The Bears are maneuvering to get their roster down to 53 players by Tuesday at 3 p.m. and got started by cutting four players Sunday and Monday.
The team waived offensive lineman Jean Delance with a non-football illness designation Sunday, then waived safety Jon Alexander, offensive lineman Corey Dublin and wide receiver Kevin Shaa on Monday to bring them down to 75 players.
Here’s a live tracker of who is leaving:OFFENSEOL Jean DelanceOL Corey DublinWR Kevin Shaa
DEFENSES Jon Alexander
Once the Bears finalize their roster Tuesday, it won’t actually be final. It’s a virtual certainty that they’ll pick up a few players cut by other teams. The most likely positions for that would on the offensive line and at cornerback and wide receiver.
The Bears also must keep injured wide receivers Byron Pringle and N’Keal Harry on the active roster Tuesday, but can put them on injured reserve after that if needed.
The Chicago Blackhawks are looking to rebuild their roster right away. Part of doing that might be bottoming out this upcoming season and seeing where they fall in the 2022 NHL Draft Lottery.
In order to be as bad as they can, they need to get their roster down to the bare minimum. They have started that process by trading Alex DeBrincat and Kirby Dach for very respectable draft picks.
Now, it might be time to consider moving Patrick Kane. They will get major assets for him and they will also be a much worse team which will help them in the end.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are a team that might consider making a move like this. If they were to acquire Patrick Kane in a trade, the deal might look something like one of these three trades:
The Chicago Blackhawks could move Patrick Kane for a good amount of assets.
The Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets have made big trades before. The Hawks gave them Artemi Panarin in a trade and the Blue Jackets gave the Hawks Seth Jones in a trade. Lots of draft picks and players have been swapped.
The same would be needed in a deal for Patrick Kane. If the Blue Jackets were really all in on winning then a deal involving a first-round pick, a third-round pick, Cole Sillinger, and Jake Bean might get it done.
Sillinger was a first-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. He was actually selected with one of the two first-round picks that the Blackhawks gave them in the Seth Jones trade. This would be their chance to get him back as he is a very good young player that is only 19.
Jake Bean is also a former first-round pick that turned into a pretty good NHL defenseman that the Blackhawks could really use for their future. He is a little older at 24 but could absolutely be a part of a nice future on the blue line.
If the Blackhawks could hit on that first and third-round pick, they would be getting some really nice players in return for Kane which is what they need so badly.
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Fronted by French-Algerian rapper Saidou and Chilean rapper Juanito Ayala, Sidi Wacho unite rebelliousness on both sides of the Atlantic (specifically, Northern Africa and the global south) through activist rap in French and Spanish. Accordionist Jeoffrey Arnone, trumpet player Manel Girard, and drummer Christophe Demazeux accompany the group’s heartfelt, powerful lyrics with dance rhythms from various parts of the world in percussive, driving tunes that fuse Balkan beats, raucous polkas, and banging cumbias. “Lejos de Casa” (“Far From Home”) from their 2022 album, Calle Sound System, is so irresistibly danceable it’ll get every body part you have shimmying and shaking (I dare you to listen and sit still!). But a closer listen to the lyrics reveals the heartbreak of immigrant journeys: “Lejos de casa, risa, tristeza, ¡aguante familia!” (“Far from home, laughter, sadness, hang in there, family!”). Saidou and Ayala’s social-justice anthems uplift with righteously powerful joy and loud, in-your-face badness, expressing their cultural identities with explosive calls to action—“Grita Justicia” (“Yell Justice”), for example, indicts police brutality and other abuses of power. But you don’t have to understand the words to pick up on the emotion behind them; Sidi Wacho are chanting that we refuse to go down quietly. This revolution may not be televised, but we’ll surely be dancing to it.
Sidi Wacho Fri 9/2, 9 PM, Martyrs’, 3855 N. Lincoln, $20, $15 for ILCC members, 21+
Did you know? The Reader is nonprofit. The Reader is member supported. You can help keep the Reader free for everyone—and get exclusive rewards—when you become a member. The Reader Revolution membership program is a sustainable way for you to support local, independent media.
