our fundamental freedoms, including the right to access abortion care.

There’s nothing stopping Congress from adding justices, except for the political will to do it, of course. I’m urging Congress to pass the Judiciary Act of 2021.

Joann Butkus, Southwest Side

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Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital got a little less busy Sunday.

John “Moon” Mullin, who covered the Bears for decades and this month set local records for hospital visitors as he fought the ravages of Stage IV pancreatic cancer, died Sunday at age 74.

Quick with a smile and a story, Mullin’s interests stretched far beyond — and were often more compelling — the team he covered. With white hair and a matching beard, he looked like Ernest Hemingway. He played guitar. He was a hardcore cyclist, finishing his rides as the sun rose. As it set, he liked a glass of good red wine.

After he checked into the hospital in worsening health earlier this month, Mullin received wave after wave of visitors. Receptionists at the hospital told Mullin’s family they’d never handed out so many name tags to go visit one patient. By the end of last week, he was limited to only two visitors at a time for 20-minute periods. Those who visited him waited their turn, tagging in as though they were swinging over the boards for a hockey shift.

It made sense. Mullin worked with practically everyone in Chicago, beginning at the Daily Herald before joining the Tribune in 1998 and Comcast Sports Net Chicago in 2009. He taught communications classes at DePaul.

Mullin was active until last month. With wife Carolyn, he visited his sister in Naples, Fla., in January and went to see other family members in Hilton Head, S.C., in April. His treatment became less effective in May, prompting hospital visits.

Mullin, whose nickname was derivative of a longtime comic strip character, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in fall 2019. He lived more than two years longer than his original prognosis, a credit to years of bicycle riding and a devotion to positive thinking. His strength from the former helped even as cancer spread to his lungs; his emotional strength from the latter was invaluable, he said.

In December 2021, he began a series of YouTube videos called “Attitude Over Cancer.”

“The goal for a lot of us,” he said during the first episode, “is to keep this monster in a cave until they come up with a silver bullet to kill it.”

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In the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Chicago Bulls are one of the most well-known franchises with a Chicago state affiliation. During the period from 1991 to 1998, the Chicago Bulls’ popularity skyrocketed due to their six NBA championships. The squad is most famous for being captained by Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player of all time, who dominated the NBA for over a decade. The triumphant tale of the Chicago Bulls in the NBA has been inspiring. Bettors can bet on incredible range of games by the Bulls.

The Presence of Nikola Vucevic

Nikola Vucevic signed with the Chicago Bulls in March of 2021 and immediately had a significant impact on the team’s pursuit of a spot in the play-in tournament. The European pays more attention to the team because he is present than they would have otherwise. Vuevi’s performance against the Milwaukee Bucks, who were the defending NBA champions, in Game 2 of the first round of the playoffs on April 20 resulted in a 114–110 victory for his team. Vuevi’s stat line included 24 points and 13 rebounds. [112] The Bulls would end up losing to the Bucks in a best-of-five series. He has also done very well in other games, which has made the people of his continent proud of him and eager to see him compete for his side. It is anticipated that he will be one of the major scorers for the club. Vucevic is a willing passer who also poses a shooting threat. His proficiency in the pick and roll has been his most significant contributor to the Bulls’ success this season; he now leads the league in pick and roll efficiency.

The Legacy of Micheal Jordan

Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls gave a whole new meaning to the concept of being a sports superstar, not only in the United States but all across the globe. The Chicago Bulls were the first team in the National Basketball Association to become a global phenomenon. This recognition came from all corners of the world. Michael Jordan, the standout guard for the Chicago Bulls, was largely responsible for all of this. It’s not that Jordan was the greatest defender or the top scorer on the team; rather, it’s that he was the best at everything he did, and that encompassed both offense and defense. It was easy for him to shoot the ball and drive in for an easy layup. He was able to make three-point shots consistently over the course of the game. He was an excellent facilitator when it came to sharing the ball. And if he wanted to, he could defend almost any position. Because Jordan was such a formidable opponent on defense, all of the players on the opposing side were required to always keep a close watch on his whereabouts on the court at all times. With Dennis Rodman and Scottie Pippen, with whom he had formed a deadly overpowering duo, Jordan went on to win six NBA championships with the Bulls, giving them their only championships ever. He did this alongside Scottie Pippen, who could easily play point as well and did a wonderful job of facilitating the ball.

