TOP: Searles, Jay Johnstone, Henry Cotto, Keith Moreland, Jody Davis, Gary Woods, Steve Trout, Steve Lake, Tom Veryzer, Ron Hassey, Zarris

MIDDLE: Palmer, Gary Matthews, Nimitz, Thad Bosley, Lee Smith, Rich Bordi, Scott Sanderson, Rick Sutcliffe, Tim Stoddard, Rick Reuschel, George Fraizer, Dick Ruthven, Dennis Eckersley, Yosh Kawano, Tony Gorofalo (trainer), Warren Brusstar

FRONT: Davey Lopes, Dan Rohn, Larry Bowa, Billy Connors, Ruben Amaro, Johnny Oates, Jim Frey, Don Zimmer, John Vukovich, Richie Hebner, Ron Cey, Bob Dernier, Ryne Sandberg

A team complete with the Manager of the Year, NL MVP and Cy Young award winner for the 1984 season, this team was awesome. We’ve had glimpses of hope between then and now (essentially four years to be exact) but to look back at this squad today and then peer reluctantly at today’s Cubs team is a painful realization at how far we have to go to reach these heights yet again.

No longer vying for the NL East title, current residents of the NL Central, the stage is basically the same with a few small frills and design changes added and the big picture goal remains the same. This Cubs team won 96 games and the NL East title before going on to face the Padres in a disappointing five game NLCS. On May 24th, the 1984 Cubs were 26-15 and dominating opponents riding high on a six-game winning streak.

On May 24, 2012, our Cubs are in last place, in sole possession of the division cellar at 15-29. The Cubs of today are riding a streak of their own, only not the kind that draws attention for any positive reasons. Nine games up and nine games down, the offense is unable to deliver and the starters’ quality starts are being tossed aside like last year’s promotion schedule. All nine games have resulted in losses. The line-up has put up the kind of fight you would see in overmatched WWF matches growing up in the ’80s where someone like Hulk Hogan would take on someone by the name of ‘Bob Smith’. Bob Smith would try with the few moves he had to offer but in the end, Hogan was too much and you would feel bad for the unknown. Try as he might, this one was over before it started and you knew it wasn’t going to end well for the little guy. His offense was no match for that of the more powerful, more skilled opponent and no matter how brilliant certain aspects of his game were, you wasn’t enough in the end.

In 1984, these Cubs were the Hulk Hogans of their division. Anyone else that rolled into Wrigley for some afternoon baseball or welcomed this club into their house and said make yourself at home, found the Cubs doing just that. A month from this point in the season, the 1984 team took their momentum and threw it into the next gear off the boost they received from the Ryne Sandberg Game. The team rode the momentum of Sandberg’s performance against the Cardinals to a 15-6 record over their next 21 games. Already in a great position, they used this leverage to pull away from the group and ultimately clinch the division on September 24th in Pittsburgh with a 4-1 win over the Pirates, provided by a brilliant performance by Cy Young award winner Rick Sutcliffe (who at that point was 16-1).

The 2012 team has no one like Sandberg to propel them forward. They are already 10 games out on May 24th and it does not look as if this group will find a way to help themselves help their pitchers. The starting pitching has been good enough so that the Cubs should find themselves in the thick of things in the Central, however with no run support it has been a wasted effort. The closest thing this team has to anyone standing out and delivering a performance worthy of a game like that of Sandberg’s would be Castro. However, despite his recent success and ton of potential, Castro has struggled this season to put together hits when they count and without the power capabilities that Sandberg had, Castro’s getting on base alone is not going to be enough. While hitting over .300 so far this season, it is hard to make any of those hits count for runs or even be considered timely when  they are coming at inopportune RBI situations as the rest of the line up struggles to get on base or find their own timely hitting and once they do get on-base, they can’t manage to clear the bases leaving runners on base way too often.