Fronted by French-Algerian rapper Saidou and Chilean rapper Juanito Ayala, Sidi Wacho unite rebelliousness on both sides of the Atlantic (specifically, Northern Africa and the global south) through activist rap in French and Spanish. Accordionist Jeoffrey Arnone, trumpet player Manel Girard, and drummer Christophe Demazeux accompany the group’s heartfelt, powerful lyrics with dance rhythms from various parts of the world in percussive, driving tunes that fuse Balkan beats, raucous polkas, and banging cumbias. “Lejos de Casa” (“Far From Home”) from their 2022 album, Calle Sound System, is so irresistibly danceable it’ll get every body part you have shimmying and shaking (I dare you to listen and sit still!). But a closer listen to the lyrics reveals the heartbreak of immigrant journeys: “Lejos de casa, risa, tristeza, ¡aguante familia!” (“Far from home, laughter, sadness, hang in there, family!”). Saidou and Ayala’s social-justice anthems uplift with righteously powerful joy and loud, in-your-face badness, expressing their cultural identities with explosive calls to action—“Grita Justicia” (“Yell Justice”), for example, indicts police brutality and other abuses of power. But you don’t have to understand the words to pick up on the emotion behind them; Sidi Wacho are chanting that we refuse to go down quietly. This revolution may not be televised, but we’ll surely be dancing to it.
Sidi Wacho Fri 9/2, 9 PM, Martyrs’, 3855 N. Lincoln, $20, $15 for ILCC members, 21+
TORONTO, ON – AUGUST 26: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels stands in the on deck circle against the Toronto Blue Jays in the eighth inning during their MLB game at the Rogers Centre on August 26, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mark Blinch/Getty Images)
The Chicago Cubs will be looking to improve their very flawed roster during the winter. There are going to be some really nice options out there available to them.
One person who may be traded after the 2022 season ends is Shohei Ohtani. The Los Angeles Angels haven’t been able to consistently win with him in the mix and now he might get moved.
It is something to be excited about when thinking of it but a lot of teams are going to throw their best offer out there for him. If the Cubs were to make that move, it might look like one of these three trade packages:
Cubs Get
Shohei Ohtani
Angels Get
Pete Crow-Armstrong
Nick Madrigal
Caleb Killian
Miguel Amaya
The price for the Chicago Cubs to land Shohei Ohtani might not be that bad.
Whoever lands Shohei Ohtani is going to have to give some stuff up. However, on the off chance that the price is not that high, the Cubs could pounce with a deal like this. Ohtani’s current contract is almost up and that could make the price for him come down.
Pete Crow-Armstrong is the Chicago Cubs’ top prospect right now and one of the top prospects in all of baseball. He is going to be a Major League player soon and might be an impactful one right away. Any team would want a guy like that in their system.
Nick Madrigal is someone that has had a tough year but has been better lately. When they acquired him from the Chicago White Sox, they had a lot of hopes for his future. He still could be a very good player but his playing time would be much more guaranteed there in Los Angeles.
Caleb Killian and Miguel Amaya are two prospects that would round out the trade for the Cubs. One is a pitcher and one is a catcher. Both of them can help the Angels in their quest to finally rebuild things the right way.
For the first time in three years, the NBA offseason is back to normal.
After the turmoil and upheaval of the past two-plus years, which forced the league to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, the NBA is in the middle of a much-needed quiet stretch ahead of next month’s training camps.
But a return to the traditional calendar has coincided with what should be a wide-open race for the 2023 championship after the Golden State Warriors ousted the Boston Celtics in six games to claim the fourth championship of the Stephen Curry era.
With most of the offseason dust settled, and with some time to digest the past few weeks, what are the storylines to watch for 2022-23 and beyond?
Here’s what a panel of 15 NBA coaches, scouts and executives had to say about the most important offseason news and what to expect heading into the season, including MVP and best rookie debates, offseason winners and losers, and what lies ahead in the postseason.
1. Who is the best player in the NBA right now?
For the second straight year, Antetokounmpo is a leading choice here, going from an even split with Kevin Durant last year to claiming 11 of the 15 responses this time around.
“He’s healthy, you can put the ball in his hands or play off the ball as a screen-and-roll guy, and his defensive effectiveness,” a Western Conference scout said of Antetokounmpo’s impact. “I think Durant is the most talented guy because of his shooting and scoring ability, [but] Giannis’ will, the human, the winner, the mentality, the everyday effort, raising the effort of guys around him … it’s hard to top that.”
In the eyes of some voters, however, two players did.