Conclusion

The Chicago Bulls have already built a legacy that has made them famous in Europe even in the present age where teams like the Bucks and Lakers are in the limelight.

Read More

Fire coach Ezra Hendrickson has asked for patience with this team. With better health and more time to mesh, he thinks this group could succeed.

“It’s not so much patience because guys are young but it’s patience because it’s a relatively new team and it’s going to take awhile to get guys to mesh and gel with each other, and now you have also a new coach with a new philosophy that they have to also grasp,” Hendrickson said Wednesday. “So that’s where the patience, when I talk about patience, it’s not so much about age or anything like that, it’s about giving time to develop.”

The Fire don’t have much more time to wait, but at least they have something positive to build from.

Playing without Xherdan Shaqiri (right hamstring), the Fire beat lowly DC United 1-0 on Saturday in front of an announced Soldier Field crowd of 17,650. Substitute Fabian Herbers scored in the 78th minute to halt the Fire’s 10-game MLS winless streak and give them their first victory since March 19.

“I think it’s a huge push for us in the right direction, hopefully,” Herbers said. “Hopefully we can continue on that and keep going.”

The Fire’s high-profile designated player, Shaqiri picked up the injury last Sunday on international duty with Switzerland. Never known for his durability during his time in Europe, Shaqiri also missed time earlier this season with a calf issue.

Before the international break, Shaqiri was showing why the Fire paid so handsomely for his services. Luckily for the Fire, the hamstring problem doesn’t sound like a severe injury, as Hendrickson seemed optimistic Shaqiri could play Saturday at Houston.

Though the Fire attack spearheaded by Shaqiri replacement Brian Gutierrez had its moments, the finishing product was lacking until Herbers’ header snuck past DC United goalkeeper Rafael Romo.

“It’s a relief, but the past couple games now we’ve really played some good soccer,” Hendrickson said. “The Toronto game [on May 28] was unfortunate but we put that past us, we worked really hard the last couple weeks, this week especially the boys really put [the hard work] in.

“We gave them a challenge tonight, that we need to have a mentality when we step on the pitch, and an attitude that we don’t just want to dominate games, we don’t want to just play better than teams, we want to beat teams,” Hendrickson added. “They went out today from the start and really showed that mentality, showed that attitude.”

The Fire will need that attitude to get back into the playoff picture.

Last year, the Red Bulls claimed the East’s last postseason spot with 48 points. Using that number as a standard, the Fire still need 34 points from their last 19 matches, or 1.79 per game, to climb that high.

Over a full season, that would translate to 60.8 points, which would’ve meant a second-place finish in the Eastern Conference last year. To go on a run like that, the Fire would have to turn what Hendrickson views as progress into wins.

“We’re building something,” Hendrickson said. “That consistency’s not quite there yet, but it’s coming. We’re just happy that we’ve kind of stopped the bleeding, so to speak.”

NOTES: Defender Wyatt Omsberg left with an injury in the 95th minute and was replaced by Carlos Teran.

* Besides Shaqiri, the Fire were also missing attacker Jairo Torres (left hip) and defender Miguel Navarro (health and safety protocol). Stanislav Ivanov started in place of Torres and Jonathan Bornstein took Navarro’s spot.

Ivanov’s start marked his first appearance since May 7.

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HOUSTON — Johnny Cueto pitched seven scoreless innings of two-hit ball for his first victory, and Luis Robert drove in four runs with a single and double, helping the White Sox to a 7-0 victory over the Astros Saturday.

The victory, the Sox’ first after seven consecutive losses at Minute Maid Park including two in the ALDS last season, evened the series and assured the Sox (31-32) of a winning road trip that began with a three-game sweep in Detroit. It was an about-face answer to a 13-3 drubbing the Sox took from Houston (40-25) on Friday night.

The Sox and their all-righty lineup peppered right-hander Justin Verlander (8-3) with eight hits in the first four innings, seven of them singles including a two-run base hit by Robert, followed by Jose Abreu’s two-run double in the third that staked Cueto to a 4-0 lead.

Seby Zavala, Danny Mendick and Andrew Vaughn started the inning with singles to load the bases. Vaughn singled three times, raising his average to .322.

