Jon Greenberg

has been ruled out for three to six months with a left adductor strain, which means his career could be over. Moncada is the third hitter to get injured while running to first base through the first 11 games of a dreadful season and the second to strain his left adductor muscle in his thigh. All three of the injured players were supposed to be the middle-of-the-order hitters for a World Series contender. Advertisement Little has worked out as planned. It all started this year when pulled up l…

CHICAGO — You don’t expect to be in this situation, the toast(ed marshmallow) of Chicago, but in baseball, like in life, sometimes good fortune finds you before you even find yourself. That’s the life right now for the humble Campfire Milkshake, a confectionary comet that expected to be just a part of the menu and winds up as the main attraction in what’s looking like a historically awful season. Advertisement “It’s just one of those things,” Levy executive chef Ryan Craig said to me Sunday. “I…

The ’s miserable start to the 2024 season is starting to look historically bad. On Monday night, they lost 2-0 to the . It marked the sixth time this season they’ve been held scoreless, which ties them with the 1907 Brooklyn Superbas for the most shutouts in the first 16 games of the season, according to Codify Baseball. They’ve been shut out once in all six series they’ve played this season. The only teams in MLB history to be shut out 6 times in the first 16 games of a regular season: 1907 Bro…

CHICAGO — Inside the Advocate Center on Tuesday, the air was fragrant with the faint scent of hope. Maybe it was desperation. One of the two. It wasn’t Coppertone, because Cancun can wait (a few days). “I think our guys are excited about having the opportunity to play after the regular season ended,” coach Billy Donovan said. Donovan, the former college coach, sounds like he’s talking about the NIT. But he’s now speaking like the seasoned NBA Play-In Tournament coach that he is. Yes, the regula…

CHICAGO — No one has ever been able to truly answer the question: “If a tree falls in an empty forest, does it make a sound?” But Wednesday night, we found the answer to the ’s version of that famous thought experiment: If you score a career high in the Play-In Tournament, does it count as a career high? Advertisement “Hell yeah, it counts,” forward said, almost offended by the question. agrees. After all, he’s the one who dropped a smooth 42 points on the in a 131-116 victory at the United C…

It was quite the Friday evening for the Tortured Fans Department (Jerry Reinsdorf’s Version). The White Sox (3-16) got shut out for the seventh time in their first 19 games, while the Bulls got routed 112-91 by the Miami Heat in the final Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament game. At least the season is mercifully finished. The have months and months of losing baseball left. Mercy! After an entertaining in the first Play-In game Wednesday, the Bulls were just 2 1/2-point underdogs going into…

DEERFIELD, Ill. — A former college athlete who captured the imagination of fans and stirred up a little controversy just by showing some personality was introduced in the Chicago area this week. A champion of the NIL age, where college athletes can now rightly make millions off their own name, image and likeness. Advertisement A charismatic young star-in-waiting from the D.C./Baltimore area drafted by a needy team, ready to bask in the spotlight of one of America’s great sporting cities. That’s…

CHICAGO — Catharsis came off the bat of and maybe, through the voice of John Schriffen. This past Saturday night on the South Side, Benintendi cranked a walk-off homer (his second home run of the game and the season) to beat the and give the their second victory in as many days. Advertisement As true baseball fans know, two in a row is a huge milestone for any team in late April, and Schriffen, the team’s first-year TV play-by-play man, let loose a call that understood the gravity of the mome…

CHICAGO — The are in the midst of a bullpen crisis, the only guy left from the 2016 team had to be IL’d for his own benefit, the defense is mid, their lineup is muddled … and did I mention their bullpen, which gave up six runs in one inning Monday night? So how are these guys good again? Advertisement Well, timely hitting, some good fortune, the magic touch of Craig Counsell, and you know, starting pitching always plays. The starters are not only keeping the Cubs (21-15) near the top of the div…

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — It was an NFL Network reporter and not a new-age podcaster who asked the question, and that just shows how is changing the way we think about quarterbacks. “Matt, when you’re around Caleb, how would you describe his aura?” Now, “aura” is not a word I ever thought to use about Jay Cutler or , though Jay certainly had a swagger and Mitch looked the part. Maybe , in those moments when he was practically gliding on his feet. But with Williams, the word just fits. I have a feeli…