​Bears fans, for the third time in five years the Bears will turn to a new head coach. This time around the Bears are going with a young and up and coming offensive-minded coach in Matt Nagy. Nagy is coming from Kansas City where he was Offensive Coordinator last two seasons and helped in the development of QB Alex Smith. He's been coaching under Andy Reid since 2008 in Philly and KC and before that played college football at Delaware and then quarterbacked in the Arena Football League.

Bears fans haven't had much to cheer for since the days of Lovie Smith (fired December 30, 2012) but this hire is a breath of fresh air and hopefully will help turn the team around. The Bears dug themselves in quite a hole during the Trestman/Emery era and after three years of Pace/Fox the culture and depth of the team has improved but it wasn't enough to win on a consistent basis. GM Ryan Pace wanted his own guy and that is what he got in Nagy. Let's hope he can help in the development of QB Mitchell Trubisky and get our Bears back into the Playoffs.

As Chicago Bears fans we have been used to a losing the last 5 seasons. Let's hope this hire helps in the rebuild and we all will have something more exciting to look forward to come this fall. Another 5-11 season will not cut it.

710's very-own superfan, Bobby Smalls, was reached for comment from the comfort of his home outside Chicago and he had this to say about the new coaching change: "This new hire must win at least 8 games for us fans to accept... period. Or we need to fire Pace, if he made a bad choice! We have suffered long enough as fans and a team. We aren't the Cleveland Browns. This new coach has the talent and players. And if we resign Fangio (Defensive Coordinator whose contract expires at midnighttonight) we can do it. Go Bears!" Spoken like a poet, no sir, we are not the Cleveland Browns and lets hope we can get to at least .500 next season and build from there.

Let's all raise our glasses tonight and wish Matt Nagy good luck. Oh and in other news Pitchers and Catchers report in just over a month!

Here is some more info on the Bears new hire: https://www.sbnation.com/2018/1/8/16862902/bears-head-coach-hire-matt-nagy-chiefs-andy-reid

ubs fans we know you are recovering yesterday from the nail-biting 4+ hour game last night! But we’re all in good spirits because, Cubs Win! Cubs Win! The Cubs won in dramatic fashion winning 9-8 while using 7 pitchers. In the hard-fought five-game series with the Nationals, the Cubs scored 8 total runs in games 1-4. Last night ended up being the perfect time for the bats to wake up and help the team advance to the NLCS.

The Cubbies have now advanced it to the NLCS three straight seasons. This is quite a feat for our lovable losers. The Cubs will take on the hated Dodgers of La La Land for the second year in a row as well. The Dodgers led all of baseball with 104 wins and will have home-field advantage hosting games 1-2 and 6-7 (as needed). The Dodgers won 4 of the 6 meetings between the teams during the regular season and won all games played in LA.

Game 1’s first pitch is Saturday (10/14) at 5:08PST and Game 2 starts at 4:38pm PST on Sunday (10/15). Games 3-7 will be Tuesday (10/17), Wednesday (10/18), Thursday (10/19), Saturday (10/21), and Sunday (10/22) with these game times currently TBD. Former Cy Young winner, Clayton Kershaw, will take the bump for the Dodgers for Game 1 while Joe Maddon is still tinkering with his lineup and scheduled starters but it is looking like Jose Quintana who only was used for 12 pitches Thursday makes the most sense.

710’s official sports spokesman, Bobby Smalls, was contacted this morning about the Cubs and he had this to say: “We are going to beat the Dodgers into the ground with our bats, defense, and pitching. Go you Cubbies Go! Chicago needs another World Championship!!! (insert 5 baseball emoticons) Are you in?? I’m all in. Whooooopppiee!!!” You heard it here first Cubs fans, Bobby Smalls is officially excited for this Cubs team and likes their chances to win another title!