After scoring four in the third inning, the Sox scored three in the fourth. Astros second baseman Jose Altuve let Vaughn’s sharp ground ball go between his legs for a costly two-out error, scoring the fifth run, and Robert doubled in two more runs to make it 7-0 and end Verlander’s afternoon. Three of the runs scored against Verlander (2.30 ERA), who was 7-2 with a 2.32 ERA over his previous 13 starts against the Sox, were unearned.

After allowing a single to Altuve leading off the first, Cueto (1-3) held the Astros hitless until Alex Bregman’s infield single leading off the seventh. Cueto then fielded Yordan Alvarez’ high chopper to start a double play,

Cueto struck out five and walked two, throwing 93 pitches and lowering his ERA to 2.95. He threw 77 pitches in five innings of emergency, voluntary relief of Michael Kopech on Sunday, giving up three runs against the Rangers.

Reynaldo Lopez completed the shutout with two innings of relief work.

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Before Willson Contreras hugged younger brother William before stepping in the batter’s box Saturday, the Cubs catcher jokingly had a suggestion forleft-hander Justin Steele.

“I told Justin, ‘Call your game against my brother because if he gets a hit, it won’t be [on] me,” Willson Contreras quipped.

William Contreras showed his ability with a 2-for-4 performance, but his older brother was all business as he went 3-for-5 while showing a high display of acumen as the Cubs seized a 6-3 win over the Braves (37-29).

Despite the Braves’ recent 14-game winning streak, the Cubs (25-40) have posted two consecutive impressive wins against one of the National League’s elite teams.

And Contreras, 30, the subject of trade speculation as he gets closer to free agency, has been immune to the scrutiny with an All-Star performance.

After exchanging a huge, Contreras collected the first of three hits and stole second base that set up a two-out, two-run single by Jonathan Villar that gave the Cubs the lead for good.

“The best moment of our lives, including my family, my mom and dad,” Willson said after the highly anticipated matchup. “Everything we went through to get here, now we get to enjoy together. Seeing my brother behind the plate makes me proud because the last time I saw him play was in Little League and I haven’t seen him (play in person) for years.

“And to play again him was a special moment, and hoepfully we keep playing against each other for a few more years.”

The brothers were all business. Willson hit a two-out RBI single in his second at-bat and moved up to second on the throw to third base. And in the fifth, Contreras turned a hit up the middle into a double thanks to his hustle.

Meanwhile, William went 2-for-4 with a single in the second and a double in the eighth.

“We’re brothers and love each other, but we’re still professional and I still have to respect my team and he has to respect his team and respect baseball,” Willson said. “I know we’re having fun, but we have our allegiance.”

Cubs manager David Ross enjoyed watching Willson and William compete, reviving memories of when Jose Molina of the Rays played against Yadier Molina and his Cardinals on June 10, 2014 – the last time two brothers were starting catchers in the same game.

“I didn’t want to get beat against my younger brother,’ Willson said. “I’m sure he was thinking the same thing. We’re professionals. We love our team and were expecting to win.”

Said Steele: “It’s nice having somebody behind the plate who wants to win the game as much as you do.”

Willson doesn’t check the box scores involving his brother, who is batting .296 with nine home runs and 17 RBIs in 29 games. But they exchange text messages nearly every day, and Willson was impressed with the adjustments made by his brother at the plate in handling two “nasty” sliders.

“That tells me a lot about him,” said Willson, who continued his bid for a third NL All-Star appearance with a .284 batting average, 12 home runs, 27 RBIs and 1.026 OPS. “We just had a great moment.”

After a Friday night dinner and a long-awaited matchup, the Contreras brothers planned to rest Saturday night prior to Sunday’s series finale.

And perhaps dream about being named to the NL All-Star team.

“Let’s see what happens,” Willson said. “It would be fun if we get to go. It would be the next step for our dream to come true.”

The last set of brothers to be named to the All-Star Game were Bret and Aaron Boone in 2003.

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HOUSTON — Yoan Moncada had an MRI done on his hamstring Saturday, a day after leaving the White Sox’ 13-3 loss to the Astros with hamstring tightness. The Sox have their fingers crossed.

“Just not sure of the severity,” said manager Tony La Russa before the Sox played the Astros Saturday afternoon. “He was not as concerned but our [trainers] are. He has a certain history.”

