The Cubs need a Cuban, and I don't mean the victory cigar
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by Tstelnicki03
With Chicago Cubs' General Manager Jim Hendry's 300 million dollar flurry of offseason free-agent signings fresh on fans' minds prior to Opening Day '07, another surprising free-agent happened to appear on the market: the team itself. The Chicago Tribune announced that it had been purchased by real estate mogul Sam Zell, and that the Cubs, one of the Tribune's richest assets, would be for sale following the '07 season.
The perfect way to start off a season...with a bit of an ownership predicament to go along with the sky high expectations that had been placed on the team, courtesy of that sky high payroll.
And while the team's recent hot streak, 12-4 to finish out the half, has been a refreshing reprieve from the sluggish start, the entire ownership situation has cast a pall on the team and it's fans for most of the season and has reared it's ugly head on more than one occasion. Contract talks with Carlos Zambrano were halted right at this announcement, and reportedly right before a long-term deal was about to be agreed on. Also, a desperately necessary trade of the useless Jacque Jones to the Florida Marlins was vetoed, due to the amount of money the Cubs would have had to pay to get the deal done.
The centerpiece of the rotation needs to be locked up long-term and the right-fielder who can't throw as well as a 12-year old girl needs to be dealt. These are the kind of roadblocks that can knock a team off it's tracks, especially a team that has proven to be as volatile as the Cubs have been this season, sparking scuffles with teammates and opponents alike. Unfortunately the ownership situation has become the big red stop sign on these deals, and it's clearly a problem desperate for a solution.
Enter Mark Cuban.
The Tribune has reported that the Dallas Mavericks owner and billionaire entrepreneur Cuban has thrown his hat into the ring for the Cubs, one of the most sought after free-agents on the market. It's been estimated that the Cubs could yield up to $600 million, a pretty penny for sure, but nothing a few charlatan billionaires can't handle. Many have made their interest in the Cubs public. These include the Ricketts family, founders of TD Ameritrade, John Canning, part owner of the Milwaukee Brewers, and Don Levin, owner of the Chicago Wolves are some of the many names in the race.
Cuban's horse has picked up steam fast, if only because he is the only recognizable name in the group (tell me you've heard of Don Levin. Go 'head..tell me) but you could also blame his polarizing personality and constant courtside presence at Maverick games for the amount of heads he's turned to this issue by announcing his interest.
Cuban is an interesting prospective owner, he's done wonders for the Dallas Mavericks franchise. I don't mean his persistent whining to the officials during games, I mean really turning around a franchise that not long ago was stuck in the mud.
Their surprising first-round playoff loss at the hands of the Golden State Warriors aside, the Mavericks have become one of the dominant forces in the NBA, reaching the Finals in '06 and compiling the best regular season record in '07. Say what you will about their Head Coach Avery Johnson, say what you will about the players', including MVP Dirk Nowitzki's, performances, all of their success starts at the top, no team can be successful in the long-term without an owner with personal interest in the team's success.
Which brings me to this: kneeling before the powers that be, asking them to please grant Mark Cuban the rights to this wildly available free agent, the Cubs.
Why Cuban? Have the Mavericks won a championship under his term? Wouldn't his audacious, wild nature interfere with the team at points? Will the MLB even approve of Cuban as an owner? What about his relationship with his home-town team and division rival, the Pittsburgh Pirates?
Woah there, lot of questions, slow down a bit sparky.
Cuban is the ideal fit for the Cubs because for the longest time the Cubs haven't had an owner with vested interest in the team. Did the Tribune care whether or not the Cubs finished 20 games over or under .500? Of course not! 40,000 fans were still filling the Friendly Confines every day, it didn't make a difference at all. Cuban cares, everyone knows that.
You might love him, you might hate him, but you know for sure that he cares. You might hate him for all the whining, moaning and blogging he does, but you can be sure of one thing, if Mark Cuban is the owner of the Chicago Cubs, he will care and the team will benefit.
No, the Mavericks have not won the big one under Cuban's leadership but a) does it matter? They contend every year & they'll be in it for years to come. b) They're in a loaded conference and even if they hadn't been upset this year they would've been stopped by the buzzsaw that is the San Antonio Spurs. c) And most importantly they are the rightful champions of the '06 season. Oh, what's that? You say the Heat won? Well, Dwyane Wade can keep on flopping for all I care, he can have his trophy if that's the way he's gonna earn it.
The MLB's approval of Cuban is one thing that worries me, would an incredibly uptight Bud Selig frown upon a lively, foolhardy owner yelling obscenities at umpires and commanding control of the media's spotlight at all times? Well, seeing as how Selig has been squarely sitting in the limelight for the last few weeks concerning whether or not he will be in the grandstands when Bonds' #756 clears the fences, couldn't he use a break from all that? I'm thinking yes, but what do I know? Also, I'm not worried about the possibly conflicted-interest with the Pirates, Cuban knows where the priorities are at.
So as a Cubs fan simply wishing the best for his team, I officially purchase my Cuban '08 sticker and place it smack-dab in the middle of my rear bumper. Cuban is the only prospective buyer that has proven that he can be the owner with the vested interest the Cubs need. He's the breathe of fresh air that has become necessary to rid the franchise of the cobwebs the Tribune has left.
Not only is he unafraid to open up the checkbook and make a few essential deals, like Zambrano's, he's the man to usher in the new era of Cubs baseball. An important thing to keep in mind is that the Cubs aren't as listless as the Mavericks of years ago were. They're on a hot streak, clicking on all cylinders and only 4.5 behind the Brew Crew in the NL Central.
So be ready to light that victory cigar Cubs fans, and it better be a Cuban.
