A common theme for the TBS announcers last night was that the crowd was shockingly quiet and passive, and it certainly looked that way on TV.

Al said the same thing in his wrap-up.

And I saw the same thing first-hand at last year's Game 3 loss, where the stadium really only got rocking just one time, when DeRo came up with the bases loaded.  Otherwise, people were quiet for most of that game.

All of that is completely different from the Wrigley Field we have all seen dozens of times for relatively meaningless games, and especially for the meaningful ones like Opening Day or any series involving the Sox or Cardinals.  So what gives?

I think the most commonly floated reason is that the fans are too nervous -- afraid of failure, they sit through a playoff game like its a horror moving just waiting to see how terrible its going to get. 

I have a different theory.  It seems to me that in the stubhub era its just too easy for wealthy, mildly-passionate, bandwagon type fans to offer a price for tickets that the average, everyday, die-hard (and yes bleed-cubbie-blue) fan just can't match.  So instead of the full-throated season ticket holder who is living and dying on each pitch, you have a bunch of fans who aren't as passionate and are going because its the thing to do and they have the means to do it.  When a $50 face value ticket is going for $800 or even $1,200, it reaches a point where people who would be in the seats screaming their heads off decide they'd be crazy not to sell to someone who will sit there passively with a cardigan tied around his neck.

Your thoughts?

"Sources" tell some other blog that Mark Cuban is out of the running for the Cubs, and that the clubhouse leader is Tom Ricketts.

http://chi-ball.com/blog/2008/09/12/cuban-out/

This in turn was reported on another blog, deadspin.com, so now I believe it.  Is this all unsubstantiated rumor?  Anyone have any more info?

[And as always, apologies if this is old ground; I ran a search, turned up nothing new on Cuban since August]

I'm surprised that for all the attention paid to Zell's comments about selling naming rights, there is very little discussion of the political leverage Cubs fans throughout Chicago and Illinois currently have.  

Its true, as Zell says, that Wrigley is "his asset" and without our own ownership interest we can't really stop him from selling the naming rights to it.  But our elected leaders in State and City government absolutely can do something about it.  Zell is practically begging them to purchase the stadium because the state can obtain tax-free financing, and can therefore afford to pay Zell a higher price.  His analysts tell him that if he sells the stadium to a private buyer he'll get a lower return.  Zell is also going to need City and State cooperation for any plan to remake or remodel Wrigley Field because of its historical landmark designation, a designation intended for just this sort of use.  The cooperation of City and State officials is necessary to either of those ends; if they withhold it, the value of Zell's "asset" falls.

With that in mind, its remarkable that at the same time Zell is courting the Governor, the Mayor and hundreds of legislators, he manages to upset an untold number of their constituents.  How many people would be sufficiently offended by the renaming of Wrigley Field to vote against the politicians who let it happen?  Thousands?  Certainly.  Tens of thousands?  Probably.  Zell  might not care what we think, but he should, because the politicians he needs to persuade will absolutely care if there are thousands of Cubs fans calling for their heads.  

So, instead of focusing energy on polls that ask whether Cubs fans would go to games at a re-named Wrigley Field (they will), like the Sun Times is asking, someone should be posing the question:  Would you vote to re-elect a politician who struck a deal with Sam Zell while turning a blind eye to his intention to re-name Wrigley Field?  The answer to THAT poll, I think, would be a resounding "no."  That's leverage, and its where we should focus our energies.  If you start a "Save Wrigley" petition, make sure it lands on the desk of every politician whose consent is necessary for Zell to maximize the price for his "asset."