La Russa and general manager Rick Hahn were waiting on results of the scan “before pulling the trigger” on a roster move, La Russa said. Leury Garcia, like Moncada a switch-hitter, had soreness in his side and was out of the lineup, and La Russa tabbed right-handed hitting Seby Zavala to catch starter Johnny Cueto, leaving the Sox with a right-handed hitting lineup against Justin Verlander.

There was hope Moncada will avoid a stint on the injured list but also uncertainty. Moncada’s hamstring tested OK for strength and flexibility, which is when he stayed in the game for an inning. But he felt something and was pulled.

“I don’t know what to think,” La Russa said

“When they got in the training room later on they went to a spot, so I don’t know. We’ll wait and see.”

Moncada has dealt with oblique, quand and hamstring injuries this season and was struggling at the plate before getting five hits including a homer and five RBI Wednesday in Detroit.

Pollock on a roll

AJ Pollock’s streak of seven straight multihit games came to an end Friday, but Pollock homered to right-center to score the Sox’ only runs after flying out deep to right center.

Pollock (.262/.296/.399) is batting .410/.452/.564 in that stretch. He was batting .216/.246/.333 through May.

“When things are going wrong there’s a lot of things going wroing,” Pollock said. “When it’s not going right you keep working and hope things start to click.”

The Sox as a team are hitting .282/.337/.414 over the last 26 games, raising their season average from .226 to .251.

“Hitting can be contagious in a good way and in a bad way, too,” Pollock said. “When you’re not hitting you can put everyone else’s at-bats on yourself. The trick is to do your job and swing at the pitches you want to swing at, be aggressive in the zone for yourself.”

Keen on Lambert

La Russa said right-hander Jimmy Lambert reminds him of a young Adam Wainwright, whom La Russa managed in St. Louis — high praise, indeed. La Russa won’t hesitate to use Lambert in high leverage situations.

“I’m very impressed, yeah that’s the fun part,” La Russa said. “You see the difference in last year. He got his feet wet. He’s actually making pitches with three or four pitches, very competitive.

“The key now is he pitches an inning give him a couple days, pitches a couple innings give him three days. Just don’t hurt him.”

This and that

Right-hander Davis Martin, who pitched five scoreless innings in relief of Vince Velasquez Wednesday in Detroit, is available as protection for starter Michael Kopech Sunday, making his first start since leaving last Sunday’s game against the Rangers with a sore right knee.

“If something’s wrong with Kopech get him out of there right away,” La Russa said. “[Martin will] jump in there.”

*The Giants claimed Yermin Mercedes off waivers from the White Sox and assigned him to Triple-A Sacremento.

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Potential preseason No. 1 team North Carolina has landed Northwestern transfer Pete Nance, the best available player in the men’s basketball portal.

Nance visited Chapel Hill earlier this week and announced his decision via Twitter on Saturday afternoon.

Nance initially entered the NBA draft — also putting his name in the transfer portal — but opted to withdraw before the early-entry deadline to play one more year of college basketball. A 6-foot-10 forward, he earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from the media last season after averaging 14.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game and shooting 45.2% from 3-point range. He had six 20-point outings, including a 28-point, 14-rebound, 4-assist effort against Maryland in January.

With Brady Manek leaving, Nance should fit seamlessly into North Carolina’s starting lineup next season. Manek provided energy next to Armando Bacot in the Tar Heels’ frontcourt while shooting better than 40% from 3 as a 6-9 power forward. Nance, who was No. 7 in ESPN’s transfer rankings, will replace his size and shooting.

1 Related

Coach Hubert Davis returns the other four starters from last season’s group that reached the national championship game before losing to Kansas. Bacot, Caleb Love, R.J. Davis and Leaky Black all opted to go back to North Carolina instead of going the professional route, and Davis is bringing in three ESPN 100 recruits to fortify the team’s depth.

The Tar Heels were ranked No. 1 in ESPN’s most recent Way-Too-Early Top 25 update.

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You have to tip your cap to the Cubs for really nailing their 2022 slogan, “It’s different here.”

Boy, is it ever. The baseball is worse than we’ve seen in a long time, the roster practically unrecognizable. The crowds are dwindling. One suspects the hot dogs are more rubbery and the beer less fizzy, too. If “different” was the target, this might be a bull’s eye.