Curry, after leading the Warriors back to the mountaintop with a Finals MVP breakthrough, and James, despite approaching his 38th birthday, both garnered at least one vote.
“They just won the title. It’s a results-driven league, and he’s provided the results,” a West executive said of Curry. “Not only is he an elite generational talent, but he’s the kind of guy you want in your locker room. He is the culture.”
An Eastern Conference scout had two words to sum up his Curry vote: “He wins.”
2. Who will be the best player in the NBA in five years?
Even though Antetokounmpo will be 32 and in his late prime five years from now, he finished with the most votes in this category. Multiple voters expect the two-time MVP to keep growing his game. “Every time you think he’s reaching a limit, he shatters it,” a West executive said. “Why [wouldn’t you] expect him to keep doing it?”
2 Related
Not surprisingly, Doncic — who at 23 has already claimed three All-NBA first-team selections in his first four seasons — wasn’t far behind.
The argument: Doncic is already an MVP-level talent who, in five seasons, will be just entering the prime years of his career.
“It’s hard to bet against him,” an East scout said. “There’s some worries about whether he’ll keep up with his conditioning, but I’m not betting on anybody over him in five years.”
Also receiving consideration was the 24-year-old Tatum, who is coming off leading the Celtics to the NBA Finals for the first time in 12 years.
Both Tatum voters pointed to his status as one of the league’s premier young two-way stars.
“Just because of the defensive component,” said an Eastern Conference scout. “Luka is a stud, and you don’t need to be a defensive lockdown guy to be an All-NBA player like he is, but having Tatum’s self-creation ability, his physical tools and his ability to give you defensive versatility, that’s pretty special.
“Luka did a hell of a job carrying that team this year, but the two-way wing creator/scorer is the ultimate archetype, and Tatum is that at 24 years old, and just got that team to the Finals. I just like his ability to give you something defensively that Luka likely never will be able to.”
While this is an award the media votes on, it engendered as much debate as any question asked on the survey, with five players ultimately receiving votes and several others being mentioned.
What everyone asked did agree on, however, is two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic will need a truly extraordinary season to become the first player to win three consecutive MVPs since Larry Bird in 1984-86.
In this vote, it was Antetokounmpo who once again had the inside track on his third MVP award. Doncic received four votes and mentions from several other panelists. The loss of free agent guard Jalen Brunson was seen as a hit to the Mavericks’ overall chances but was viewed as a potential boost to Luka’s MVP hopes.
“This is as wide open of a field as you could possibly have, because Giannis and Curry are back in the equation,” said a Western Conference executive.
“But I’ll take Luka. His numbers will be super high, [Christian] Wood will help, they’re going to win 50-plus games … losing Jalen Brunson stinks [but] whatever [Doncic’s] usage was last year, which was already off the charts, it will only boost his chances.”
Embiid picked up four votes, and was mentioned by several other voters. The 76ers big man is coming off two close MVP finishes behind Jokic, and Philadelphia added players around him and James Harden as the duo eyes a bounce-back season in 2022-23.
“They’ll have a good regular season, and I think people will think he deserves it,” an Eastern Conference executive said of Embiid.
One wild-card vote came in for Morant, the Grizzlies guard who has quickly become one of the faces of the NBA.
“They’re going to be very good again,” a Western Conference scout said. “He’s going to be the best player on the team, he’s gotten better every year and he’ll be a fresh face to the voters.”
4. Who will be the best rookie in five years?
After plenty of pre-draft debate about how the top three picks would play out, two of the choices at the top of the draft — Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren — split 12 of the 15 votes here.
The other — Houston’s Jabari Smith Jr. — didn’t receive one.
Banchero received a late push to catch Holmgren atop this poll over the past few days in the wake of Holmgren’s being ruled out for the season with a foot injury last week.
Banchero, the top overall pick by Orlando, had an impressive summer league debut. Voters noted they were drawn to his ready-made NBA frame and his ability to immediately compete from both a strength and skill standpoint.
“I don’t think it will be empty minutes,” a West scout said of Banchero’s first season in Orlando. “He will be able to play the role this year that in five years he will be playing, because his body is developed enough. He’s what people are looking for: length, size, athleticism.
“So, when you bring all that together, he’s most transferable from now to five years.”