The 1984 team was simply light years away from where we are today. That squad in the picture above is nearly the ideal. They were arguably the best team the Cubs have had in the past three or four decades. The ideal is a title and they were unable to attain that. However, considering the success of the team and the honors that were bestowed upon members of the team at that time, it is still a great level for our 2012 Cubs and for this organization to aim for while looking to the future. To attain 1984 success – and then some – is clearly the goal of Theo & Company. It is going to take some time to get there, I know, I just don’t think I expected the team to be doing this poorly so early on in the year.

Ten games out on May 24th? Wow. I didn’t expect much out of first year heading in a new direction but I did expect to punch out at the end of the season with a respectable showing. So far, this club has been interesting to watch and just as frustrating. To see one side of the team deliver (starting pitching) and yet the other two important aspects fall to the way side (offense and bullpen performance) is just about as disappointing as it gets.  The only thing worse would be for us to simply be blown out night after night.

I can appreciate where we are as an organization right now. I can respect the process and keep expectations low for the present and hopes high for the future. However, I also find myself unable to resist looking back when it comes to the great teams of the past and wondering how long until we become great again. How long before we compete and the chances of next year not being ‘next year’ once again.

The 1984 team was the first trip to the postseason for the Cubs since 1945 so clearly these things can take some time. It’s cool. It’s one of the things that makes it all worth while when it does happen. The 1984 team came out of the Sandberg game and used it to propel itself to the postseason where it delivered two of the most hope inspiring playoff victories a fan could ask for behind a Sutcliffe shutout/blow out victory and a strong showing in game two. The Padres had three chances to survive, three chances to win and ruin the run this Cubs team was trying to make to achieve the ultimate prize. They had three chances and they used all three successfully ending the 1984 season and putting a stop to any thoughts these players, coaches, managers and fans had about seeing the team win a World Series title.

Even the 1984 team was unable to win the World Series and they had an NL Manager of the Year, the NL Cy Young winner and the NL MVP. The Cubs were awesome in 1984 and life was good for Cubs fans. The 2012 Cubs (and by that I mean the team, front office, manager, etc) has a long way to go to even think about competing the way the 1984 team did. The scary part isn’t the wait or wondering how long it will before they do.

The scary part is that, even when they do reach the level of success and potential the 1984 team showed – while that would be a great place to be – it still wouldn’t be enough. More than ’84 will be required to win it all but man, wouldn’t it still be great to be that awesome at least again right now? 

May 24, 2012. The Cubs are 15-29, 10 games out in the NL Central. No longer competing for the NL East and unfortunately, we can say the same about their year in the Central and it’s not even Memorial Day weekend yet.

(sigh) Go Cubs Go.

I think of all the videos of Kerry Wood I have watched in the past few days after Kerry announced his retirement, these three sum it up best.

The 20 strikeout game is likely the first thing baseball fans in general would mention when hearing the name Kerry Wood. His desire to stay loyal and committed to the Cubs throughout his career and to be here as one of those select few men who get to not only play the game of baseball for a living but also claim the privilege of the right to say that they helped bring a title to the starved fans of Chicago after all these years is another commendable part of Kerry’s time as a professional baseball player. There will of course also be those who will dismiss all of these things – his character and stats – and only take a look at his fingers. No rings. Those people will classify Kerry as a loser. Just another lovable loser on the North side of Chicago who came into the league with enormous potential and gave the fans unbelievable hope yet when it came down to it, in the end he failed to deliver. Looking forward to hearing what’s next for Wood and the Cubs as I’m sure the Ricketts will find an appropriate place for Kerry to continue to be a part of the Cubs push to end the drought and win their next World Series title.

As a Cubs fan, would I have loved to have seen Kerry help bring a title to Chicago in his time with the team? Yes. Of course. Not only would seeing the team win a championship be the number one sports request of all Cubs fans, 1a would have been to have Kerry Wood as a member of the club that made it happen. Too many years have gone by where our teams have been the perfect example of unrealized potential. Sometimes, they have been the ideal to point to as samples of misdiagnosed talent as well. Talent that wasn’t necessarily unrealized, simply built up as able to more than was truly with their ability.

