1908.

This year is significant to Cubs fans because it is the last time Chicago could call themselves champions of baseball. Of course, for many fans, they weren’t even alive to see it.

After all, a lot has happened since player/manager Frank Chance defeated the Detroit Tigers in just five games to clinch their second consecutive World Series title.

The Cubs have played over 14,000 regular season games since they could last call themselves champions of the world. The NBA, NFL, and NHL have all formed, and have had franchises from Chicago win championships in all three respective leagues. We have added five states, made eleven amendments to the constitution, and sixteen Presidents have been elected since 1908. Wrigley Field was built, and eventually became the second oldest park in Major League baseball. Harry Caray was born and lived his whole life without ever seeing the Cubs take it all.

It’s safe to say that if the Cubs made it to the World Series, Chicago would expect—scratch that—demand full attention come late October. Can you blame them? For a team that hasn’t appeared in the Fall Classic since 1945, they would have earned the attention. Try to overshadow that even slightly? Not a chance.

That’s why I have a huge problem with the Theo Epstein press conference taking place on the eve of the Texas Rangers possibly putting the final nail in the coffin on the St. Louis Cardinals. These two teams worked hard the entire year, and made it farther than 28 others.

I expect feedback to generally be along the lines that I am strongly overreacting. And I can respect that. I just feel that if you do not even have the ability to make roster moves, why feel the need to officially name a figure head to your organization when you can just as easily wait until the series is over.

If I were a Cardinals or a Rangers fan this would be the time that I live for. I live for knowing that my team is on the doorstep. I live for knowing that my team—after 162 regular season games and seven more playoff victories—My team is just four wins away from being the last team standing. I live for knowing that if I turn on Baseball Tonight, my team is all there is to talk about. They earned that, they deserve that.

What they don’t deserve is lack of respect for what they earned. Until the final pitch of this series is thrown, Theo Epstein can’t sign a single free agent or make a trade to help bring a World Series to Chicago. The Cubs won’t step foot on a baseball field until March, and it won’t even count until April. You can’t win in 2012 until 2011 is finished.

Have patience, have courtesy. And most of all, have respect for the game and the teams who have made it farther than you. There are more important things going on.

Steve Bartman, where are you?

Last night ESPN aired a new “30 for 30″ special about the infamous 2003 National League Championship Series.

If you’re reading this  than you certainly know all about Bartman already.

The Cubs were five outs away from their first World Series appearance since 1945, they led the Marlins 3-0 in the game and 3-2 in the series and a pop foul down the third base line was set bring the Cubs one out closer to their ultimate goal.

Instead, Bartman interfered with Moises Alou’s attempt on the ball and the rest is history.

The Cubs went on to lose the series in seven games and Bartman’s name has since become synonymous with the club’s ridiculous World Series draught.  The new documentary from filmmaker Alex Gibney, took an in depth look at the inning when all hell broke loose.

Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood, who was on the 2003 team and is now back with the Cubs, had this to say when he found out there was a documentary about Bartman (via Chicago Tribune):

“Hope the guy is able to live a normal life. It’s a shame he had to go through what he went through. Unfortunately, I don’t think much about him. I know his life was changed by that incident. I guess it’d be nice to figure out where he’s at and what has been going on.”

We’d all like to know.

There is new footage from the crowd itself. A new computer-generated scenario that took the fans out of their seats and only showed Alou and the ball. There are also multiple interviews with people in the vicinity of Bartman, as well as interviews security that helped him take refuge from irate fans.

But, as Kerry Wood and the rest of us were all waiting for that one missing piece, we were ultimately disappointed.

The elusive Steve Bartman interview remains as elusive as it did eight years ago.  Throughout the past eight years Bartman has turned down numerous offers to capitalize on his name. Commercials, endorsements and public appearances all went the same way as the Cubs’ World Series hopes.

“Catching Hell” was good, but it caught everything but Bartman himself.

Fact: Mariano Rivera is the greatest closer of all-time. In the past, there have been people that said as long as he doesn’t have the All-Time record, the previous statement can not be official. The New York Yankees closer shut the door in a 6-4 win over the Twins on Monday afternoon to record the 602nd save of his career. Six hundred and two saves makes him the All-Time Major League Baseball leader in saves as he tops Trevor Hoffman.

