The View from Right Field

Does Donald Trump Have to Be So Obnoxious and Such a Bully?

I wonder what the reaction would be to what Donald Trump is doing if he were not so obnoxious and such a bully.  Is he antagonizing people, at home and abroad, by the way he is saying things more than the policies themselves would upset people?  At times, it seems, at least to me, that President Trump’s way of talking and acting unnecessarily irritates people and makes some of his policies seem worse than they are. 

It’s sort of the opposite of Barack Obama: some of his policies were worse than his way of talking about them.¹  On the other hand, maybe President Trump’s way of talking appeals to some of his supporters.  Certainly, President Obama’s way of talking appealed to many of his supporters.  In any case, President Trump is not going to change.  He is what he is.

38th Annual Cubs Convention* – January 17-19, 2025

Back to the Convention, the unofficial opening of the Cubs’ 150th season.  Two points: First, when I say “the Convention” it is obvious what I am talking about because the Cubs Convention is the Convention.  It was the first fans’ convention for any team, any sport, anywhere, and it is still the one to go to.  Second, it is the Cubs’ 150th season (our first was 1876; and all of them have been in Chicago – the only team that can say that).  I don’t know why the Cubs aren’t talking about it; maybe they are waiting until 2026.

Once again, we watched Friday night’s Opening Ceremonies at home on Marquee.  It’s just easier with how crowded the room gets, plus the driving back and forth.  Also, you get a better view on TV and you don’t have to sit/stand for an hour for the Opening Ceremonies to start, plus the time in line to even get in the room.  Wayne Messmer sang the Anthem; it doesn’t get better than that.

Biden? Trump? The Biden Watch.

I have lots to do (even if I am retired), and yet I keep reading articles about Joe Biden.  Is he leaving?  Is he staying?  How bad did he do today?  What’s going to happen?

To me, it’s obvious Joe Biden cannot be President for “four more years”.  I’m not even sure he should be President for six more months, but we can probably get through that.  Four more years?  Of course not.  Even if the debate was a bad night and even if Joe Biden was never all that articulate, he is on a downhill slide.  Even if he hasn’t gone down very far, it’s not going to get better.  And the concern is that it will be like what Ernest Hemingway said about going bankrupt: “Gradually and then suddenly.” 

Biden? Trump? The Heck With It.

Readers of this blog may have noticed (they have even been grateful) that I have not been posting as much lately.  After getting back from our break and seeing that things are pretty much the same as they were before we left (which was to be expected), I can see why: Biden v. Trump, again.  Progressives v. right-wing populists constantly. 

When George W. Bush was president and while Barack Obama was president, I posted a lot because there were things I wanted to say.  That even continued, for a while, under Doanld Trump.  But then I got tired complaining about Trump, especially when the other side didn’t seem any better. 

When Joe Biden came in, I posted things, but the number of them has dropped.  He’s been bad, his policies have been bad, but so many on the other side seem bad, too.

Break

We have a couple of things coming up, so I will be off for a month or so.  In the meantime, Go Cubs.  And, in honor of its 55th anniversary, here is "Hey Hey Holy Mackerel":

Kenny Holtzman, RIP

Kenny Holtzman, who pitched for the Cubs from 1965 through 1971 and 1978-89 passed away yesterday.  I have so many memories of Kenny.  Let me mention two.

The first was September 25, 1966.  It was the game he pitched against Sandy Koufax.  Kenny won, of course, taking a no-hitter into the ninth inning before finally giving up two hits.  I wrote about it here.  Especially see the transcript of the Old Style commercial from 1988.

37th Annual Cubs Convention – January 12-14, 2024

Back to the Cubs Convention after a four-year break.  I went in 2020, just before Covid.  There were no conventions in 2021 or 2022 (because of stupid Covid), and then I had a little issue last year.  So, it took a while, but I am finally up to 30 Conventions (out of 37; I missed the first four, then 2005, 2017, and last year). 

It was a lot different this year than it had been recently, but that was fine – and great – because Tad and Ruth were coming (along with Ross and Emily, of course). 

We watched Friday night’s Opening Ceremonies and “Off the Mound with Ryan Dempster” on Marquee at home.  It was easier and cheaper (didn’t have to drive; didn’t have to pay to park).  Plus you had a really good view and you did not have to sit/stand for an hour or more before the Opening Ceremonies started.  Wayne Messmer sang the Anthem, which is great!

Whither the 2023 Cubs?

So, what is going to happen with the 2023 Cubs?  Where are they going to wind up?  In the postseason or just done with the season?  At the time of posting this, they are ½ game ahead of Miami for the third – and final – wild card spot.  But will we keep it? 

When I am feeling negative, 2023 makes me think of 2004.  We collapsed the last week of the season, losing the wild card spot we had in our control at the beginning of the week.  Sammy opted out of the lineup and left Wrigley Field before the last game was over.  He hasn’t been back since.¹  Things went so bad our announcers even quit after the season.  The only good thing that happened was that, on Sunday, after we were eliminated, Greg Maddux, who didn’t leave early, won his 15th game of the season, extending his streak of consecutive15-win seasons to seventeen, though I am not sure he cared at the time. 

Mike Royko and the Ex-Cubs Rule

Famed Chicago journalist Mike Royko had a rule that no team could win a World Series if they had three (or more) ex-Cubs on their roster.  While Mike was a Cubs fan, he also believed that playing for the Cubs either so jinxed players or taught them such bad habits, that any team with three or more of them on their roster couldn’t win a World Series (or at least that is what he said in his columns).  And it didn’t happen until the Arizona Diamondbacks won the World Series in 2001 with Mark Grace, Luis Gonzalez, and Miguel Batista on their roster.¹ 

In any case, watching the Cubs-Yankees game on Sunday made me wonder if there is some kind of a regular season too-many-ex-Cubs rule, too.  The Yankees were leading 4 to 1 after six 5innings.  But the Yankees had five ex-Cubs (or ex-Cubs organization) players in their starting lineup: Anthony Rizzo, DJ LeMahieu², Gleyber Torres³, Josh Donaldson⁴, and Billy McKinney⁵.

Terry Francona is Still Managing Cleveland. Where is Joe Maddon?

I went to the Cubs/Cleveland Guardians (f/k/a Indians) game today, and I am going tomorrow, too.  When I saw Terry Francona was still managing Cleveland, I thought back to the 2016 World Series: the Cubs managed by Joe Maddon versus the Indians (now Guardians) managed by Terry Francona.  Joe Maddon left the Cubs a long time ago (mostly because the Cubs wanted him to go).  Terry Francona, however, is still managing Cleveland.

So remind me: Which manager won the 2016 World Series and which manager lost?