Some of these players were only easy to root for when they cleared the bases with a home run over the ivy covered walls of Wrigley. Otherwise, they weren’t exactly the type of person you would want to hang out with or want your children to idolize with t-shirts with their names on it or posters of said player in their bedroom.

However, some of the men that have worn the Cubs uniform have been downright upstanding people. We’ve had a few to root for as of late in guys like Ryan Dempster and Kerry Wood. Wood ended his time with the Cubs a man who can be respected for the way he carried himself while representing himself, his family and the team. He entered the league in a Cubs uniform a boy with great potential and even greater expectations. He never did anything to dishonor himself, his family or the opportunity he had as a big league baseball player. For that reason, while the baseball contributions can always be appreciated, it is the person that Kerry Wood is that I respect the most. While he can no longer throw the way he used to and is no longer the reliable arm to put in the starting rotation or bullpen, he is still the type of guy you want around this organization. To help move the team forward in years to come and to set the example in a face to face scenario for future young Cubs that come up through the system who will also have high expectations and may need some assistance in learning how best to handle such demands from the front office, the fans and their family.

The last video, featuring Kerry as the Father of the Year honoree is my favorite of the three. Kerry came up through the ranks and burst on to the scene as the guy that could make the difference for the franchise. Along with Mark Prior, their two arms were to carry this club to the promised land. It was an amazing amount of pressure to deal with and he only made it tougher on himself with the 20 strikeout performance and winning Rookie of the Year honors. Yet, Kerry handled it like a pro and while he just missed getting the Cubs into a World Series, he was spot on with keeping the respect of the organization, the fanbase and most importantly, his family.

The traveling and the schedule has to be brutal on a ballplayer and his family. For his wife and children to look at Kerry the way that they do still to this day is an honorable thing. I enjoyed seeing how excited his kids were talking about what it was like to see their Dad play and I understand completely what Kerry meant in his concerned statement worried that his son will never see him pitch in the major leagues. I understand that feeling. I want my son to be a part of all that I do in life and I want him to respect me and the choices I’ve made and look up to me the way Kerry’s son does. You can tell his son thought it was cool to have a Dad who plays baseball for a living but more importantly, you don’t get the impression that he felt neglected at all. That must be a super hard balance to find as a father and professional with a crazy schedule. I hope that I can find professional success in the years to come that not only satisfy me creatively in this industry, however also allow for my family to understand how much they mean to me and for my son to know how much he is loved. That balance is something I’m sure Kerry didn’t always have come easy. Of all his achievements over his time as a professional ballplayer, it would appear as though he managed to find it with his family and it is the achievement I admire the most.

Watching his son give him a giant hug after coming off the mound at Wrigley, following a strike out of the final batter he would ever face, in front of the home crowd puts it all into perspective. As much as the fans’ standing ovation says how much he meant to the city of Chicago and Cubs fans all over, that hug symbolizes how much Kerry meant off the field to his family. It was a touching moment and quite possibly will end up being the best moment of this Cubs season. A hug that seemed to be saying, I love you, congratulations and I’m so glad you’ll have even more time for us all with the drama of a great career ending in front of fans who love Kerry for all he has done for them will actually likely end up being one of the best moments of this MLB season overall.

Congratulations on a brilliant career, Kerry Wood. Enjoy your family, thanks for the effort and if you choose to stick around in some type of role with the Cubs off the field going forward, I’m sure they’d love to have you. Kerry Wood. All class. The more guys we can have around the team like this, the better. Looking forward to seeing what’s next for Wood and the Cubs.

Go Cubs Go!

I despise Bud Selig a little more each day and most of it is based on his loyalty to the disgusting ownership group of the New York Mets.

I am at Dodd Stadium today for another great day of work with the Detroit Tigers’ A-ball team, the Connecticut Tigers and I took a few minutes out to watch Mayor Bloomberg, Selig, Mr. Met and Ponzi scum and Ponzi scum Jr. announce that New York City – specifically, the New York Mets – have been awarded the opportunity to host the 2013 All-Star Game at Citi Field.

