Cub Tracks loves Yu, too

Greetings and solicitations, denizens of BCB. It’s Saturday, and therefore it’s time again for Cub Tracks, the long-running infotainment series. Today, rather than prattle, I’ve provided a piece of piquant poetry by a friend of mine ... originally about a certain postseason effort, but it certainly tugs at the feels today:

The Walls of Ivy

by Frank Coffman

©28 October 2016

For more than a century of empty Falls

I’ve clung here, fading as the air grew cold,

But full and yearning, covering these walls,

Awaiting what Baseball’s destiny has foretold.

But sometimes, there’s been action on the field,

Taking away some edge to autumn’s chill,

The stands have filled! But each time Time revealed

That there was no way—though they had the will.

Those boys of autumn, wearing the bright blue

In recent years—they have a storied past.

A legacy though dim, is still as true.

The echoes of those early victories last.

And once again I stand here lush and thick

Along the background of this storied field,

Covering up the ancient, ruddy brick,

That hard behind my face is well concealed.

And now, once more, October brings a crowd

“Perhaps it’s our time?” “Maybe it’s this year?”

The seats are filled. The voices loud! So loud!

The team is greeted with the greatest cheer!

The umpire shouts, “Play Ball!” I stand and wait.

The game begins. A different sense somehow

Pervades the park. Is this the turn of Fate?

I’ve been here through the Then, ready for NOW!

Here’s today’s Cubs News and Notes. As always * means autoplay on, or annoying ads, or both (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome).

{$}The Athletic’s preseason predictions.

• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): Brewers dealt a huge blow with closer Corey Knebel done for the season. also, “ ... fellow high-leverage reliever Jeremy Jeffress is on the injured list with a shoulder injury.”
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): No regrets: Theo Epstein and Joe Maddon’s season of reckoning begins.
• Bruce Miles (Daily Herald {$}): Epstein has faith in this Chicago Cubs group. Epstein’s mother also makes notable excuses. “Every season’s a challenge,” Epstein said.
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): With 3 days off in the 1st 13 games, ‘it’s a constant battle’ for Maddon and his early-season lineups. “I don’t like to have guys sit too long, coming off spring training when they’re playing regularly,” Maddon said.
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Yu Darvish faces big test Saturday vs. Rangers, his former team: ‘The real work begins now’. “This stadium has a lot of history, and I’m so happy to throw here in the opening series,” he said. Also, Yu has more jokes. And Jordan Bastian has more of Yu.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): How the Cubs have become Javy Baez’s team. “He’s one of the leaders of this group,” said Pedro Strop.
• Brendan Miller (Cubs Insider): Kris Bryant did something on Opening Day he’s never done before. “Prior to his 8th-innning blast, Bryant had never before hit a knee-high, outside fastball for an opposite-field homer.”
• Jon Greenberg (The Athletic {$}): No more Mr. Nice Guy? Cubs gentleman slugger Kris Bryant talks about having an edge in 2019. “... Bryant is the true face of the Cubs rebuild.”
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Inbox: Takeaways from Opening Day. “There’s a long-standing tradition to overreacting to whatever happens Opening Day. It’s just a lot better to overreact to a win than to a loss,” quipped Theo Epstein.

Cubs birthdays: Tom Burns, George Van Haltren, Herman Bronkie, Ripper Collins, Ed Sicking.

Food for thought: