From the Chicago Tribune’s Mike Downey :

Sometimes you serve lunch and all anybody wants to know is what’s for supper.

Heaven forbid Jason Dubois, 25, should get a shot at Sosa’s spot. Once upon a time, Cubs fans said howdy to a young man and welcome to our fine town.Nowadays, if a greenhorn”or a Mark Bellhorn”can’t come through right off the bat, he is sent packing pronto, the way Bobby Hill was.

Replies Ben Schwartz :

Yeah, the good old days, when Cub fans only came for the beer and group sing-a-longs. Naturally, news that fans are demanding a winner is appalling to Trib co. employees like Mike Downey. He’s dismayed by this strange newworld, where fans would like the multi-billion corporation that controls the Midwest’s biggest local radio and tv station networks, biggest local newspapers (among many), and a hugely profitable MLB franchise — that they’d like to see this corporation quit whining how there’s just not enough money to field a winner. So, the Cubs needed to save $10 million on Sammybefore we could seriously land a Beltran? Besides Downey, the Trib also runs “Dick Tracy” and “Annie” to convince readers the Depression is stillon, but I guess unruly fans have been getting non-Trib controlled cable channels in Wrigleyville or something.