Are you kidding me, Bud?

The Wilpons are disgusting, dishonest, crooked thieves of human beings/baseball owners who should have been kicked out of the game long ago for the way they have handled their business, what it does to the game and their ties to Bernie Madoff. For some reason, you continue to get their back. You gave them a loan to stay afloat while lawsuits were flung their way, attendance dropped and fans lost faith in their ability to keep their organization competitive. The fact that they currently sit 2.5 games out of first place in the bizarro 2012 season of the NL East is not lost on this writer. It is simply a by-product of a small fluke of a sample size for this season and while I respect what the players and manager have been able to accomplish so far this year (I would love to be able to say the Cubs are just 2.5 games out of first place at this point in the season) it is simply one more gift these criminals seem to step in with every smug, criminal, unethical step they take in handling their MLB and outside MLB business affairs.

Not that being 2.5 games out has done a whole lot for attendance or fan turnout. In New York, the talk continues to be one of two things depending on which type of fan is speaking. Either complete boycott is called for to show disdain for their actions and the way they feel about/treat this team from the way they speak of their star players to working with criminals such as Madoff to building a shrine to a team that never set foot in Flushing/Queens and selling jerseys of players that have no historical ties to the franchise (go to the Mets gift shop sometime if you catch a Cubs game there. What’s that? A Koufax jersey? When was he a Met? Exactly.) Or on the other hand, you get the ‘hey, I root for the team of players on the field, not the schlubs in the rich guy-owner box seats’.

It is this second type of fan I have a problem with.

I believe we are lucky as Cubs fans to have an ownership group that genuinely cares about the franchise. They don’t take us for fools and while their public statements regarding the team are likely tempered by public relations watchdogs, as fans of the ballclub, they are coming from the same place we are. They have suffered through the disasterous moments Cubs fans have suffered just like the fan base. They are able to relate to the plight of a Cub fan because they are Cubs fans. The are baseball fans. They love the team they own and it shows. They have put smart people in the role where we need them. They have not restricted these new hires but instead, allowed them to take the plan the Ricketts believed in when they hired them and allowed them to stay that course and watch the results unfold.

Is a rebuiling effort around young talent, a strong farm system, avoiding bad contracts and dealing veterans in return for hot prospects with giant upsides as much of a get rich quick scheme as partnering up with a ponzi artist and stealing millions and millions of dollars for unknowing victims and using that cash to benefit your ballclub for years? Do the results come by as quickly?

No. But whatever the results will be, they will come honestly. They will come without an asterisk, without a shadow or stain of all that is accomplished.

The Wilpons were able to run the Mets for years on money they didn’t deserve to be raking in due to the nature in which they were receiving it. The Wilponzis played dumb for long enough to get through without a trial and pay a giant settlement so that they not only are no longer legally even suspects of knowingly participating in the Madoff scheme, but they may even profit. So in business, they had a wise criminal in their pocket getting his hands dirty so they didn’t have to, in law they have escaped by paying a fine as opposed to actually taking on punishment that is deserved and would likely have sent them out of the game altogether and it would have been rightfully so and in baseball, they have the man with all of the power in their corner protecting them with all of his might. Bud Selig has done a lot of things that fans disagreed with in his time running The Show, however giving the All-Star Game to the New York Mets – to the Wilpons – is quite possibly the worst one yet.

The Wilpons are criminals. I know it. You know it. They know it. Bud knows it. Technically perhaps settling out of court has allowed them to prevent that tag officially however, despite the Mets fans that decide to turn a blind eye to the way the organization treats them and their franchise, the rest of baseball fans know how quite likely it is that they knew and in fact are just that – criminals. The fact that Mets fans still show up at all surprises me. Wilpon does not deserve their allegiance. He does not deserve their money and he does not deserve to be in baseball. So what does Selig do? He gives him the All-Star Game in 2013 where his rebound plan will now include not only potentially STILL profiting from the Madoff scheme, but profiting from the tens of thousands of fans who will show up and pay the gates at Citi Field (through on-line ticketing, etc but you know what I mean) to see the greatest in the game play an exhibition game on July 16th next year as well as participate in four other days filled with events that will honor the game’s best.