Holmgren, meanwhile, was praised by panelists for his ability to impact the game in a variety of ways, which gave him the edge over the rest of his rookie class.
“He can shoot, he can pass, he plays both ends, he’s a dedicated worker, he’s freakishly long,” an East scout said. “He’s going to have ample opportunities to shine.”
Picking up two votes was Detroit guard Jaden Ivey, the fifth pick in the 2022 draft.
“It’s a guard league. He’s going to be on a good, young team with a lot of young, good guys around him,” an East executive said. “I think he’s got a chance to be really good [with] a great platform to build off.”
5. Which team will Kevin Durant be on the day after the trade deadline?
For all of the sound and fury surrounding Durant and the Nets over the past several weeks, the near unanimous opinion among the scouts and executives paneled for this survey was that, in the end, Durant not only won’t be traded by the time training camp starts next month, but he won’t be traded by the Nets at all. Brooklyn had made it clear there is a high bar to reach a Durant deal, particularly with four years left on his contract.
“A lot of teams are like, ‘We aren’t getting what we want,’ but they’ll eventually settle,” a West scout said. “If you’re not settling for [Celtics forward] Jaylen Brown, you’re not trading the guy. I think they’re doing this and you’re hearing all this because they want people to know unless you blow our doors off, we’re just not doing it.
“I think it’s to show Durant, ‘Hey, we tried, but we couldn’t get value, so we’re keeping you. Sorry.'”
For the two people who thought Durant would be traded, each had a different answer, with one opting for the Celtics in exchange for Brown, and the other choosing Phoenix, a team that was on Durant’s wish list at the beginning of this entire saga nearly two months ago.
“Jaylen Brown is the best player they can get, and I think they’ll have to move him eventually,” a West executive said, explaining why Boston could wind up with Durant.
As for the Phoenix angle, an Eastern Conference scout said, “I just don’t think teams are going to pay what the Nets are asking until Deandre Ayton can be moved, and then once he can, I think Phoenix is the team that had the most interest and the best pathway to get [Durant].”
6. Which team will Donovan Mitchell be on the day after the trade deadline?
The Knicks not only were the overwhelming favorite to eventually wind up with the three-time All-Star, but they also were the only team mentioned as a possible destination outside of Utah.
Some of that is because of the open secret that the two sides have been discussing a deal. But part of it also stems from Mitchell wanting to be in New York and the Knicks having the thing Utah wants — namely draft capital — to get a deal done.
“If what [the Jazz] want is draft picks, if that’s their most important thing, then New York has the ability to give them what they want,” said an East executive. “You’re never going to get [full] value when you trade a guy like that, so it becomes a matter of what’s important to the team involved. It seems like that’s what Utah wants.”
Not only was New York seen as the most logical team to land Mitchell, it’s ultimately a deal the Knicks need to make as the franchise continues to drift among the bottom third of the conference.
“You have to give up all the picks? Fine,” an East scout said. “What you have is not enough, and that’s a major understatement. At least you’re on the way [with Mitchell]. You need great perimeter players. They have a major player in Brunson, but at least you’re headed in the right direction with them. You might be able to attract free agents then.”
play2:55
Stephen A. Smith breaks down why the Knicks’ lack of leadership is contributing to their struggles.
The one executive who believed Mitchell would remain in Utah after the deadline didn’t think it would be from a lack of effort on the Knicks’ part. Rather, with just a month until training camp, the executive’s expectation was that if a deal isn’t done between now and the start of the regular season, it would wind up being too complicated to get done. (A similar sentiment was echoed by other panelists, though they believed New York would ultimately get a deal done.)
“I just don’t think a midseason trade is where you’re getting four first-round picks. That’s usually an offseason trade,” the East executive said. “And I don’t think the Knicks will be good enough to think, ‘Let’s do this right now.’
“If he’s in Utah on Dec. 1, I think he’ll be there all season.”
Evaluating the offseason can generally be described as a “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” exercise, and that certainly applies to this question, which had the widest range of answers of any on the list.
Coming out on top by a decent margin, however, was Boston’s offseason. The Celtics added two quality rotation players — guard Malcolm Brogdon in a trade with the Indiana Pacers, and forward Danilo Gallinari as a free agent — without sacrificing any of their top eight players who got them to the NBA Finals.