For a full analytic breakdown of the NLCS: https://baseball.realgm.com/analysis/2533/2017-NLCS-Preview-Los-Angeles-Dodgers-Vs-Chicago-Cubs

And for some local Chicago spin on what the Cubs pitching lineup may be: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-who-pitches-game-1-for-cubs-20171013-story.html

See you at 710 Beach Club this weekend to catch all the action! GO CUBS GO!

It’s October so we all know what that means Chicago fans! It’s Blackhawks season, Cubs playoffs, and Bears football. Here is a quick rundown of what is happening over the next five days:

Thursday 10/5 – Blackhawks season opener vs Penguins 5:30pm PST,

Friday 10/6 – Cubs Playoffs NLDS game 1 at Nationals 4:30pm PST,

Saturday 10/7 – Cubs game 2 NLDS at 2:38pm PST and Blackhawks vs Blue Jackets 5:30pm PST

Sunday 10/8 – Day of rest. Hopefully, reminisce about Cubs and Blackhawks dominating over past few days. Get ready for a BIG Monday!

Monday 10/9 – Cubs in Chicago game 3 NLDS time is TBD as of post, Blackhawks at Maple Leafs 4pm PST, and Bears vs Vikings MNF 5:30pm PST

Let’s start off with the Blackhawks. They return tonight for their season opener vs the defending NHL Stanley Cup Champions, Pittsburgh Penguins. Pittsburgh has won back to back titles and 3 since 2009. With the Hawks winning in 2010/3/5 these two teams have won 6 of the last 9 cups. Tonights matchup could very well be what some are predicting as this year’s finals pairing. Only time will tell. The Hawks are coming off two straight seasons of being bounced in the first round and will be without Marian Hossa who’s career sadly may be over. Hawks fans will be happy to welcome back Brandon Saad and Patrick Sharp however. For a more detailed season preview click here: http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/20765378/2017-18-nhl-season-preview-chicago-blackhawks Don’t forget to 710 for all the games including tonights 5:50pm PST puck drop.

So we all know the Cubs are back in the Playoffs for the third straight season which is the first time in over 100 years. This will also be their first world series title defense in that same time period. The Cubbies travel to the Nationals who have pretty much been the top team in the NL East all season. The Cubs had an up and down season but they pulled away in the NL Central and won 15 of their last 19 games. Hopefully, most of the team is well rested and ready to roll. The rotation against the Nationals for the Cubs will be Kyle Hendricks, Jon Lester, Jose Quintana, and then Jake Arrietta if needed. While they might be defending champions the Cubs are actually underdogs in this series and also behind the Dodgers in odds to advance to NL. This underdog status might be exactly what this young Cubs team needs. For more on this read here: https://cubbiescrib.com/2017/10/05/chicago-cubs-stand-benefit-underdog-status/Cubsplay Friday, Saturday, and Monday. Of course, all games will be shown at 710.

Lastly, let’s not forget about the Bears! They play on Monday Night Football vs the Vikings and will be trotting out their rookie QB Mitchell Trubisky. We have mentioned before in past blogs that the time would be sooner than later before Trubisky would take over for the terrible Mike Glennon. Rightfully Glennon is back to holding a clipboard and now we can see why GM Ryan Pace was so enamored with Trubisky on draft day. The Bears haven’t had the 1st QB taken in the draft since pretty much anyone reading this was born… We can all remember Cade McNown and that disaster but he was the 5th QB taken that year. We hope Trubisky can be the real deal so all we can do is hope he shows promise. We know he is throwing to a WR corps that rivals most college WR corps… But he does have an average to above average offensive line and a top 5 running back tandem in Howard and Cohen. If you have been sleeping on the beach lately and have no idea who Mitchell Trubisky is here is a quick primer for you: https://www.windycitygridiron.com/2017/10/5/16429226/chicago-bears-podcast-radio-who-is-mitchell-trubisky-north-carolina-rookie-nfl-audio Get ready Chicago fans because Mitch-a-Palooza officially kicks off Monday night!