The Wilpons are among the game’s worst owners if not the worst. They should be last on the list of people awarded anything, let alone a game that honors the sport when they have no honor and have already profited by stealing from the masses. Bud Selig had 29 other teams to choose from, Ok, 28 if you discount last year’s host a few others if you then eliminate further the other hosts of recent years. It has been nearly 50 years since the Mets had an All-Star Game and the way the Wilpons carry themselves throughout the game, they should have to wait at least another 50 years to get one more.

Meanwhile, owners like the Ricketts – a family with resources, good will and good intentions who actually care and own one of the games most valuable and large market franchises – do not get an All-Star Game. Instead, today, we hear that Wrigley Field will get a soccer game. A SOCCER game? What? The simple fact that we are hearing about soccer coming to Wrigley is not enough for outrage. The stadium is a great place to host a sporting event and if it happens to be soccer, so be it. The outrage should be raised however that it was the New York Mets’ criminal ownership that was awarded next year’s opportunity to stage the game’s greatest before the Cubs or any other worthy organization.

The fact that Minneapolis is being discussed for 2014 is also outrageous considering Wrigley field will be 100 years old (as Wrigley Field) in 2014. How could you not give Wrigley the All-Star Game in 2014? Minneapolis? I’ve never been…but how do you not give the Ricketts, the Cubs, Cubs fans and Wrigley the All-Star Game in 2014. Nothing is official yet and the way Selig botched 2013′s game by giving it to the one group that should have been eliminated from contention makes me not surprised in the least that it is likely to not happen on Selig’s watch next year.

Selig, for the good of the game, stop taking care of your friends. Put the game first, not your criminal buddies. The players, coaches and managers that are at next year’s All-Star game will have worked hard to play in the game and represent MLB in front of the world. The team that hosts it should at least be in contention to do so because they have not dishonored the game with such disgraceful, illegal activity as the Wilpons have.

This outrage is not even truly about the Cubs or Cubs fans or soccer, etc. It’s about doing the right thing. It’s about taking the opportunity to do the right thing in honoring the game on it’s greatest stage and by giving next year’s cash cow of a game to his best friends who could definitely use it to avoid a fire sale on their disgusting bullet-dodging path that they’ve been on for the past couple years with the Madoff mess, Selig dropped the ball.

Citi Field – host field of the 2013 All-Star Game.

Seriously, Bud?

Ridiculous.

Go Cubs Go.

As of this coming Monday, I will be starting my first job in professional baseball as the official team writer of the Detroit Tigers’ Class-A affiliate, the…

Since starting this blog in December of 2007, I have had the opportunity to meet a number of great people in baseball. Members of the Chicago Cubs front office, sports reporters, bloggers, players, etc and I have been plugging along using Prose and Ivy as a way to connect with Cubs/baseball fans, a creative outlet and a way to hopefully get my foot in the door of professional baseball. Each and every new person I have met and every article I have written on this site or other sites such as MLB.com, Baseball Digest and Vine Line Magazine among others, have served as motivation to keep pushing, keep writing and keep looking for an opportunity to land an opportunity to mix my professional experience in television production, sports writing, public relations, sales and marketing and passion for the sport and parlay it into an opportunity with a Major or Minor League ballclub.

I’m excited to say that the opportunity with the Tigers will allow me to not only write for the team on a regular basis, but also provide a chance to learn the business side of the game and the ins and outs of baseball operations.

This season, when Connecticut Tigers fans come out to the ballpark, they will have a chance to read content I write about the home team, the Detroit Tigers and the New York-Penn League. Throughout the year, fans will have an opportunity to read articles I write about a variety of different topics within those three categories on the team’s official website CTTigers.com. I have had meetings with independent league teams over the past few months and nearly landed an opportunity with one of them back in January – something that if it had come to fruition, I would have been extremely grateful for. Of course, I am not sure where this opportunity with the Tigers could lead in the future, however the chance to work within a front office that is rich with baseball professionals and part of an infrastructure tied to a storied franchise such as the Detroit Tigers is an opportunity I am very much looking forward to and can’t wait to get started on.

The fact that our games will feature ballplayers that could be wearing a Detroit uniform in just a few years from now is something I am very excited about and looking forward to being a part of. This is an exciting time to be a Tigers fan (certainly a more hopeful experience than that of a Cubs fan) and while their MLB roster hardly needs a hand in dominating so far this season, to watch the players they believe to be the future of the franchise and have a hands-on experience working within one of my favorite parts of the game- the Minor Leagues- is going to be unbelievable.

In addition to writing for the Tigers, I’ll be learning a ton about the business side of Minor League baseball in serving as the team’s Box Office Manager for the 2012 season. Need a ticket to the game? I’m your guy. Need tickets to take an entire group to the game? I’m your guy. Want to rent a suite for one of our upcoming games against the young talent coming up through the Red Sox, Astros, Nationals, Indians, Phillies, Pirates, Cardinals, Marlins, Blue Jays, Yankees, Mets, Rays or Orioles respective systems? I’m your guy. Need season tickets to enjoy a few months of quality baseball talent at affordable, family friendly prices complete with fun promotions and in-game family friendly entertainment? I am your guy!

The more the merrier clearly, so if you happen to be a Tigers fan who stumbles upon this article or simply a baseball fan that lives in the area, come check out the team this season at beautiful Dodd Stadium. I’ll have an opportunity to post pictures of the extremely impressive stadium throughout the summer months (the season runs from June 18-Sept 5), but for now, here’s a shot of the field from the team’s website:

While you’re at it, check out the logo behind home plate.

The team decided to keep the Tigers name when they moved the team from Oneonta, NY to Norwich, CT in 2010 and the logo reflects the tie-in to the big league club as well. As you all very well know, the Detroit Old English Style ‘D’ is one of the most recognizable logos in all of sports. I love the idea of turning it around practically and keeping the same font for the A-ball club in designing the logo around the Connecticut ‘C’. Here is a larger look at the team logo in royal blue:

Now that I’ve posted it, I believe the more appropriate term would have been ‘much larger’ look at the team logo. What can I say, I’m psyched.

This site will of course continue to cover Chicago Cubs baseball for the 2012 season.

Will it feature a link or 100 here and there to material I write for the Connecticut Tigers, too? The short answer? Quite possibly, yes. You’ll still find all the Cubs news and opinion you could hope for here like always, however, I’ll also be sharing my experience with the Connecticut Tigers here over the course of the season.

Prose and Ivy and MLBlogs allowed me to kick-start any and all opportunities I’ve had so far in sports writing in general, which means any of you reading this whether it is your first time here, or you’re Abracadabra (the person that has left more comments than any other visitor to the site since 2007), you have helped keep me motivated in my pursuit of a career in sports journalism/professional baseball and I appreciate it, so thanks!

Looking forward to sharing my experience of working with the Detroit Tigers’ Class-A affiliate, the Connecticut Tigers this season (and of course second guessing Sveum’s line-ups, debating when to change up the rotation, complaining about the bullpen, enjoying the opportunity to watch Theo work his magic on this franchise, etc, etc, etc)!

It all starts on Monday at Dodd Stadium!

Keep you posted! (And of course…..GO CUBS GO!)

@proseandivy congrats!—
Carl Gierhan (@cgierhan) April 19, 2012

WOOHOO! Congrats, Ryan! RT @proseandivy: I've been called up to the Minors! #Tigers #Cubs #MLB tinyurl.com/bmepldg—
 Sarah  (@luckiexstar) April 20, 2012

Congrats! RT @proseandivy: I've been called up to the Minors! #Tigers #Cubs #MLB tinyurl.com/bmepldg—
Blake Fisher (@dblakefisher) April 20, 2012

@proseandivy Best of luck!—
Aaron Somers (@AaronJSomers) April 23, 2012

Included below is an embedded version of the podcast which you can play here. Highlights include the impact of Theo Epstein, the debate as to whether Pujols and Fielder’s absence will make the division grow tighter in 2012, my thoughts on Dempster as the Opening Day starter, expectations regarding the final standings of the Central and overall storylines to look forward to this coming season.