The only other team to receive more than a single vote was Philadelphia, which was praised for, in similar fashion, being able to address some weaknesses this summer by adding P.J. Tucker, Danuel House and De’Anthony Melton.
“They plugged holes,” a West scout said. “I don’t think it made them the best team, but they addressed their weaknesses pretty well.”
The Hawks received a vote for the Dejounte Murray trade, as one scout loved the fit of him playing alongside fellow All-Star guard Trae Young. The Clippers received a vote for keeping their roster together and getting healthy in an offseason when no one at the top of the West took a significant step forward. The Jazz received two votes for the draft-pick haul they received in the Rudy Gobert trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves, while the Knicks got one for signing Jalen Brunson and for not overreacting to Mitchell being available and deviating from their plan.
“[The Knicks] accumulated picks. They’re not going out and throwing money at bad free agents,” an East scout said.
The Sacramento Kings were given a single vote by an opposing Western assistant coach: “I think they’ve made enough additions where I think they have a legitimate chance to make the playoffs.”
Finally, the Wizards were given credit for both signing Bradley Beal to a long-term contract and making, in the eyes of one West scout, a great deal with the Denver Nuggets for Monte Morris and Will Barton.
“I really liked the trade they made with Denver. I think it’s hugely lopsided in their favor,” he said. “They put themselves in the middle tier of the East … with Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland.”
The clear “winner” was Dallas, which was roundly criticized for losing Brunson off a team that went to the Western Conference finals.
The guard signed a four-year deal with the Knicks last month instead of returning to the Mavericks. Dallas also failed to get a sign-and-trade deal done for him that would have at least provided a trade exception.
“They lost him for nothing,” a West executive said, “then turned around and gave JaVale [McGee] a lot of money and traded for Christian Wood.”
The Hornets received three votes for their handling of James Borrego, who was viewed as doing a good job the past couple of years before Charlotte fired him after the season, and for the uncertainty surrounding restricted free agent Miles Bridges, who was charged with three felony counts of domestic violence last month.
Not surprisingly, the Nets also received a couple of votes after making daily headlines for all the wrong reasons, even if they’ve still managed to keep the Kevin Durant-Kyrie Irving–Ben Simmons trio intact.
“It’s absolutely the Nets,” an East scout said. “They’re paying the price for the past three years. They handed their team over to these guys, and this is what you get.”
The Lakers received a vote for largely standing pat this offseason, while the Timberwolves did for, in the eyes of one executive, overpaying for Gobert.
Denver received a vote, as one executive wasn’t a fan of the trade that sent Morris and Barton to Washington for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ish Smith, while the Portland Trail Blazers received one for what was seen by one West executive as a confusing summer.
“They’re just a head-scratching team,” he said of the Blazers. “What are they competing for?”
9. What was the most surprising move of the offseason?
The biggest move of the offseason received 10 of the 15 votes for the summer’s biggest surprise — less because of the fact Gobert went to Minnesota, but instead for the terms of the deal to acquire the three-time Defensive Player of the Year.
“What Minnesota gave up for him, [plus] the fact they traded for him when they already had Towns,” an East scout said, “I would not have predicted that.
“[And] what they paid for him now has the ripple effect of making it harder to trade Durant and Mitchell.”
If you’re a quarterback, and you come out of a game with a passer rating of 146.9 — perfect being 158.3 — you’ve got the world by the horns.
That would be Justin Fields today.
The high won’t last. We’re talking about a preseason game against the Browns, against some defenders who already might be enjoying their new jobs at Walmart.
But completing 14 of 16 passes for 156 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions — in the first half — that’s outstanding, even if it’s against manikins.
If Fields, and the Bears’ offense, can perform anywhere close to that level in real games, it would be a welcome shocker. Let’s reiterate: Preseason games are basically con jobs, glorified practices that people pay to watch and coaches use to find out whom they need to cut.
Still, what former Bears offensive coordinator-turned-TV critic Mike Martz wrote on something called ”The 33rd Team” blog would make you believe Fields couldn’t complete a pass if he were dropping the ball into a dead dinosaur’s mouth.
“Fields is a guy that makes a lot of mistakes and is not particularly accurate at times,” Martz wrote. “He’s not a quick read-and-react guy, and he’s on a horrendous team.”
Maybe you’ve seen the rest, but it’s worth reposting.
