PITTSBURGH – The Pirates may go on to lose 90-plus games this season, but they played like a playoff team against the Cubs and it wasn exactly close.

It was strong starting pitching that helped carry the Cubs during the first week of the season, but after Jake Arrieta’s start on Thursday, the Cubs didn’t have that same success in Pittsburgh. Combine the inconsistent offense for the third consecutive series with shaky starting pitching, and you have the makings for a rough weekend.

Sunday’s 7-1 loss to the Pirates highlighted some of the Cubs’ early-season concerns as they dropped their second series in a row ahead of another National League Central matchup.

“I would say we have to play a little bit cleaner brand of baseball,” manager David Ross said. “I know that [all] the mistakes didn’t show up on the board, but we had some lead off some of their leadoff hitters they got on base on plays that I thought our guys usually make.”

Pitching back in Pittsburgh, where he pitched for five seasons, right-hander Trevor Williams didn’t have a homecoming he was hoping for. Williams got hit hard in Sunday’s series finale, allowing five runs on 10 hits against his former team and forcing Ross to turn to his bullpen to cover a lot of outs for the second day in a row.

The Cubs were only able to get five innings from Williams and Zach Davies on Saturday and Sunday, forcing the bullpen to pitch 11 innings in relief. Extra usage like that has lasting effects on a bullpen and with another three-game series starting Monday against the Brewers, it has the potential to impact the rest of the Cubs’ week.

“It’s a game of inches and we executed the pitches that we wanted to, we went with the game plan that we wanted to execute,” Williams said. “We wanted to attack and it worked in a sense, but they did a good job putting the ball in play and singling me to death and then once they got the big hit where they needed to after singling me to death.”

The Cubs’ offense may still be in Mesa as they’ve struggled to score runs in the team’s first three series. The bats once again went quiet once again after an 11-hit outing on Thursday, scoring just three runs over the series’s final two games.

“I think as a group, we’re not having the right approach the first three series,” catcher Willson Contreras said. “That’s something that I talk to the guys [about]. We have to take care of that. We have to come up as a group and have an approach as a group. I think that’s something that we need to really work on.”

The offense went 1-for-23 with runners in scoring position over the three-game set and left 19 runners on base. Regardless of the Cubs’ pitching, it’s hard to win without having run support on a nightly basis, especially for a team depending on offense to help carry them in 2021.

“We got some chances today to get a little bit closer in this ballgame and we just weren’t able to capitalize on some opportunities with runners in scoring position,” Ross said. “First series so far that we haven’t done a really good job of that, in my opinion. [There were] some free runs that felt like they were out there at times that we didn’t quite take advantage of, but that’s baseball. They made some pitches when they had to.”

“It looks like we’re trying to hit the fastball and we’re not getting the fastball,” Contreras said. “So that’s where we make our adjustment. If you’re not getting the fastball, try to look for something else and then give up one pitch. We can’t go to home plate trying to hit two pitches at one time, so it’s one or the other. That’s why I say our approach needs to get better.”

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Two new teams join and there is a shakeup in the top ten.

New additions to the Super 25

Prospect: So, the Knights have probably been overlooked for too long now. They enter a little higher than most new teams to try and make up for that. They are unbeaten and smashed Rolling Meadows this weekend.

Wheaton Warrenville South: Last week I speculated that the Tigers were likely to reappear in the rankings eventually. I didn’t think it would be this quick. The big win over Batavia gets them right back.

Dropping out

Oswego (3-1): As if losing for the first time to your crosstown rival (Oswego East) wasn’t bad enough, it also knocks the Panthers out.

DeKalb (2-1): The loss to Naperville Central at home was just too heavy to keep DeKalb in the rankings.