I see the bullpen as a weakness, I’m behind the ‘year of the Cubs’ numbers coming down despite the fact that it directly correlates to my URL, I believe Theo is going to make a huge difference (who doesn’t?) and I believe aside from the Astros, the rest of the division will be decided in a tight race with only 89 wins needed to claim the division title. Also, given the extra wild-card in each league, while I feel the Cubs have a lot of work left to do, I could see them coming away with that extra wild card spot.

Watch out for the Pirates in 2012 to be the surprise team of the division and potentially not in the way you would expect. We discuss how the Cubs are slowly getting younger and what to expect with Soriano and Ian Stewart this season among other subjects. The guys involved are fun to listen to and it was a blast to talk about the upcoming season with them.

Here is the podcast. Press play and check it out! (You don’t have to wait long to hear my thoughts on the 2012 Cubs as I am the first writer out of the gate.)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/ivieleagueproductions/2012/03/25/ucb-radio-hour-special-previewing-the-central

Go Cubs Go! Opening Day is only 10 days away!

Bucket list item: Build a lego city on top of a Van Halen record while listening to Starship.—
Ryan Maloney (@proseandivy) March 02, 2012

Go Cubs Go!

A season taken away from us in the first weeks of the season in losing our number four and five starters in the rotation.

A season that displayed exactly how important depth is on a major league baseball team and how even more important arguably it is to have in your farm system.

A year of historic significance in returning to Fenway Park, Castro’s 200 hit season, Santo’s vote tabulation for the Hall and the introduction of boy wonder, Theo Epstein along with the departure of Hendry and Quade.

I’ll remember the struggles the club had in finding suitable replacements for Wells and Cashner, the amazing season Castro put together, the once again uber-reliable innings eating calendar Dempster put together and that horrifying shot to the eye Marlon Byrd took at Fenway Park.

I’ll remember my trips to Wrigley, meeting with members of the front office staff and what they did for my son last off-season.

I’ll remember my trip to Cooperstown, my first with my wife and 10 month old son. It was amazing to revisit the Hall, look at all of the exhibits and plaques after years and years making it all new again. It was fun to introduce my son to the game by showing him the greatest to ever play the game and talk to other fans in the game in fun conversations giving them the opportunity to convince my son that he should not become a Cubs fan (good luck with that). You can see the video here:

I’ll remember singing the stretch in a couple of rain-threatened series at Wrigley, one game of which in fact was rained out, yet I made the trip back to Chicago to catch the make up game (any excuse to get to Wrigley is a good one). I’ll remember meeting with Vine Line and beginning my time writing for them along with the contributions I made to MLB.com, Baseball Digest and the other sports writing I put out there in 2011 and look forward to doing so in 2012.

Looking ahead to the new year, I can’t wait to see what Theo Epstein and his merry men can manage to pull off with our boys on the North Side. Will he end up writing a similar thank you note to Cubs fans referring back to multiple championships in his time with the club, starting with the rumors that flew around after being spotted at a Starbucks? I hope so.

I hope Garza is still a Cub and that Epstein and Company find a way to better the team without having to deal him. Our rotation needs some stability and Garza, had he received a few breaks, could have come out of 2011 with one of the most impressive records in the National League. I understand why other teams would want him and how he is a valuable piece of bait that could potentially bring back significant pieces of the future – I just hope he is still around and that the front office finds another way.

I look forward to seeing Castro put up another season of impressive numbers and make an argument for a starting spot at the All-Star Game. I remain curious regarding how we’ll manage on the corners and how DeJesus will fit in with the club come Opening Day and I remain hopeful that a few more moves this winter will be the ones that bring in a no-name player that surprises us all and perhaps one headliner that can be a cornerstone for years to come.

