Cubs Pour It on in Tall Win over Brew Crew

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There's a scene in Bull Durham where the coach says, "This is a simple game. You throw the ball, you hit the ball, you catch the ball." The Cubs did all of the above last night in their 8-1 shellacking of the Milwaukee Brewers. Ryan Dempster continued his Milwaukee mastery, winning his fourth straight and 9 of his last 11 against our non-Canadian neighbors to the north. The offense was strong, too — Fukudome and Colvin went yard, and every starter had a hit (including Chad Tracy!).

Chicago Tribune: Dempster, Cubs roll past Brewers
ESPN Chicago: Colvin, Fukudome homer to back Dempster in win
MLB: A fine Cubs brew in Milwaukee

Milton Bradley. Still a Dick, Part 3,792.
We're not haters. We want the Cubs to win. We like unicorns and rainbows and lollipops. And we were NOT going to write anything about Milton Bradley, who's back in town to play for the Mariners. And then he talked to CSN's Chuck Garfien, and he described himself as "as non-violent, non-threatening as they come." Then Bradley went after Lou: "When things are good, it's because of Lou. When things are bad, it's always someone else's fault. And we said, "Pot, meet kettle." And we vowed: No more Bradley.

CSN Chicago: Bradley: 'I'm made out to be someone I'm not'
ESPN Chicago: Behaving Bradley

Lilly Hopes to Bloom in Return Against Milwaukee
You'd never know it from looking at him — Ted Lily looks like he should be calculating your taxes, not pitching at Wrigley. But the dowdy-looking lefty has been a very dependable presence since the Cubs signed him in 2007. Indeed, he has 44 wins over the last three years. By comparison, Zambrano has 41, and Dempster has 30 (granted, he was in the bullpen in '07, but still). So we'll be checking out pictures of Lilly in his return from off-season shoulder surgery tonight.

Daily Herald: Cubs' Lilly ready to make first start of season
Chicago Sun-Times: Lilly, Zambrano in spotlight tonight

Guess What's Going on with the Cubs' Priciest Players?
So you probably know that the Cubs have a massive payroll. At $146.9 million, the Cubs' salaries are at the top of the NL and third-highest in the majors. But do you know how the team's three most expensive players are doing? (OK, it's a loaded question — we wouldn't be asking if they were kicking ass.) But here's the answer: The most expensive player is going to be taken out of close games for defensive purposes, the second-most just got put in the bullpen, and the third-most is hitting .127. Carry on.

Chicago Sun-Times: Three takes on the Cubs

Football Comes Back to Wrigley
You whippersnappers wouldn't know this, what with your tweeting and your blogging and your running all over my lawn, but the Bears used to play at Wrigley Field. That tradition ended in 1970, but it's going to be resurrected later this year when the Northwestern Wildcats will play Illinois on Nov. 20. It wasn't long ago that the Blackhawks played a game at Wrigley, too. Pretty soon, maybe they'll start playing professional baseball there, too. (We kid! We kid!)

MLB: Wrigley Field to host college football
ESPN: Key things to know about Wrigley game

Today's Report by Joel Reese