Week 5’s Super 25

With record and last week’s ranking

1. Loyola (4-0) 1

No game scheduled

2. Lincoln-Way East (4-0) 2

Friday vs. Sandburg

3. St. Rita (3-1) 4

Friday at Benet

4. Mount Carmel (3-1) 4

Friday vs. St. Viator

5. Marist (3-1) 5

Friday vs. St. Patrick

6. Naperville Central (4-0) 8

Friday at Metea Valley

7. Warren (4-0) 9

Friday at Mundelein

8. Maine South (4-0) 10

Friday vs. New Trier

9. Hinsdale Central (4-0) 12

Friday vs. No. 8 Glenbard West

10. Joliet Catholic (4-0) 13

Friday vs. DePaul Prep

11. Glenbard West (2-0) 7

Friday at No. 10 Hinsdale Central

12. Brother Rice (2-2) 14

Friday vs. Carmel

13. Nazareth (2-1) 11

Saturday vs. Notre Dame

14. Huntley (4-0) 17

Friday vs. Hampshire

15. Barrington (4-0) 18

Friday vs. Hoffman Estates

16. Prospect (4-0) NR

Friday at Buffalo Grove

17. Wheaton Warrenville South (3-1) NR

Friday vs. St. Charles East

18. Batavia (3-1) 3

Friday at Glenbard North

19. Cary-Grove (2-0) 19

Friday vs. Crystal Lake Central

20. Neuqua Valley (2-0) 22

Friday at DeKalb

21. Wheaton North (3-1) 16

Friday vs. Geneva

22. Hillcrest (3-1) 21

Friday vs. Bremen

23. Simeon (2-0) 23

Friday vs. Kenwood

24. Lake Forest (4-0) 24

Friday at Stevenson

25. Phillips (2-0) 25

Saturday at Lane

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Appreciating the MSL and Wilmington vs. Coal City, another Metro Suburban star and more streak breakers.

The Mid-Suburban League is not one of the state’s glorified football conferences. The last state title the MSL captured was all the way back in 2005-06, when Prospect beat Mount Carmel 20-14 in the Class 7A championship game.

That leads to lower overall rankings for the teams and less attention from the media. State championships don’t have anything to do with entertainment value and watchability though.

MSL football is just a joy to watch. There’s some high-level talent in the league, excellent coaches and old, high-intensity rivalries. But crucially, the game is wide open and fun and most of the teams are evenly matched.

Ask any high school sports reporter and you’ll hear complaints about chronicling blowouts. Just look at the scores with games involving ranked teams every week. That’s generally not what you get in the MSL, which is so refreshing.

Rivalry fun

I was originally scheduled to cover Morgan Park vs. Simeon at Gately on Friday night. That game ended up being canceled, so I had to make a quick decision on where to head. I came close to heading to Wilmington. I’ve never seen the Wildcats vs. Coal City, despite growing up relatively close to both towns.

The game did not disappoint. Wilmington knocked off Coal City 24-21 despite an incredible performance from Coaler Asa Cooper. Joliet Herald-News/Friday Night Drive reporter Steve Soucie was there.

Cooper scored three long touchdowns and totaled more than 250 yards rushing. Cooper scored on a 74-yard run and a 66-yard run. Wilmington took the lead for good on an 11-yard touchdown run by Matt Sanchez. Coal City drove down to inside the Wildcats’ 30 but botched a handoff to give Wilmington the win.

The Coal City-Wilmington game is usually surrounded by a bit of pomp and circumstance, so maybe it will be a better spectacle to take in when all the fans can attend. But Friday night sure looked like a fun one.

More streak breakers

One of the major upsets on Friday included Oswego East’s 14-7 win against ranked, unbeaten Oswego. It was the first time the Wolves had beaten their crosstown rivals in the school’s 16-year history.

Prospect beat Rolling Meadows for the first time since 2015. The Knights dominated with a 48-14 win and are now a perfect 4-0 on the season and will face Buffalo Grove (4-0) in a battle for first place in the Mid-Suburban League East and place in the league’s Week 6 title game.

NIU recruit Luke Zardin had 11 carries for 152 yards and three touchdowns for Prospect.

Metro Suburban star

St. Francis quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse, an ISU recruit, threw six touchdown passes in his team’s 57-7 win on the road against Riverside-Brookfield. The senior has been red hot all season. He threw for three touchdowns and ran for one against Aurora Christian in Week 3 and opened plenty of eyes by leading the Spartans to a 28-0 win against perennial powerhouse IC Catholic and Kyle Franklin in Week 1.

Rittenhouse had 232 yards passing and three touchdowns against IC Catholic.

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Sox general manager Rick Hahn said over 90% of the traveling party was vaccinated after Thursday’s home opener.

Thursday was a pretty good day for the White Sox. Playing in front of home fans for the first time since 2019, Lance Lynn threw a complete-game shutout and Yermin Mercedes continued his journey to becoming a cult hero by blasting a 485-foot home run.

But those aren’t the only reasons the Sox will view that date so fondly.

Prior to Sunday’s game against the Royals, the team announced that “virtually the entire White Sox traveling party” received a COVID-19 vaccine following Thursday’s home opener. The optional vaccines were the one-time Johnson & Johnson version and administered at the ballpark by Rush University Medical Center personnel.

Sox general manager Rick Hahn said over 90% of the traveling party was vaccinated. At this point, the Sox have not reached the 85% threshold because the team has not been able to offer vaccines to all of the players and staff at the Schaumburg alternate site. The 85% mark is important because when a team reaches it, MLB will relax safety protocols for that club, though Hahn anticipates surpassing that level when they get more access to vaccines.

“We are thrilled with where we are at,” Hahn said.

Hahn and manager Tony La Russa sounded especially happy with how much the team bought in to getting vaccinated. While acknowledging the obvious individual benefits, Hahn said it goes beyond that. He said it sends a great message to the community and a great message about being a good teammate.

La Russa, who received a vaccine before the start of spring training, echoed what Hahn said. He didn’t go player to player talking about the vaccines, leaving it to medical professionals to inform the team.

“It’s an independent decision times 26 or 40, but I do know that they got a lot of information,” La Russa said. “It’s a big issue. It’s not something that you decide on lightly. But there’s a lot of community in what the final outcome was, which is good for us.”

Infielder Danny Mendick said he’s one of the Sox players who was vaccinated. He did it for the team, his family and everybody around him.

Mendick admitted he felt “a little crummy” Friday after getting inoculated, but that seemed like a small price to pay for peace of mind. The Sox scheduled the vaccinations around Friday’s off-day, and had another day to recover when Saturday’s game was postponed four hours before the scheduled first pitch.

“I think it’s pretty cool to see that all the guys pretty much went in there and got the vaccine for everybody else. You know what I mean?” Mendick said. “It helps for families, for road trips and different things like that. It shows that everyone has bought in. We got a 162-game season so it’s great to get it started like this.”

Sunday’s news doesn’t mean the Sox are completely free of COVID-19 concerns. The pandemic is still a part of everybody’s lives and requires precautions to be taken, regardless of whether they’re part of a major-league baseball team that had access to numerous vaccines.

Thursday’s inoculations, however, will lower Hahn’s worries about the coronavirus infiltrating the Sox clubhouse.

“Quite frankly, one of the strong benefits of the participation, the vaccination program is that when my phone rings and it’s (athletic trainer) James Kruk on the other end it’s more likely to be an actual baseball injury than it is something COVID-related,” Hahn said. “Having dealt with all of last summer and spring this year with that risk, I would say that there’s actually a little bit of comfort spending our time talking about hamstrings instead of a pandemic.”

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Over the past year, Gage Park has topped the charts when it comes to COVID-19 cases and positivity rates — not just in Chicago but across the state.

Even worse, a lack of health care infrastructure and resources on the Southwest Side left many Gage Park residents on their own.

That’s when the Gage Park Latinx Council decided it had to do something.

The grassroots organization was formed three years ago to address systemic issues facing the Gage Park community. Last year, it finished converting a vacant storefront at 2711 W. 51st St. into a new cultural center to better serve the neighborhood. With the pandemic, the council pivoted to deal with different challenges, finding a way to help Gage Park residents help each other, said Antonio Santos, co-founder and executive director.

One in seven people in Gage Park has tested positive for COVID-19. Positivity rates in the 60629 and 60632 ZIP codes, which include Gage Park, have recently been as high as 7%; the citywide average is at 5.4%.

The council recently partnered with Esperanza Health Centers to open a vaccination site in Gage Park, and Santos said the group has helped hundreds of residents sign up for appointments.

Given that 92% of the neighborhood’s population identify as Hispanic or Latino, Santos said the council, run by longtime Latino residents of Gage Park and Chicago’s Southwest Side, has become an important unifier amid the grief and loss.

“For us, community care and mutual aid means using our strengths and our identities to guide the work and trusting the folks whom we serve,” Santos said. “All of us involved in this organization are young people that grew up and still live in this community.”