“I don’t know if I’ve seen an offense that bad in talent since the 0-16 Detroit Lions [in 2008]. They just don’t have anybody there. . . . It’s a bad football team right now.”
Martz, a onetime offensive “genius,” wasn’t done with his Fields critique.
“I also have questions about whether he can really react fast,” he wrote.
And then the finale: “If he got to someplace like San Francisco, maybe it would work out for him, but I don’t see it working out at all in Chicago.”
By all accounts, the Bears are expected to be terrible. But comparing their offense to the Lions’ of 14 years ago is cold, indeed.
That Detroit team got just about everybody in the organization fired, including general manager Matt Millen and coach Rod Marinelli. According to The Ringer, 12 of the 45 players who started a game for the 2008 Lions never played another snap in the NFL.
But here’s where Martz might be a little off. It wasn’t the Lions’ offense that doomed the pathetic 2008 team, it was the defense. Wide receiver Calvin “Megatron” Johnson actually led the league in touchdown catches that season with 12.
But the defense, oh, boy, it was special. The “D”gave up 517 points, the second-most all time behind only the 1981 Baltimore Colts. With that kind of help, your offense, any offense, is sunk.
There is no Megatron on the Bears. But there is a Darnell Mooney, who had more than 1,000 receiving yards last year. And the running backs might possibly turn out to be average. And tight end Cole Kmet always seems about one Travis Kelce move away from stardom.
The offensive line? Yes, scary. But you never know. Offensive linemen are essentially nameless grunt laborers, but as a group, they sometimes rise to play better than their individual failings might suggest.
We’re talking hope here.
We’ve mentioned that preseason games don’t mean a whole lot. In truth, they’re often dangerous teases. That horrendous 2008 Lions team, for example, was undefeated in the preseason.
But we’re also saying that a young quarterback such as second-year man Fields can use any nice performance that he executed at any time to build confidence and at least know that he can play well.
Just remember how you did it against the Browns in a meaningless exhibition could be the coaching mantra for him.
Which brings up new offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. Competence and continuity are musts for a play-calling scheme, and you marvel at the Bears’ lack of both through the years.
Since Martz himself left as play-caller after the 2011 season, the Bears have had Mike Tice, Marc Trestman, Adam Gase, Dowell Loggains, Matt Nagy, Bill Lazor, Nagy again, then Lazor once more, and now Getsy is in that position.
One hopes Getsy and Fields bond, that it all comes together and makes sense for the young player.
It’s for sure that all these easy bootleg rollouts Fields had against the Browns won’t be there against the first-rate 49ers in the opener.
But maybe some magic and good luck will be. When nothing’s expected of you, even a little can be a lot.
TORONTO – Lefty Brendon Little tinkers. Sometimes too much. But when a stress reaction in his elbow last November wiped out most of his Arizona Fall League season and offseason, he came into the spring without time to waste.
“That’s been good to be able to take a step back and just really focus in,” he said Monday.
This weekend, Little had the conversation he had been working for. Triple-A Iowa pitching coach Ron Villone called Little into manager Marty Pevey’s office and handed him a sheet of paper that listed “The do’s and don’ts of a first-time big-leaguer.”
On Monday, the Cubs selected Little as a substitute player for the series in Toronto. They placed two players, pitchers Justin Steele and Adrian Sampson, on the restricted list for the trip.
The Cubs will get a second replacement player slot Tuesday, for the rest of the series. Teams cannot substitute a player for a starting pitcher on the restricted list for three days after his last outing of at least four innings. Right-hander Jeremiah Estrada is with the team in Toronto as a member of the taxi squad.
Little is the latest pitcher to be called up as the Cubs examine their pitching depth with an eye on next season. Assad, who held the Blue Jays scoreless through five innings in the Cubs’ 5-4 extra-innings lossMonday, was another.
With that start and his debut last week against the Cardinals, Assad became the first MLB pitcher in the modern era to log scoreless starts against team 10-plus games over .500 in his first two career appearances, according to Stats Perform.
“When that depth starts competing now with guys that are homegrown, that’s when you know the health of your organization on the pitching side is strong,” Cubs pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said. “And it’s fun.”
Little, who the Cubs selected No. 27 overall in the 2017 draft, marveled at how much he’s evolved as a pitcher throughout his time in the organization.
