Column: A Cubs collapse, a White Sox power surge and Banana Ball highlight the last gasp of Chicago summer

Chicago Tribune

3 days ago

We're at the point of the Chicago summer when Mom and Dad look for friends or relatives with a lakehouse in Michigan or Wisconsin for a last-gasp vacation before the kids go back to school.
The tradition of late-summer mooching is always in vogue, as long as you bring some beverages and clean up after your kids.
For the rest of us stuck at home this weekend, there's always the Cubs, White Sox, Bears and Air and Water Show to enjoy — not to mention the local debut of the Savannah Bananas.
The Cubs return home Friday against the Pittsburgh Pirates to begin a crucial homestand that includes a five-game showdown with the Milwaukee Brewers; the Sox head to Kansas City for the start of a six-game trip that ends in Atlanta; the Bears host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night at Soldier Field in Caleb Williams' first preseason start in the Ben Johnson era; and the Bananas slide on over to Sox Park for sold-out games Friday and Saturday.
There's plenty going on as we wind down another classic Chicago summer that once again went by way too fast.
It's a rite of passage for a young Cubs fan, watching a team that was in first place most of the summer begin to falter as you head back to class. The Cubs' plunge from a 6½-game lead on June 17 to eight games behind the Brewers after Thursday's 2-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays has been head-scratching to say the least. Who knew almost all of the regulars in a once-dominant lineup would go ice cold at the same time?
Well, go ask your grandparents, who've been there, done that. For perspective, the infamous 1969 Cubs had a nine-game lead over the New York Mets on Aug. 16, then fell apart and dropped to nine games back by Oct. 1. They won their last game to finish eight games behind the Mets and out of the postseason.
At least this Cubs team can get into the postseason with a wild-card spot and should have Matthew Boyd, Shota Imanaga and Cade Horton for a best-of-three wild-card series. All in all, it could be worse.
It makes no sense when you look at the numbers. The White Sox were 28th in home runs at the All-Star break with 76 in 97 games. They entered Thursday ranked first in the second half with 42 homers in 24 games, nearly two per game.
'We knew it was in there,' general manager Chris Getz said. 'Unfortunately, it had been dormant. It still goes back to the fastball. If you're going to put up power numbers, you've got to be able to be productive on fastballs. They've shown they've been able to do that. Hitting's such a delicate thing. It comes, it goes. I look forward to seeing this ride out for a while.'
Colson Montgomery has 10 of the Sox home runs in the second half, so it could be as simple as adding one good player to the roster. Imagine if they added free agent Kyle Schwarber this winter.
Clip and save: According to a report from Front Office Sports, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had a video made that was played for ESPN employees at a town hall meeting. Goodell reportedly said the league would not interfere with the network's journalism after selling NFL Network, RedZone and other assets to the Disney-owned network for $2.5 billion.
If you believe that, you probably also think Pat McAfee was a member of Mensa.
Get your credit cards ready. The Athletic reported that NBC/Peacock and Apple TV+ are 'considered the top contenders' for 'Sunday Night Baseball' broadcasts and first-round MLB playoff games next season. So fans probably will have to shell out for both streaming services, not to mention what they're already paying to watch their local teams.
The greed continues, and Commissioner Rob Manfred seems to think no one will mind having to pay for multiple networks to watch their favorite team. Amazing hubris on his part.
You can't ignore the Sox's poor overall record just because they're playing better. Still, the Sox are 12-12 in the second half, a nice change of pace from their last two finishes. They were 23-47 in the second half of 2023 under former manager Pedro Grifol and 14-50 in the second half of 2024 under Grifol and Grady Sizemore.
Finishing with a winning record in the second half should be a reachable goal if the Sox continue to improve offensively and the rotation holds up. If they go 21-20 in their final 41 games, they would finish 65-97 — a 24-game improvement over 2024. Finishing with fewer than 100 losses should be their mantra.
The return of the Air and Water Show to the lakefront means fighter jets will be flying over Wrigley Field on Friday and Saturday afternoon, bringing back memories of former Cubs pitcher Steve Trachsel. On a day during the annual show in August 1998, Trachsel threw a strike to the Houston Astros' Brad Ausmus, but the plate umpire nullified it because noise from a low-flying jet caused everyone at the ballpark to flinch.
Well, everyone but Trachsel, who asked why it was ruled a no-pitch.
'Because that thing scared everybody in the park,' the ump said.
'It didn't scare me,' Trachsel replied. 'They've been flying over here for three days and I threw a strike.'
Trachsel lost the argument, and of course Ausmus proceeded to hit a run-scoring single on the next pitch in what turned into a four-run sixth inning in a 13-3 Astros win.
Houston manager Larry Dierker agreed with the ump's call, saying: 'It was really scary. I thought the plane crashed into the stadium. I bet the Cubs are glad the show is over. The fans seemed to like it, but I didn't think it was appropriate.'
It's still not appropriate, but the fans still seem to like it.