Over half of Gage Park residents live at or below the poverty line. Food insecurity has always been an issue for the neighborhood, Santos said, and the pandemic has only exacerbated that situation.

That’s one reason the cultural center opened a free community market, the “mercadito,” with stacks of fresh fruit, jars of peanut butter, displays of toiletries and other items. Arriving customers are handed a red tote bag and urged to take whatever they need.

Neighborhood families also can enroll their children in the council’s summer art club or sign up for year-round programming.

“We have a unique understanding of the families that we’re serving because many of us are those families,” Santos said.

Samantha Martinez, the council’s co-founder and family outreach director, arrived in Gage Park over 10 years ago with her family. As Spanish speakers and immigrants, she said her own family didn’t know where to go for support. Now, the council tries to fill that void for others.

The council started distributing grocery boxes last year in parking lots, Martinez said. Food distribution now is done through the mercadito. Each week, 70 to 100 families visit, she said; many are regulars.

“We all grew up in Gage Park, and our parents didn’t necessarily have that support,” Martinez said. “It’s wonderful to see that there is now a Gage Park where our community can be cared for and supported.”

Planting seeds in the next generation

The council recently launched a youth co-op program, Reclaiming our Roots, to create green spaces on the Southwest Side. A handful of young Gage Park residents work in a community garden and study the effect of environmental racism on the neighborhood.

The garden is in what used to be a vacant lot a few blocks from the council’s cultural center. Gage Park resident Alberto Rodriguez, now the council’s eco-coordinator, connected with Martinez last year as he began to drum up the idea of growing a community garden in the neighborhood.

To regenerate the land so it could be cultivated again, they covered the plot in shredded cardboard and mulch and built two garden beds and a compost bin. They continue to collect extra resources like sticks and compost material, which sometimes includes scraps from the mercadito.

Rodriguez comes from a long line of farmers in Mexico. When his father lived in Mexico, he and his family cultivated food to make a living. Even though Rodriguez was born in the United States and lives in an urban area, he said working with the land is in his DNA.

“Gardening shifted the way I see life,” Rodriguez said.

Santos said he’s excited for the garden to start giving back to the community. Produce could go to the mercadito, and co-op members learn not just about sustainable practices but also about food access and racial inequity, he said.

“Why are there so many abandoned lots in our community that sit vacant for years?” Santos asked. “Now, in the time of COVID, people are really looking for outdoor spaces to connect with the community. [Reclaiming our Roots] allows these youths who have been virtual learning for a year to get outside and work with the land.”

As Gage Park residents get vaccinated, Rodriguez said they hope to slowly open the community garden, allowing more residents to gather at the garden’s fire pit to share their stories.

There’s still room to grow, Rodriguez said, in imagining ways to connect through these rare public green spaces. But for now, they said the Reclaiming our Roots initiative is a small glimpse of what healing a community can look like in Gage Park.

“This space has allowed me to orient myself in my identity and helped me teach and meet other folks who are interested in reclaiming this part of our culture,” Rodriguez said.

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A 27-year-old Chicago man is accused of shooting an Oak Park police officer during a traffic stop last week.

Enrique Rosa, who was also shot when the officer returned fire, is charged with attempted murder of a peace officer and aggravated battery with a firearm, Oak Park officials said in a statement.

The incident unfolded about 7 a.m. April 8 after Rosa was pulled over on the Harlem Avenue bridge over the Eisenhower Expressway, officials said.

Rosa’s car matched the description of a vehicle whose driver was suspected of being involved in an earlier domestic dispute in Forest Park, officials said.

After Rosa stopped his car, he allegedly got out and started shooting at the officer, striking him in the arm, officials said. The officer returned fire and shot Rosa twice in the leg.

Rosa and the officer were both taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, officials said. The officer was released Saturday, while Rosa remains hospitalized.

Illinois State Police said they were investigating the officer’s use of force.

Rosa is expected to appear in court Sunday.

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Three people have been killed and sixteen others wounded in shootings across Chicago so far this weekend.

In the most recent fatal attack, a 54-year-old man was shot to death early Sunday in South Shore.

The man was standing outside about 12:15 a.m. in the 6700 block of South Jeffery Boulevard when someone shot him, Chicago police said. He sustained nine gunshot wounds to the back and was transported to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

A witness told officers they saw the gunman fire shots from inside a gray Chrysler, according to police.

