They will, however, Monet-ize everything, adding impressionistic waterlilies to the outfield walls.

But no seriously:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/ba ... 1485.story


Another thing the Cubs have to deal with at Wrigley Field that other teams don't is "drawing a shit ton more people than most people do, provided you're not losing 100 games," so at least that should mitigate the terrible losses and non-monetization of OH HOLY SHIT people selling t-shirts across the street.

Tomorrow should be a FUN day of shrill advocacy for billionaires. Don't miss it!

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I think we can say this negotiation for a new facility, renovation, night games, etc has gone poorly to this point....

Mr Crane Kenny....Plus stand up!

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

Um, I think Mr. Ricketts needs to visit other ballparks around the country. I'm pretty sure, oh, just about all of them have sellers just outside of the ballpark selling the teams' (not to mention, other teams) merchandise. Sure, some might be partnered with the team in question (ie, Grandstand and the White Sox) but you can't tell me that every one of those selling merch just past the viaduct on 35th are legit and licensed with the Sox.

And while I haven't been to many other ballparks, I've seen other stands selling merchandise that seem not to be affliated with the organization directly.

Again, a billionaire crying poor because he's realizing that his team ISN'T bigger than the city it occupies.

This is like a business that chooses to operate in Manhattan complaining that other businesses in Omaha, Nebraska don't have to deal with some of the things they do.

Yeah, it sucks to have your team play in Wrigley Field. It sucks so bad that they refused to even publicly mention the idea of playing somewhere else.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

At least the White Sox have the CHICAGO SPORTS DEPOT, the best state-funded sports-tchotchkerie around. Meanwhile, we're celebrating at least the tenth anniversary of The Triangle Building not existing.

Anyway, Ricketts is such a wanker. You see, when Wrigley Field develops its charm by idiosyncratically being in a neighborhood, that means having neighbors. I'm sorry about that. I guess.

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Grow some balls and build a stadium in a cultural Mecca like Schuamburg or something. If not, just shut the fuck up.

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Ricketts is a dummy, has shown that from day 1.


"But dad, they come every year ..win or lose"!

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Bad move when you throw out your trump card right after buying the team. Dumb.

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Power is always in the hands of the masses of men. What oppresses the masses is their own ignorance, their own short-sighted selfishness.
- Henry George

For all the Lebron love that this show has, I wish they'd return back to the original problem with Lebron going to Miami. It's hard to judge him for real. He's clearly great but he's playing on a team with two other all star starters. It's hard to tell if this run of his is actually because he's the most unstoppable force in NBA history or if teams simply have no answer for 3 of the 5 best players in the conference*. This was the problem all along. Lebron took the easy way out. He took a path that was still hard to judge him on. We know he is a top 10 all time player. We just will never know if he's a top 1 all time player.

...or they could just continue to sound like obsessed fan boys.


*-I know that all star starter does not necessarily mean they are top 5, but it certainly puts them in the discussion.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Wrong section. Wrong sport.

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Couldn't you have said the same thing about Jordan?

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Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

No. It looks like he never played on a team with more than Scottie being an All-Star. Grant and Armstrong were All-Stars in 93-94.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Come on, Rick. I don't believe your point is really about who made an All-Star team in a particular season. Rodman is in the Hall of Fame. Just about every great player played on teams with other great players. I don't think it's hard to tell who is who at all.

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Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

I haven't watched the NBA closely this year but isn't it mostly LeBron?

Wade is pretty old for his age and Bosh is nothing special.

I don't think Bosh and Wade are better than Pippen/Grant or Pippen/Rodman

Lebron is great. I haven't said he isn't.

While I clearly appreciate what Rodman brought to the table, he wasn't All-Star caliber in Chicago.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

What?!

Rodman was as good as he ever was in the Bulls years

Didn't he lead the league in rebounding all three seasons?

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

14.9
16.1
15.0

I don't think you are understanding what I am saying here. It's not about arguing the small details of who is better. It's the fact that Lebron, who is getting treated like he's doing something we've never seen, plays on a team with two other All-Star starters. They aren't flukes either. Wade and Bosh will likely retired with more than 10 All-Star appearances.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

How many All-Star games did he make?

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Rick you're putting waaaaay too much stock into all star appearances

I don't believe he made any with the Bulls. But that's why he's an oddity. He's in the Hall of Fame when many guys who were perennial All-Stars are not. I've said it before, Rodman is my favorite player ever. I find the guy fascinating. But he's a guy who is hard to evaluate. Not guys like Jordan and LeBron.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

Not in this context. The whole point is that Lebron is playing with two other current All-Star starters. People love to put down Wade and Bosh and pretty make it all about Lebron. However, they are both good enough to start at the All-Star game. That does mean something especially when both of them are on pace for over a decade of appearances.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Are Bird and Russell less than great because they happened to play with four other Hall of Famers at the same time?

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

It clearly makes them harder to judge. That's up to someone to decide though. I'm simply pointing out that in the midst of Lebron dominating like no one has ever before according to B&B that he's doing it next to two other All-Star starters and it's really hard to judge if he is really playing better than anyone in history or the other teams simply can't compete with 3 healthy All-Star starters.

It just seems like everyone has closed the book on Wade and Bosh mattering when at least according to this metric, Bosh and Wade are elite.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I think the Cubs should replace the ivy with lillies which can be monetized by having a sale at Easter. If it goes well they can have rotatating flora in the outfield with roses for Valentine's Day, poinsettias for christmas, etc.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Rick its not hard to judge Bird, Russell, Jordan or LeBron


You seem to have mapped out a course for LeBron to be the greatest ever and are upset he veered off it

LeBron is the best player in the league and his team is dominant because of him. He has good teammates just like all the greats did.


All star appearances should not be looked at. Its fan voting. Yao Ming is an all time great according to all star games

That's true. I've said as much before.
That's true too. However, I am talking about the hype around the historical success he's had the past month or so. It's more than fair to question whether that greatness is simply a reflection of him playing with two other All-Star starters. It's the same reason that Bill Russell is not considered the greatest of all time even with more titles. It's subjective. It just seems like the contributions of Wade and Bosh are virtually ignored now. Nothing changed from the day Lebron signed with Miami. We don't know how great he is because he's playing with two other players that make it really easy for him to be great.
Ming has as many appearances as Bosh. I don't think either is all time great.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Well since the guy you're undoubtedly comparing him to, had an all time great (Pippen) and an all star caliber player (Grant/Rod man) with him too, I'd think it'd be easier