“It’s tough changing your identity as a pitcher,” he said. “It’s hard going through injuries, going to rehab. The biggest thing is just kind of like the mental drag. You see everyone else going out there, having fun, succeeding and everything. So, obviously you want to get out there. But the biggest thing has just been finding my strength.”
Once a pitcher who relied on his four-seam fastball up in the zone, Little now throws mostly sinkers. To pair with it, he has a breaking ball that Hottovy compared to Steele’s.
“What we’ve seen is a guy who learned what his best version of himself is,” Hottovy said. “He knows the two pitches that make him successful.”
In a way, Little’s elbow injury last fall helped him get there. He said he couldn’t start throwing again until January. He decided to focus on just two pitches.
“It was just a little too much noise drawing focus away from the pitches that played really well to both hitters, both sides of the plate,” he said.
Little has been on a roll the past couple months, posting a 1.06 ERA since July 4.
“Getting real swing-and-miss in the zone,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “Somebody we get kind of a free look at. … You can tell he’s worked on his game, worked on his body, looks like he’s in a really good place.”
Little arrived at the Rogers Centre early Monday, put on a pair of headphones and sat in the bullpen.
“I walked out the gate a couple of times, looked around then so I don’t have to when I’m going in the game,” he said. “Just tried to stay focused.”
Manny’s Cafeteria and Delicatessen (1141 S. Jefferson) is celebrating a staggering 80 years in business today, with special offerings and a cake cutting ceremony at lunchtime. The food is still served cafeteria style and many dishes hearken back to the deli’s earlier days (read Reader senior writer Mike Sula’s take on Manny’s matzo ball soup here) but why change the classics, especially if you’re in love with piles of corned beef stacked on rye? Today’s specials, including a free potato pancake with every sandwich purchase, are available (while supplies last) from 9:30 AM-8 PM. More information is readable at Manny’s Facebook page. (SCJ)
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Have you ever wanted to bed Mary Jane? Now you can. Learn to grow marijuana at the Gard3n (688 N. Milwaukee, Suite 204) with a three-part workshop led by 6th Dimension Being, a local Black and trans-run grow business. Tonight’s first installment in the series will cover both hydroponic and soil growing. You’ll learn how to prepare your home or garden, start your seeds, and feed your plants. You’ll also be guided through the different growth stages and what equipment and nutrients can support your success. The workshop runs from 6-9 PM and costs $40, which includes three seeds, potting instruments, and a detailed zine that’ll reinforce the course material to support your first harvest. Class slots are limited, so register ASAP by emailing [email protected]. Note: all participants are asked to take a rapid COVID-19 test before attending. The workshop will be recorded and sold to participants unable to attend in person. (MC)
The film Live at Mister Kelly’s is celebrated tonight at Chicago Cultural Center (78 E. Washington) with a free screening preceded by a jazz performance by the Charles Heath Xperience. If you didn’t catch the documentary when it aired last year on PBS, check out Reader theater and dance editor Kerry Reid’s March 2021 article about the Mister Kelly’s archives housed at the Newberry Library and the film (about collecting the memories of the beloved Chicago nightclub of the 1950s-1970s). A panel featuring the film’s executive producer David Marienthal (son of Mister Kelly’s owner George Marienthal), radio host Richard Steele, and more will offer a Q&A session after the film screening. The program starts at 6:30 PM and is presented in partnership with this weekend’s upcoming Chicago Jazz Festival. More information is available at Eventbrite. (SCJ)
There’s some tunes to be heard on this Tuesday from bands and musicians that we’ve written about in past issues. Chicago “gutter-rock duo” Heet Deth open tonight on a noise-filled bill that includes Milwaukee band Primitive Broadcast Service as well as Chicago’s Mr. Phylzzz. Doors open at 8 PM, and the show starts at rock o’clock (sometime after 8) at the 21+ Burlington Bar (3425 W. Fullerton). Gossip Wolf mentioned to us last week that local darkwave band Kill Scenes will preview material from their upcoming full-length album Masquetonight at the Hideout (1354 W. Wabansia). Adoptahighway opens, and DJ Lidia Vomito plays before the bands. The Hideout is also 21+ and doors open at 9 PM. And at Beat Kitchen (2100 W. Belmont), the emo-tinged Rozwell Kid plays a 17+ show with openers Options and Free Range. Showtime is at 8 PM and advance tickets are available through Ticketweb. (SCJ)
