ESPN’s intrepid Bonnie Bernstein — doing the pregame spiel before tonight’s Cubs/Mets tilt — dragged out the most profound comment to date from Chicago skipper Dusty Baker. To wit, being a lame duck ain’t nothing compared to the Big C.
“Dusty has remained remarkably upbeat,” said Bernstein cheerily. “He said, ‘Keep in mind, I am a cancer survivor, when you’re dealing with a life-threatening situation, you’re just happy to get up in the morning and see the sun come up.'”
“Every day,” intoned Jon Miller, “is a gift.”
(Bruce McCulloch, looking forward to interviewing for the Cubs’ managerial vacancy)
So there you have it, Cubs fans. You’re 20 games under .500, 16 1/2 out of first place, and your crosstown rivals are well on their way to owning the city. So before you think of criticizing the Cubs for bringing in Jacque Jones and Juan Pierre, before you start moaning about the black hole the careers of Kerry Wood and Mark Prior have fallen into, just remember — at least you have your health.
The Journal News’ John Delcos reports that Pedro Martinez threw for 45 minutes earlier today, which is a considerable improvement over Pedro throwing up for 45 minutes. Newsday’s David Lennon writes that Pedro had coffee today, but made no mention of added milk, cream, sweetner, etc. I realize this blogging thing isn’t your usual gig, Lennon, but you’re gonna have to crank it up a notch on the details.