Rivera has 644 saves if one were to count the 42 that he has earned in the postseason. That has always been what makes the Panamanian right-hander different than any other closer. The Yankees’ magic number to clinch the American League East is down to five games. They seem to be a sure bet to make the playoffs, so Rivera could add even more saves to his total.

It does not look like he will be slowing down. At the age of 41, Rivera is second in the American League for saves with 43 on the year. The last time he notched 43 or more in a single season was in 2009, when the Yankees won the World Series over the Phillies. This is the seventh time that he has performed the feat in his career.

Monday afternoon’s save comes after a young Minnesota Twins team came back from a 5-0 deficit early on to call for Rivera’s services in the late going. He came out and retired the three batters he faced. First baseman Chris Parmelee became the answer to a future trivia question, as he was the final out of the 602nd save. Rivera threw his signature cutter to get the rookie to go down looking.

At the end of the game, Rivera was surrounded by his teammates who hugged and congratulated him on his record. The Minnesota Twins clapped for the Yankees closer, but it was when Rivera had to stand alone on the mound that he tried to hold back tears. Yankee Stadium was filled with fans yelling and thanking Rivera for his commitment to the team for 16 years. The closer tipped his cap and thanked fans for their support.

Mariano Rivera, one of baseball’s finest class acts.

While the jury of public opinion has determined that Bonds was guilty of knowingly taking steroids for years and lied about it, a federal court couldn’t seem to determine the same thing.

The Federal judge assigned to the case, Susan Illston, has declared a mistrial on the remaining three counts, as she believes the jury is hung and will not likely come to a decision regarding the other three counts.  The jury deliberated for four days, so her assumption was probably a good move.

The perjury charges were from a grand jury testimony he made in 2003 where he stated that he never “knowingly” took human growth hormone and that he had never been injected by anyone other than his physician.

The statements Bonds made in his 2003 grand jury testimony were refuted by several of Bonds’ business partners and associates, but the questionable motives by these people seem to have led the jury into a deadlock.

The count of obstruction of justice, which Bonds was found guilty on, is in relation to him hindering the grand jury investigation into BALCO’s sports doping scandal by lying to the grand jury.  The “hindering” they are referring too was the fact that Bonds told stories about how he was a celebrity baby, and people in his life would not allow him to take Steroids or HGH.

With this specific judge there are two cases exactly like Bonds that she rulted on with a cyclist and track coach.  Many experts think Bonds is likely to get home confinement for the duration of his sentence, and probabtion because that is how this judge has ruled before in those similar cases.

That seems like a win for Barry Bonds, home confinement and probation?  That’s a sweet deal, but apparently Bonds and his legal team expected to come out of this trial with no charges.  It seems like Bonds and his legal team plan to appeal, and that the government is not going to attepmt to re-try him on the other counts.  We will see how all of this pans out.

The Rangers also failed to retain Vladimir Guerrero, who signed with the Baltimore Orioles. Long-time Ranger Michael Young publicly asked for a trade following the signing of Adrian Beltre, but still remains with the team.

Ten games into the regular season and all doubts are starting to be erased. The Rangers have come out of the gate and currently boasting the best record (9-1) to start the season.

On their way to the best start in baseball, the Rangers have swept the early AL favorite Boston Red Sox and taken two out of three games from the current AL East leader, the Baltimore Orioles. Texas also swept the AL West division rival Seattle Mariners.

The Rangers have won in many ways to start this season, and gaining Adrian Beltre and Mike Napoli have paid off. The Beltre signing essentially matches Guerrero’s production , and Napoli is being used in a utility role.

Through the first ten games of the season, reigning American League MVP Josh Hamilton is batting .316 with six RBI. He has yet to hit a home run, but there is little doubt that those will come with increasing frequency as the season progresses.

The Rangers currently lead the American League in home runs, triples, slugging percentage and on-base-plus-slugging (OPS). They rank second in runs scored and total bases, and are fifth in team batting average.

The Rangers actually quietly put together a more balanced offense in 2011 than they possessed last season.

You would think losing a pitcher like Cliff Lee would have hurt this team more. The man signed to replace Lee, Brandon Webb, has a recent history of injuries and did not make it through spring training healthy.  So far, all those concerns have been answered and erased.  Only Colby Lewis has an ERA above 3.00. Lewis has split his two decisions this season for a 1-1 record with a 5.25 ERA.  Not bad for a team that lost one of the best pitchers in baseball.

