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SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- I'm skipping this one, too. Not because it's far -- Tempe Diablo Stadium isn't much farther from me than Sloan Park. And it's not because of the ticket prices, though lawn tickets are currently $26 (!)
No, this time it's because I'm going to the Blackhawks/Coyotes game Thursday evening and there's no way I could go to the game in Tempe, come back and write a recap, and still make it to the puck drop in Glendale at 7 p.m.
All of this means I'll miss seeing in person the Will Ferrell stunt of playing for the Cubs. Truth be told, I'm not a huge fan of his and it is, as noted, just a stunt. I suppose I can accept it if it's not disruptive to the Cubs' spring preparations, and it will raise money for a good cause. Incidentally, Ferrell is listed as a "utility player" on the Cubs' active roster. (6-3 and 115? That would be ... really, really skinny.)
Anyway, I'll be watching this one along with you and will probably drop into the game threads again.
Cubs lineup:
Denorfia DH, Baez 2B, Soler RF, Olt 1B, Bryant 3B, Lake LF, Castillo C, Russell SS, Szczur CF
Angels lineup:
Calhoun RF, Trout CF, Pujols 1B, Joyce LF, Freese 3B, Aybar SS, Cron DH, Butera C, Rutledge 2B
Today's game will be on cubs.com (audio) with Len Kasper and Mick Gillispie. The game will be available on MLB.tv -- you will be watching the Angels broadcast via FSN West. It's also being carried live on MLB Network.
Here is the complete MLB.com Mediacenter for today.
Please note that during spring training, Gameday doesn't usually go pitch-by-pitch as it does during the regular season -- usually, it will update after each at-bat.
For spring-training games, we'll have a first-pitch thread at five minutes to game time and one overflow thread, 90 minutes after game time (because I know how you all like overflow threads!). For today, that will be 3:05 p.m. CT and 4:30 p.m. CT. These threads will not post individually onto the front page; instead, you can find links to them in the box marked "Chicago Cubs Game Threads" at the bottom of the front page. They will also appear in this StoryStream™. The pitcher box and regular-season stats will return on Opening Day.
Discuss amongst yourselves.