The Cook County medical examiner’s office hasn’t released details on his death.

On Saturday, a woman was killed and another wounded in a shooting in Lawndale on the West Side.

About 9:05 p.m., they were standing in the 2300 block of South Kirkland Avenue, when they heard several shots and felt a pain, police said.

One woman, 29, was struck in the back, each arm, and taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital where she was pronounced dead, police said. The Cook County medical examiner’s office hasn’t released her name.

The second woman, 28, was struck in the lower right leg, and taken to the same hospital where she was stabilized.

A shooting left a 17-year-old boy dead Friday night in Bridgeport on the South Side.

The teen and two others were sitting in a parked vehicle about 9:45 p.m. in the 200 block of West 37th Street when a black Dodge Durango pulled up and two men exited and began shooting at them, police said.

Davion Ward, 17, was struck in the back and was transported to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

A 16-year-old boy suffered a graze wound to the head, and the other person, a man between 18 and 20 years old, was struck in the chest, police said. Both were taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition.

In nonfatal attacks, a teenage boy was shot Saturday morning in Lawndale on the West Side.

The boy, 15, was shot in the lower leg about 5:45 a.m. in the 2100 block of South Kostner Avenue, Chicago police said. He was taken to St. Anthony Hospital in good condition.

Earlier Saturday morning, a man was shot in West Pullman on the Far South Side.

The 34-year-old was standing outside about 4 a.m. in the 100 block of East 119th Street when someone inside a red-colored vehicle fired shots, Chicago police said. He was struck five times and taken to Roseland Hospital, where he was stabilized.

In the weekend’s earliest reported shooting, a person was shot Friday night on the Eisenhower Expressway on the West Side.

The driver was shot about 9:30 p.m. near Cicero Avenue, and their injuries were not life-threatening, according to Illinois State Police.

At least ten more people have been wounded in shootings since 5 p.m. Friday in Chicago.

Thirty-four people were shot, eight fatally, last weekend in Chicago.

Read more on crime, and track the city’s homicides.

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A 54-year-old man was fatally shot early Sunday in South Shore.

The man was standing outside about 12:15 a.m. in the 6700 block of South Jeffery Boulevard when someone shot him, Chicago police said.

He sustained nine gunshot wounds to the back and was transported to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

He was identified as Harold Green by the Cook County medical examiner’s office,

A witness told officers they saw the gunman fire shots from inside a gray Chrysler, according to police.

No one is in custody as Area One detectives investigate.

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Most of the fan base has been hoping that the Chicago Bears move up to get a quarterback in the 2021 NFL Draft. But, that’s just not looking as promising as it once did. Not that it was ever extremely likely, with the Bears having to move all the way up from pick no. 20 […]

Chicago Bears NFL Draft 2021: 5 scenarios trading out of the first – Da Windy City – Da Windy City – A Chicago Sports Site – Bears, Bulls, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Fighting Illini & More

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Zach LaVine’s 50-point game not enough for Chicago Bulls by Ryan Taylor

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(Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)

The Chicago Blackhawks are a team that could be pretty busy during the trade deadline. They already have been one of the most active teams as they have made two very good trades with the Florida Panthers. Now, they still have a couple of guys that they might be interested in moving within hours of Monday’s deadline. One team that might make the perfect trade partner for them is the Montreal Canadiens. These two general managers have made trades before.

The Chicago Blackhawks and Montreal Canadiens would make great trade partners.

The Montreal Canadiens aren’t an elite team but they are a pretty good team. They were the Eastern Conference’s version of the Blackhawks in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoff bubble in terms of being that 12th team that snuck in. This year, they are competing in the all-Canadian North Division.

It looks like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, and Montreal Canadiens are going to be the four teams that clinch playoff berths while the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, and Ottawa Senators watch from home. It is really the only division that looks completely set for the playoffs. Obviously, something could change in the final weeks of the season but it seems likely that will be the case.

The Canadiens, are the fourth team of the playoff teams. If they plan on defeating the winner of the division in the playoffs, they might need some help. Depth is always key in the playoffs and the Hawks can provide them with some of that. They already acquired Eric Staal from the Buffalo Sabres so you know they are in the buyers market. These are three trades they could make with the Blackhawks:

Next: Trade One

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