Chicago Cubs Baseball

“Hope springs eternal” and as much as I despise cliches, this one is no better captured than in the hearts and minds of baseball fans - particularly Chicago Cubs baseball fans. And no better time than the present with the start of spring training.

At the end of each of the past 98 years, the same theme has echoed in the ears and ached in the hearts of every true Cubs fans - “Wait till next year.”

And with each spring Chicago Cubs fans everywhere dutifully chant the same refrain - “This is the year the we win the World Series.” And I do mean “we.” Because after a lifetime of waiting, for fans, world championships do become a we thing.

Unfortunately, for those same 98 years it’s been the same verse. Just worst than the first.

But this year hope is different. Encouraging signs are everywhere.

Gentleman GM Jim Hendry adds some pop to the lineup with Alfonso Soriano. Then he brings in a couple of arms to give Big Z (Carlos Zambrano) some support and take some innings off of the bullpen arms. He adds a couple of left-handed bats, hires a real baseball man to manage - of all things - a baseball team and nearly all players report to spring training ahead of schedule.

Well, almost everyone. There was Aramis who showed up the day of. But hey, that’s Aramis just being Aramis.

Holy Cow!

This hope thing becomes so infectious that even the unthinkable of unspeakables becomes public for all eyes and ears to read in-between the lines: Mark Prior is soft.

Don’t blame me for saying it. The Chicago Sun Times reported it and Cubs pitching coach Larry Rothschild alluded to it. Mark Prior is soft. Or as close to it as possible.

For the past four years - with the exception of the 2003 season - the guy has done nothing but bring new meaning to the children’s game “head, shoulders, knees and toes.” He, as in we, have suffered through his strained Achilles, pulled oblique, fractured elbow, tweaked elbow and strained shoulder.

And you can toss in the dashing of hopes and the gnashing of teeth for good measure.

Because, as Cubs fans, we wanted to believe. We wanted to believe he was the ace of now and the future. We wanted to believe that with Kerry Wood, Big Z, Greg Maddux and a fifth starter to be named later, that his right arm and cool demeanor were the tickets to ride to the Big Dance.

Alas, we were only fooled and - fooled again.

But not this year. With Big Z, Ted Lilly, Jason Marquis and Rich Hill, the one we once counted on has become the “fifth starter to be named later.”

And even that isn’t a cinch.

Keeping Wade Miller under contract was brilliant. What better way to make a competitor compete than to throw them in the midst of competition?

No longer does the organization look upon Prior as the ace. That place has been rightfully claimed by Zambrano.

No longer does the organization count on him for those 200 innings and 15 wins. And no longer does the organization believe that his arm provides the future of the Cubs pitching staff.

And the best part is - neither do we.