Jeff Fassero

Paul Konerko would be the first to admit he has a pretty hard head. But not even Konerko could have imagined a curveball bounced off his noggin could change the complexion of a ballgame, if not a season.After Cubs starter Kerry Wood hit him in the...

Cal Ripken's first major-league hit came against Dennis Lamp of the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 16, 1981. His last hit came against Frank Castillo of the Boston Red Sox in Game 1 of a doubleheader on Oct. 5, 2001. Ripken finished his career with 3,184...

While some players groggily filed into the quiet Cubs clubhouse Wednesday morning after a short night of rest after playing until 1:16 a.m., Jeromy Burnitz was singing out loud to a song playing in his head. It was apparent to some Burnitz could not...

Dusty Baker walked around Wrigley Field at 9:45 a.m. Wednesday, taking small handfuls of a dirt-like substance from a bag and spreading it throughout the infield and outfield, sort of like Dusty Appleseed. Baker wouldn't reveal the bag's contents or...

Some things are worth the wait, even if it means spending eight or nine hours eating junk food at Wrigley Field. Many of the 38,410 fans who ventured out to Wrigley on Monday morning were back in front of their own TV sets by the time the Cubs finished...

The condition of his right elbow, Jon Lieber insists, is not the problem. He swears it's not the reason he is winless in his last seven starts. "It's being able to make pitches," he said. Lieber did that until the seventh inning Monday night. Then...

Sammy Sosa no longer can make his head swivel like a bobblehead doll—at least not since he experienced sharp pain in the back of his neck that forced him to leave in the eighth inning of last Saturday's game at Arizona and to miss Sunday's game. Sosa,...

After a team goes from bad to worse, what comes next? The answer is Monday night's 11-1 loss to the Marlins, which qualifies as one of the Cubs' sorriest showings in a season full of pitiful efforts. At least there were few who cared enough to witness...

The Cubs and St. Louis have been going at it since 1892, but seldom have the two rivals spent as much quality time together as they have over the past two days at Wrigley Field. With Tuesday's day-night doubleheader coming on the heels of the Labor Day...

Sammy Sosa, Moises Alou, Corey Patterson and Todd Hundley went a combined 0-for-12 with six strikeouts Sunday. So how in the name of Roy Oswalt were the Cubs able to eke out a 3-2 victory over the Houston Astros in the Wrigley Field sauna? "It's a...

It wasn't an artistic success, just a success, and that's fine with the Cubs. Before a Mother's Day crowd of 39,155, the Cubs suffered through more physical and mental mistakes than rain delays (three) and were outhit 16 to 11 by the Colorado Rockies....

Jerry Manuel got the telephone call from White Sox General Manager Ron Schueler on a Monday in November. He was asked if he wanted to be considered for the team's managerial opening, with the option to interview that Thursday or Friday. Manuel had been...