Neftali Feliz has converted all four of his save opportunities without allowing a run so far this season, and they flirted with putting him in the rotation, but decided against it.

Can the Rangers win consecutive American League Championships?  162 games is a long time to maintain a consistent level of play, but so far all of the other teams have faltered at some point.  The Rangers have quietly put together a balanced roster that should set them up to compete with any team in Major League Baseball.  That is good work from a team that was in bankruptcy last year.

So much for the Tampa Bay Rays being a playoff team.

After watching them in this home stand, they are 0-5 for a reason. They feature no hitters that scare the other team. It’s not surprising Jeremy Guthrie, Chris Tillman, Zach Britton, Jered Weaver and Dan Haren had their way with them.

These five games are not an aberration. This should be expected. After losing Carl Crawford and Carlos Pena this off season, their lineup was not going to be better. This will be their downfall this season.  Go ahead and talk about how it’s early, but it’s not going to change the fact these hitters are not impact players.

The Rays hoped Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon would provide the offense, but that hasn’t worked out so far.  Ramirez was benched in yesterday’s ballgame and he won’t be playing today against the White Sox at Chicago. One hit in 17 at-bats forced Joe Maddon to bench him and try someone else.

Maddon claimed he was giving his player a breather, but don’t buy into that claim. If Ramirez was hitting the ball well, he would be playing today’s game.  Damon has become more of a blooper reel. He is 1-for-15, and his defense has been brutal. He had a calf injury the other day, so that won’t help matters.

The Rays knew what they were getting in Ramirez and Damon, who played like they were washed up last year by not putting good numbers at the plate. To expect them to bounce back in their late 30s was crazy.  For what those two accomplished in the majors, they deserve a chance to get it together. If they don’t by the end of May, the Rays should release both of them.

If Desmond Jennings showed he is ready to play in the majors now, Damon wouldn’t have been signed. The Rays prospect should start playing by June, so that way he can learn on the job and get it over with. It makes sense to play him with this likely being a lost year for the organization.

The Rays are relying on Reid Brignac, Sean Rodriguez, Dan Johnson, Matt Joyce and Ben Zobrist to make an impact as everyday players. That’s too much to ask. Most of their players are nothing more than utility players at best.

Since those guys had limited at-bats last year, it was easy for them to produce. Their increased playing time will increase their deficiencies, and it is showing now. They are not hitting past the infielders, and they tend to ground out or strike out.

Brignac and Rodriguez may be better than they are portrayed, but it doesn’t seem like it.

This organization has not done much to develop hitters or draft hitters. They are paying for it now with what is going on.

Last year, they struggled to hit as it is with these guys. How are they going to get better? They had enough at-bats to prove themselves, and it hasn’t panned out.

The Rays hoped their starting pitching would help them win these 2-1 or 3-2 games. It hasn’t happened. The starters have done a good job with nothing to show for it.

It’s ridiculous to expect starters to win games by themselves. It never happens. Pitching and defense wins championships, but that becomes meaningless if the team can’t hit.

The Twins pitched well in 2005, but they lost games because they couldn’t hit. They had an excuse, with Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau learning on the job as major league players.

The Rays don’t have that type of player right now. Brignac and Rodriguez are relatively new at their jobs, but those two will not be confused with Mauer and Morneau.

At some point, this is going to wear down the starters. It’s not fair to expect them to pitch perfect. It won’t be long until the pitchers start calling the hitters out. It’s human nature to be frustrated.

There are going to be people blaming Rays hitting coach Derek Shelton for this problem, but he is only as good as hitters make him it out to be. People can talk about Maddon tinkering with the lineup, but that’s what happens when he has nothing to work with.

Everyone thought the bullpen would be the problem. That hasn’t been the case. If anything, the relievers have done a good job.

It’s the hitting that is hurting the team.. It’s hard to think it’s going to get better. Facing the AL East teams, the hitters will be exposed and that means more losses on the horizon.

It was easy to see why people pick the Rays to win 84 games when the season started. They thought the hitting would be decent. It turned out they overestimated the hitters.

The lack of hitting not only will not make the Rays a playoff team, but it will mean 84 losses.

They are on pace to do just that after watching the first five games at the Trop.

