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The Chicago Cubs made a big-time splash on Saturday afternoon. They hit on one of the big four free agent shortstops. They probably would have rathered Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, or Xander Bogaerts but they ended up with Dansby Swanson.

Their lineup still has a long way to go but they are trying to build something good and you do that by bringing in good players. Although he isn’t who they wanted, he is still a good player nonetheless. It is a good deal for both sides.

This move followed up the signings of Brad Boxberger, Cody Bellinger, and Jameson Taillon which makes it a pretty nice off-season on the north side. Before the Swanson signing, it was looking like a failed off-season based on the hype.

On Sunday, they showed that they weren’t done making moves either as they are going to sign Drew Smyly to a one-year deal. It was a good year for him in 2022 when he got healthy and now he will be with them once again.

The Chicago Cubs will be better with Drew Smyly on the mound in 2023.

He missed the beginning part of last season with an injury but he started to really pitch well when he started to get healthy. The 2023 edition of the Cubs will certainly be happy if he can get back to that form.

Smyly will join the likes of Marcus Stroman, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon, Keegan Thompson, and Kyle Hendricks as the options on the mound. It is a good group of players that can help them win games by getting them off to a good start with good pitching.

It is certainly going to be an upgraded staff in 2023 as opposed to 2022. The Cubs are committed to winning now which is going to be refreshing for fans to hear. They probably won’t be good right away but it shouldn’t be long.

As mentioned before, the Cubs have started to turn their offseason around within the last 24 hours. They had all of this hype surrounding their potential spending habits and didn’t fully deliver until now.

We also don’t know what other plans they might have as the off-season winds down once the holidays are over. It should be interesting but the signing of Smyly is nice for sure.

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The Chicago Cubs were in danger of having a terrible off-season. They came into December with all this hype about how much money is available to them. They had a good second half while playing low-pressure baseball but they needed to make some moves in order to get better.

They signed Cody Bellinger and Jameson Taillon to contracts which was a good start. Unless they made one of the big signings that they were rumored to be making, however, it wasn’t enough to bring a middle-of-the-rotation starter with a former MVP that has been bad recently.

The Cubs were targeting Kodai Senga and Carlos Rodon as pitching targets this offseason but missed on all of those guys. Both of them would have heavily improved their rotation.

As Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts, and Trea Turner signed with other teams across the league, that left Dansby Swanson as the only top shortstop available for them. If they whiffed on him, it would mean that their offseason was incredibly disappointing.

Dansby Swanson is coming to play for the Chicago Cubs in 2023 and beyond.

The Cubs did end up getting him on Saturday though as he signed a seven-year deal worth 177 million dollars. That is a big time commitment for him.

Swanson was a good player that had a great year in 2022 (a contract year on an elite Atlanta Braves team) but he isn’t the game-breaker that Correa, Bogaerts, or Turner are. That doesn’t mean that this is a bad signing though.

The Cubs needed to make this signing because they couldn’t let this off-season be that much of a disappointment. He isn’t who they originally wanted but it isn’t a bad plan C.

The Cubs are going to have Swanson team up with Nico Hoerner in the middle of their infield which is going to look pretty nice. It should be great defensively.

If he can build on what he did in 2022 offensively as well, the Cubs will certainly be able to win some more games than they did before.

Again, this isn’t a game-breaking signing but it keeps the Chicago Cubs from having the most disappointing offseason of all time (based on the hype). They are hoping that they can help him succeed the same way the Atlanta Braves did.

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Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls. Presented by the Chicago Reader, the show is available by 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at chicagoreader.com/joravsky—or wherever you get your podcasts. Don’t miss Oh, What a Week!–the Friday feature in which Ben & producer Dennis (aka, Dr. D.) review the week’s top stories. Also, bonus interviews drop on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. 

Chicago Reader podcasts are recorded on Shure microphones. Learn more at Shure.com.

Chicago Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky discusses the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty on The Ben Joravsky Show.

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Honey Dijon Credit: Courtesy the artist

Ballet 5:8 presents Beyond the Nutcracker, a take on Tchaikovsky with a twist: there’s no Clara, but instead we meet Emma, a young girl growing up in the shadow of WWII. Artistic director Julianna Rubio Slager’s choreography gets away from some of the problematic imagery in the Chinese dance by using the motif of the lotus flower, which “rises through the mud into splendor, and signifies the rising of beauty from difficulties.” More than 300 dancers from the Ballet 5:8 school perform alongside professional company members. Performances are today at 2 and 7 PM and tomorrow at 3 PM at Lincoln-Way East High School (201 Colorado Ave., Frankfort); tickets are $25 ($15 children 12 and under) at 312-725-4752 or ballet58.org. (KR)

Gossip Wolf let us know this week about an art exhibition celebrating the 20th anniversary of Leaders 1354 (aka LDRS 1354), a local streetwear company. You can take in their work today and tomorrow at FourtuneHouse Art Center (4410 S. Cottage Grove), and if you already have a LDRS 1354 hat, bring it with you for a chance to receive a special anniversary patch. Hours are 2-6 PM; check out FourtuneHouse’s Instagram for more information. (SCJ)

