Word is Bond
Cubs Want to Get $300 Million from Illinois

Cubs Fan Report

So the Cubs asked the state for financial assistance in paying for Wrigley Field work, and it hasn't gone over well with some Cubbie faithful. Chicagoist says the Cubs should "issue corporate bonds and let those who choose to invest take the risk," while the Sun-Times editorialized "they can pay for their own home improvements." But Phil Rogers notes the Sox held the state hostage to get their money and says the Cubs "are due a lot of help they didn't get during the three decades they were owned by the Tribune Company."

Chicagoist: Ricketts asks state for Wrigley Funds
Chicago Sun-Times: Let the Cubs pay for their own fixer-upper
Chicago Breaking Sports: Your morning Phil: Wrigley Field, Castro, Lee
Cubbie Doctor's Examiner: Wow... is the family actually doing something...
Tales from Aisle 424: Master of the house

Image Is Everything
Fans' Patience with New Owners Is Ending
It seems Cubs nation is less-than-happy with the Ricketts family lately. Julie from A League of Her Own has several problems with the regime, starting with the Cubs' decision to keep Jim Hendry as GM. "It's probably an understatement to say that Hendry has worn out his welcome with fans," she wrote. And the recent effort to get money from the state has been a PR blow, the Tribune says. "Even bond experts said the Cubs have to do a better job of explaining the financing to the public," the paper says.

A League of Her Own: Wrigley renovation is music to my ears but...
Chicago Tribune: Cubs striking out in PR fight over Wrigley plan

Learning Japanese
Taking Another Look at Kosuke Fukudome
When you think of Kosuke Fukudome, you probably think of that corkscrew swing that invariably misses the low off-speed pitches. But a few blogs say he actually hasn't been that bad. Another Cubs Blog dives waaaay into the numbers (does the stat xBABIP do anything for you?) and concludes "it's not fair to say Fukudome was wildly overpaid or that he's been a disappointment." Cubs Stats agrees, but adds the team should still trade him. Rooftop View concurs, saying, "the potential savings mean more to this team than his performance would."

Another Cubs Blog: Has Kosuke Fukudome really been that disappointing?
Cubs Stats: More thoughts on Kosuke Fukudome
Rooftop View: What to do with Fukudome?

Off Base?
A Surprising Suggestion for First Base
The question of the offseason is clearly, "Who will play first base for the Cubs?" We've heard names ranging from the two Adams (LaRoche and Dunn) to Carlos Peña. But Phil Rogers has another suggestion: Aramis Ramirez. Whoa — say what? Here's Rogers' thinking: Tyler Colvin starts in right field, and Ramirez plays first. Who's on third? Maybe not the perpetual question mark Josh Vitters. Instead, Rogers suggests prospect Marquez Smith, who hit .297 with 20 homers between Double-A and Triple-A. Seems unlikely, but you never know.

Chicago Breaking Sports: Your morning Phil: Matsuka, Vitters, Wilder

A Bigger Splash
The Off-Season: Going Big vs. Going Smart
The Cubs have made a few big moves in past off-seasons, such as signing Mark DeRosa (hooray!), Alfonso Soriano (ehh...), and Milton Bradley (soul dies). So the Sun-Times looks at big moves the team could make this winter vs. the smaller (more prudent?) moves. One big move would be going after Cliff Lee, while the smaller move would be signing someone like Kevin Millwood. Another big move: signing Adam Dunn. The smaller move would be a lower-level player like Nick Johnson or Adam LaRoche.

Chicago Sun-Times: Hendry insists finding right players more important than...

Impermanent Waves
Cubscast Gets Shut Down for Good
For more than six years, some die-hard fans named Lou, Sheps, and Sneetch posted an awesome, thrice-weekly podcast called Cubscast. Alas, it is no more: MLB Advanced Media sent them a cease-and-desist letter, and so now the fellas are calling it a day. That's produced angry responses from sites including Bleed Cubbie Blue, who called it "one more piece of evidence that MLB has not exited the dark media ages." Cubbie Doctor's Examiner calls the move "pretty weak," while And Counting succinctly says, "the way it happened makes me RAGE ANGRY HULK SMASH!"

Cubscast: Letter to Cubscast listeners from Lou
Bleed Cubbie Blue: MLB Advanced Media: Destroying baseball's future
Cubbie Doctor's Examiner: Why are people being so stupid? But a sign of hope.
And Counting: Goodbye Cubscast (Am I allowed to type that?)

Kosuke Fukudome just purchased a $1.3 million, three-bedroom condo in a building on Lake Shore Drive... The base of the Harry Caray statue was damaged when a worker bumped it with an equipment vehicle during preparations for next week's Illinois vs. Northwestern game. D'oh!... Got a favorite Cubs uniform of all time? Sure you do... Ryan Dempster lives pretty large, it turns out... Bulls Fan Report makes its debut on Wednesday. Have you signed up yet?

Submit your Rant on Facebook
*Don't be a Sox fan... be clever. If it's smart enough, we'll publish it here.
What's this?