The 2011 Major League Baseball season opens today.  Twelve teams hit the slate today, looking to pick up their first win and begin the 162-game march toward the postseason.  However, with all the incredible baseball today, when you flip on SportsCenter this evening, tucked away in the middle of the show will be another report from the Barry Bonds perjury trial in San Francisco.

Bonds was one of my favorite ballplayers growing up in the 1990s. I vividly remember sitting at the new Pacific Bell Park, witnessing one of his three home-run games back in the early 2000s. He was a god.

Many fans will say that the game of baseball was tainted in the late 90’s/early 00’s by sluggers like Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds, and arms like Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte.

Whether proven guilty or innocent in the trial, most fans will still view Bonds as a cheater. If proven guilty, it’ll confirm their presumptions.

If found innocent, it’ll mean he got lucky. The fact of the matter is Bonds will still struggle to get into the Hall of Fame despite being the top hitter of his era.

As the baseball season springs upon us and the perjury trial pushes on through it’s second week, I find myself asking:

Do we even care? Should we even care?

To the casual sports fan, the Bonds perjury trial may look like the downfall of a sport.

Bonds, easily the most decorated ballplayer in the history of the game, is being tried for lying to a grand jury about cheating on the game of baseball.

While it may seem huge on the surface, baseball fans have moved on.

Fans have come to accept the steroid era of baseball as one filled with cheaters, big muscles and lots of home runs.

Since those times, stars like Albert Pujols, Roy Halladay, Evan Longoria and Carlos Gonzalez have risen into the spotlight.

We fans still remember the absurd, inconceivable days when 60+ home runs was considered normal, but the focus of the sport has been turned to what is happening now. Not what happened then.

Football may not have a season in 2011. The NBA needs to work on a new collective bargaining agreement or they too may be locked out.

Baseball is at the forefront of the sporting world. The Bonds trial will not change that.

Note: The Bonds’ perjury trial will slightly affect the proceedings of Roger Clemens’ perjury trial this upcoming July. It, too, however will not affect the sport itself. Clemens is highly unlikely to make the Hall of Fame despite pitching a clearly Hall of Fame-worthy career. Instead, he is viewed as a liar and cheater as well.

Things did not end well for Manny in Los Angeles as the Dodgers grew tired of his antics and his decreasing production.  That has become the same story for Manny Ramirez, he will play well the first year or so then slowly get disgruntled.    With the Dodgers he played well enough when he was not injured or suspended, hitting .311 with 32 runs, eight HRs and 40 RBI in 66 games, but he was either hurt or a distraction most of the time.

The Dodgers dealt him to the White Sox, but he did little to help their playoff push after her arrived.  Manny hit just .261 with the White Sox; that’s not the worst of it though: He scored just six runs, hit just one home run and had just two RBI in 24 games (69 ABs).

That most definitely was not Manny being Manny. He failed to hit double-digit HRs for the first time since 1993. He has combined for just 28 HRs and 105 RBI the past two years.  That would seem to spell doom for the Tampa Bay Rays, and may indicate that signing Manny was a bad move.  But the truth is Manny wants to prove that he can still play the game, part of Manny being Manny is turning his talent on and off when people doubt him.  That is what the Rays are counting from the slugger who wears long Dred locks most of the season.

Ramirez will turn 39 in May, but there could still be life left in his bat. He won’t have to take his circus act to the field with Tampa Bay. He’ll be a full-time designated hitter; that should decrease the chance of nagging injuries.  It will also help to limit the amount of times Manny can act a fool because he won’t be running around in the outfield like a buffoon anymore.

Manny’s days of hitting 30 home runs a year is probably over, but he could give the Rays 20. He’s had success at Tropicana Field with a career average of .299 with 25 HR and 72 RBI in 77 games.  Manny is a hitter and while his bat speed may have dropped, if he can stay healthy, he can still contribute.  The Rays are hoping for that type of output, and the fact that he does have that “Manny being Manny” thing following him around they are hoping that will help to fill the seats.

Alcohol consumption has been a staple within the MLB for decades and beer still plays an important part in baseball today.  The drugs are an even worse issue, as many players have said amphetamines are abused more than steroids.  Players play 162 games a year, and spend months traveling from city to city, so it’s a rough way to live at times and people resort to things that get them through it.  Here are five players who limited their careers due to alcohol or drug abuse.