For festive movies outside the norm, Facets has curated a Holiday Detour film series: “From classic noir, to screwball comedy, to gangster thrillers, we’re here to mix up your December viewing with films that use their seasonal setting a bit of genre flare to challenge the holiday canon.” Eastern Promises (2007)screened yesterday, but you can catch Blast of Silence (1961)tonight at 7 PM and/or The Silent Partner (1978) at 9 PM. The series continues into Sunday and then wraps up on December 31. Tickets are $12 or $10 for Facets members. (TA)

Ensemble Español Spanish Dance Theater presents its annual holiday concert tonight at 7:30 PM at Northeastern Illinois University Auditorium (3701 W. Bryn Mawr). The lineup includes two world premieres by company dancers: Abigail Mosquera in Por Barrio (which draws on the flamenco Solea por Bulerías drama style) and Jonathan Pacheco in the neoclassical Florecer. The concert will also feature audience favorites: Dame Libby Komaiko’s flamenco Zapateado, and Irma Suarez Ruiz’s Madrileño and El Baile de Luis Alonso. Tickets are $25 ($20 for seniors, children under 12, and NEIU students, faculty, and staff); reservations at ensembleespanol.org. (KR)

Legendary Chicago house DJ Honey Dijon visits her hometown tonight for a late night performance at Metro (3730 N. Clark), where she’ll be joined by DJ Heather and Shaun J. Wright. Check out Reader senior writer Leor Galil’s concert preview here. Advance tickets are sold out, but you might be able to purchase $35 tickets in person at the Metro’s box office. The music happens from 11:30 PM until 5 AM. (SCJ)

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Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls. Presented by the Chicago Reader, the show is available by 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at chicagoreader.com/joravsky—or wherever you get your podcasts. Don’t miss Oh, What a Week!–the Friday feature in which Ben & producer Dennis (aka, Dr. D.) review the week’s top stories. Also, bonus interviews drop on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. 

Chicago Reader podcasts are recorded on Shure microphones. Learn more at Shure.com.

Chicago Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky discusses the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty on The Ben Joravsky Show.

Read More

Honey Dijon Credit: Courtesy the artist

Ballet 5:8 presents Beyond the Nutcracker, a take on Tchaikovsky with a twist: there’s no Clara, but instead we meet Emma, a young girl growing up in the shadow of WWII. Artistic director Julianna Rubio Slager’s choreography gets away from some of the problematic imagery in the Chinese dance by using the motif of the lotus flower, which “rises through the mud into splendor, and signifies the rising of beauty from difficulties.” More than 300 dancers from the Ballet 5:8 school perform alongside professional company members. Performances are today at 2 and 7 PM and tomorrow at 3 PM at Lincoln-Way East High School (201 Colorado Ave., Frankfort); tickets are $25 ($15 children 12 and under) at 312-725-4752 or ballet58.org. (KR)

Gossip Wolf let us know this week about an art exhibition celebrating the 20th anniversary of Leaders 1354 (aka LDRS 1354), a local streetwear company. You can take in their work today and tomorrow at FourtuneHouse Art Center (4410 S. Cottage Grove), and if you already have a LDRS 1354 hat, bring it with you for a chance to receive a special anniversary patch. Hours are 2-6 PM; check out FourtuneHouse’s Instagram for more information. (SCJ)

For festive movies outside the norm, Facets has curated a Holiday Detour film series: “From classic noir, to screwball comedy, to gangster thrillers, we’re here to mix up your December viewing with films that use their seasonal setting a bit of genre flare to challenge the holiday canon.” Eastern Promises (2007)screened yesterday, but you can catch Blast of Silence (1961)tonight at 7 PM and/or The Silent Partner (1978) at 9 PM. The series continues into Sunday and then wraps up on December 31. Tickets are $12 or $10 for Facets members. (TA)

Ensemble Español Spanish Dance Theater presents its annual holiday concert tonight at 7:30 PM at Northeastern Illinois University Auditorium (3701 W. Bryn Mawr). The lineup includes two world premieres by company dancers: Abigail Mosquera in Por Barrio (which draws on the flamenco Solea por Bulerías drama style) and Jonathan Pacheco in the neoclassical Florecer. The concert will also feature audience favorites: Dame Libby Komaiko’s flamenco Zapateado, and Irma Suarez Ruiz’s Madrileño and El Baile de Luis Alonso. Tickets are $25 ($20 for seniors, children under 12, and NEIU students, faculty, and staff); reservations at ensembleespanol.org. (KR)

Legendary Chicago house DJ Honey Dijon visits her hometown tonight for a late night performance at Metro (3730 N. Clark), where she’ll be joined by DJ Heather and Shaun J. Wright. Check out Reader senior writer Leor Galil’s concert preview here. Advance tickets are sold out, but you might be able to purchase $35 tickets in person at the Metro’s box office. The music happens from 11:30 PM until 5 AM. (SCJ)

Read More

Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls. Presented by the Chicago Reader, the show is available by 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays at chicagoreader.com/joravsky—or wherever you get your podcasts. Don’t miss Oh, What a Week!–the Friday feature in which Ben & producer Dennis (aka, Dr. D.) review the week’s top stories. Also, bonus interviews drop on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. 

Chicago Reader podcasts are recorded on Shure microphones. Learn more at Shure.com.

Chicago Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky discusses the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty on The Ben Joravsky Show.

Read More