But I kid about the Cubs, and what else is there to do at the intersection of momentous and meaningless — momentous because the Cubs entered Friday’s series opener against the Braves on a double-digit losing streak for the third time in the last calendar year (uncharted territory) and meaningless because the season was a lost cause long before June 4, the last time they’d won a game.

Jim Hissong was at Wrigley Field for that 6-1 victory against the Cardinals on June 4. Thirteen days later, on Friday, he made the 60-mile trek from Yorkville again and watched the Cubs beat the Braves 1-0 to end a 10-game skid. A retired high school teacher and baseball coach who umpires high school games, Hissong, 72, is part of a large group of friends who share a pair of season tickets. I know all this because I saw his kindly face beneath a Cubs “W” hat on the main concourse and, before I knew it, was peppering a perfect stranger with one rude question after another:

Why the heck are you here?

Isn’t there something more enjoyable you could be doing, like disassembling your lawn mower or helping a vague acquaintance move?

Have you been kidnapped?

“I’ve been a Cubs fan since 1963,” he explained.

Hissong loves the Cubs, as so many do, and isn’t even bitter at them for trading their biggest stars last July and, he expects, doing the same with catcher Willson Contreras and others next month. But he’s no pushover and has no trouble telling it like it is.

“They’re a mess right now, just a complete mess,” he said. “And the problem is that the luster of going to Wrigley Field is starting to wear off. A lot of people used to come to Wrigley Field because it’s Wrigley Field, but a lot of that is going away now because No. 1, they don’t win, and No. 2, the tickets are just too expensive — they’re outrageous.”

Speaking of outrageous, the mega-market Cubs are in fourth place and have won only 12 of their last 45 games at Wrigley going back to last September. Since winning at Dodger Stadium last June 24 to get to 42-33 — first place! — they’re a soul-sucking 53-98. And they managed to find a new low over their last two series, being outscored 28-5 by the Yankees and 41-15 by the Padres — the first time in 143 years a Cubs team was outscored by 20-plus runs in back-to-back series.

It’s all so bad, so bleak, so broken. Yet into the ballpark strode a couple of tall fellows, looking a whole lot alike in their Cubs shirts, before Thursday’s 6-4 loss to the Padres. Brothers Larry and Bill Belokon grew up on the Northwest Side but now live in Crystal Lake and Maricopa, Arizona, respectively. In the 1960s and ’70s, their dear mother would take them to Wrigley on “Ladies Days,” when she’d get in for free. These days, Larry, 63, hunts down a pair of tickets for whenever Bill, 67, is in town.

“We got the tickets awhile ago, or else I don’t know if we’d be here,” Bill said. “We didn’t know they were going to be on a crazy losing streak. I hope the Cubs don’t get no-hit today.”

Like Hissong, these aren’t the happiest of customers. Larry, a lifelong fan, still hasn’t ponied up for the Marquee Network and is holding firm on that front.

“Not until they start winning,” he said. “Maybe then, maybe not. Used to be you could watch all the games for free all the time, you know?”

The Cuellar men had mixed feelings as they milled about on the concourse Thursday. Felipe Cuellar, 36, of Schaumburg, has been to a handful of games this season and considers himself a die-hard fan but lately is growing increasingly frustrated with the direction of the team.

“It sucks,” he said. “Maybe we got a little bit spoiled from the 2016 World Series, but it was painful to all of a sudden have the team broken apart the way they did it. It’s hard to watch now. Whatever they’re putting out in the field is not what should be expected.”

And when the Cubs trade Contreras?

“It’s gonna suck even more, man,” he said.

So why, then? Why come out and partake in this grand fiasco?

In this case, it was because Felipe’s brother, Gerardo, was given tickets as part of a work event. For Gerardo, 38, of Huntley, it was career Cubs game No. 1. That went double for Gerardo’s son, Christian, 12.

“I’m trying to get into baseball,” Christian said between bites of career Wrigley dog No. 1, which he took down like an old pro. “It’s kind of boring, though, because they’ve been in rebuild. One of my friends says his only wish is for the Cubs to win a World Series again.”

The poor friend had to wait, what, five or six whole years for the first one?

But back to Christian: Did he find it kind of funny that his first Cubs game just happened to be on the day of the team’s 10th straight loss?

“Yeah, a little, I guess,” he said. “But I’m a Bears fan, so I’m used to it.”

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