Josh Hamilton

If you watched the MLB playoffs last year you were peppered with references to Josh Hamilton and the long road he has traveled.  Compared to Mickey Mantle straight out of high school, he was drafted first overall by Tampa Bay, only to be run out of the league due to drug and alcohol problems.

After cleaning up his act, he was eventually moved to Cincinnati during the Rule 5 Draft and was traded to the Rangers during the 2007 offseason.  It was in Texas where he revitalized his career as a fan favorite, potential role model, and batting champion.

While it’s a great story for Hamilton it’s a horrid one for the Tampa Bay Rays.  Think about it, what would an outfield with Hamilton, Crawford, and Upton be like?  Would the Rays have won the World Series a few years ago had he been on the team.

Babe Ruth

It is well chronicled that Babe Ruth was out of shape and overweight as a result of his heavy drinking and smoking habits.  Despite all of these problems that surrounded Babe Ruth, he still was able to put up numbers that only a few players have been able to replicate.  We can only imagine what his numbers could have been had he stayed healthy.

If he was one of the best players overweight and out of shape, how good could he have been if he actually tried to be good?

Dwight Gooden

Dwight Gooden never lived up to his enormous potential, but still managed to be great.  He came into the league in 1984 with the New York Mets, Gooden put up numbers that could have made him the best pitcher ever to play the game.  He posted a 24-4 record, paired with a 1.53 ERA in 1985, which still stands as one of the best seasons in the history of baseball.

Gooden battled drug and alcohol addiction and slowly entered a downward spiral that derailed his career and life.  From his first recorded drug encounter in 1986, you can see a significant drop in production, and he never seemed to find the spark that at one point won him the Cy Young award.

Darryl Strawberry

Strawberry was the first overall pick in the 1980 amateur draft, he was considered to be a top prospect with a rare combination of power and speed.  Strawberry started his career on the right foot winning the Rookie of the Year in his first season, but his addictions to alcohol and amphetamines kicked in during his second year with the Mets.

He was still able to put up very impressive numbers for the Mets during his tenure, but who knows what his numbers could have been like if he had been clean throughout his career.

As a member of the Dodgers, Strawberry severely hurt his back which, in turn, made him rely on drugs once again.  This set off a chain of events which got him released by the Dodgers, and eventually the San Francisco Giants a few years later.  The once-promising prospect derailed his career and personal life due to alcohol and drugs.  There is no telling how good he could have been if he had taken his talents seriously.

Miguel Cabrera

Cabrera has been one of the top producers in baseball since he entered the league eight seasons ago. He has hit under 30 HRs only once in his career and is viewed to be one of the top pure hitters in Major League Baseball.

Just last week, Cabrera was charged and arrested due to a DUI.  This was not the first instance where law enforcement had to take action due to an alcohol-related incident and it appears that Cabrera is drinking himself out of the league.

The good news is that he is attempting to find a solution to his problem.  He is apologetic and is surrounding himself with the right personnel to make sure a mishap like this will never happen again.

In many ways, the current Braves team is a model of successful rebuilding.  It took less than half a decade, and during those four years, they even fielded a couple of competitive teams.  The offense was hit by injuries to key players at various points last season. The lineup will be stronger in 2011 by virtue of several new additions to the team and (hopefully) full seasons from guys like Nate McLouth, Jason Heyward and Chipper Jones.

The Braves have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, and if they can find some semblance of consistency in the bullpen they will definitely be a 90+ win team.  The Braves acquired Dan Uggla in the off season which gives them a big production boost in the middle of their lineup.

The young players will have another year to settle into their roles, several important players have had time to heal, and the lineup is stronger.  Chipper Jones plans to comeback and give it one last go, but with his injury situation he may be past the point where he can help this team on an everyday basis.

I think they will play second fiddle to the beast in Philadelphia, but another Wild Card run is very likely.  This Braves team is well-balanced, lacking only speed. McLouth and Heyward could each steal something like 20 bases, if healthy, but last year’s club swiped only 63 bases (fourth-worst in the majors).

They have the offense to survive that, however, and the pitching to win them plenty of games in which they may only score three or four runs.  This team led the NL in OBP last year, and were fourth in the majors, and the emphasis they place on that stat is wise.

Written By: Max Borland