Regarding the future, yet in more of a short-term fashion, I hope to have an exciting announcement to bring you in the next few days – so please keep visiting Prose and Ivy this week for what will hopefully be a very big announcement I will be VERY excited to share with you!

Happy New Year to every single one of you and thank you for making 2011 a sweet fourth year for me here at Prose and Ivy. Happy New Year, have a great 2012! Go Cubs Go!

@proseandivy I wish Aramis Ramirez would have been mentioned, but other than that, GREAT JOB. I'll continue reading your blog in 2012!—
Alejandra (@MsAle16) January 01, 2012

The Golden Era Committee voted Santo into the Hall this past weekend, yet Santo is no longer here to enjoy it. He felt his numbers held up and even though the BBWAA voters didn’t agree, his peers and those who know the game best – from the inside – knew that Santo was worthy of their vote as no one knows what makes someone worthy of the Hall as former player. Those who look from the outside – from the stands, from the press box, from the owner’s office, from the office desk and from the newspaper stands – can only gauge so much as to what a lifetime in baseball and a career spanning 15 years worth of stats actually say about a player’s worth in making the club only the best in the game get to be a part of.

Walk the halls at Cooperstown and you will only find ten third basemen representing the greatest at the position. Wade Boggs, George Brett, Mike Schmidt, George Kell, Eddie Mathews, Brooks Robinson, Freddie Lindstrom, Home Run Baker, Pie Traynor and Jimmy Collins signify what it is to be a Hall of Famer at the hot corner. Come July, Santo’s name and plaque will be added to the list and his journey home will be complete. Home is where you are accepted and feel you belong and the Hall was that for Santo. In his personal life, of course he had the love and support of his family through thick and thin, battling sickness and enjoying bright times when he was at his health’s peak. However, when it came to baseball, the Cubs and the Hall made up the home that Santo felt he belonged to. The Cubs have retired his number and added a statue of Santo outside of Wrigley Field. He is a Cub and always will be thought of as a Cub through and through. From the hot corner to the airwaves, Santo woke up a Cub, went to work a Cub and went to sleep a Cub. The Cubs embraced Santo just as fans did and the organization treated Santo with the same welcome arms that he deserved wanted and gave back to the organization.

The Hall was another story.

Santo never got closer than 43% of the BBWAA vote in his 15 years on the ballot. 75% is needed to be elected in by the writers.

Santo’s career highlights over the years:

14 of 15 major league seasons as a player were with the Cubs.

.277 BA, 342 HR, 1,331 RBI

9-time All-Star

5-time Gold Glove winner

Led the National League in assists from 1962-1968

Top 5 finisher in MVP voting in 1967 and 1969

Cubs radio broadcaster for 21 years

Raised an estimated $40million for juvenile diabetes research in his lifetime

While it is sad that Santo won’t get to address the world at the podium on the lawn in Cooperstown while receiving the much deserved applause his career and the way he handled himself during that time frame while battling disease and working with medication that worked nowhere near as well as it does nowadays and often without people even understanding that he was battling it at the time, earned him – for me, I can appreciate the fact that it is the Golden Era committe that has accepted him in and welcomed him home.

I respect baseball writers for their knowledge of the game and their right to voice their opinion on such things as who is Hall-worthy. However, even the greatest group of baseball writers who are surrounded by the game day in and day out can get it wrong at times. Santo was one of the ones the BBWAA got wrong. To be around the game and surrounded by the game every day is one thing. To be a part of that game is another story.

The Golden Era committee is made up of some of the greatest to make the game what it is today. They know what makes an average player, a good player, a great player and a Hall of Fame worthy player.

It may have come a year too late, but finally a group with a say got it right. The Golden Era committee knows best and are appropriately the ones to do the right thing and welcome Santo at home. Congratulations, Ron. Looking forward to being there for your day in July. Go Cubs Go!

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Go Cubs Go!