As you can see this is a VERY EXCITING time for Chicago sports. Come on down to 710 and catch the Hawks, the Cubs title defense playoff run, and the first game of what we hope to be the Chicago Bears savior and future pro-bowl QB.

Chicago fans, it is that time of the year where the leaves start turning (maybe not in San Diego) and Chicagoans can look forward to football and playoff baseball. The Cubs clinched the NL Central last night and will now take on the Washington Nationals in a best of 5 series starting next Friday, October 6th in Washington DC (game time is still TBD). The Cubs had a very strong 2nd half and
We will touch more on the Cubs prospects of repeating as World Series Champions next week but it is interesting to note this is the first time since 1908 that the Cubs have reached the postseason in three straight seasons. Here is an article discussing the Cubs and how they repeated as NL Champs: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-cubs-eager-for-postseason-sullivan-20170928-column.html

The biggest Cubs news in our opinion though is that a movie about the Cubs winning the 2016 World Series is getting the green light in Hollywood and Bill “F*cking” Murray may star as skipper Joe Maddon! More info on this here: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/for-petes-sake/article175855106.html
In other news for Chicago die-hard the Bears won a game! As 7 point underdogs, they put a thumping to Big Ben and the Pittsburgh Steelers and won 23-17 in overtime. The Bears were winning most of the game and overcame sub-par play from QB Mike Glennon who dink and dunked his way for a whopping 101 yards passing… Lame we know, Trubisky will be starting at some point this season but for now, the Bears will continue to lean on their thunder and lightning combination of Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen who rushed for over 220 yards last Sunday. The Bears also lost another starter for the season in safety Quentin Demps. That is 4 starters on the IR since training camp started for those counting at home (Meredith, White, Freeman, and Demps).

Tonight the Bears face the hated Packers in Green Bay for a rivalry matchup. We know the Packers have Aaron Rodgers but let’s hope the Bears come out strong on defense and continue to run the ball and overcome their pedestrian quarterback play. Here is an article discussing what is needed for Bears to win tonight (yes, luck is a key factor!) http://www.espn.com/blog/chicago/bears/post/_/id/4706515/bears-needed-luck-on-their-side-to-beat-packers-during-aaron-rodgers-era
We hope to see you at 710 Beach Club tonight for kickoff at 5:25pm PST as well as for remaining Cubs regular season games and then the Blackhawks season opener next Thursday. This is an exciting time Chicago fans! Go Cubs Go and Bear Down!

The Bears lost a close one at Soldier Field last weekend against the defending NFC Champion Atalanta Falcons. While falling short 23-17 and having 4 chances from inside the 10 yard line to tie the game in the closing minute, the Bears showed promise and improvement from last year’s 3-13 dumpster fire of a season.
Mike Glennon was about as average and boring as advertised but he didn’t turn the ball over which is a breath of fresh air from the Smokin’ Jay Cutler era. Also, it looks like a budding star was found in a change of pace rookie RB, Tarik Cohen. He led both teams with 113 total yards from scrimmage and looks like his nickname of “the human joystick” is truly warranted. The Bears Defense (especially the front 7) looks stout as well. The secondary gave up a few huge plays in the second half but overall seemed to be okay.
Unfortunately, the big news after the game wasn’t that the Bears should have won the game (they should have punched it in at the end and a couple dropped passes were the difference between a W or L), the biggest news is that 2 starters are lost for the season. WR Kevin White (broken clavicle) and Jerrell Freeman (torn pec) were placed on season ending IR. For a team that last year that was hit with more injuries to key starters than any other team in the NFL this is not a good sign. These are tough blows for the Bears. White, who can now officially be deemed a bust (3rd straight season on IR early in season) was expected to be the Bears #1 after the Meredith injury. Freeman, a beast of a LB, was a captain on defense and was poised to be one of the league leaders in tackles. Freeman playing 55 snaps with the torn pec in week 1 just shows how tough he is: http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/20707035/chicago-bears-linebacker-jerrell-freeman-played-55-snaps-torn-pectoral-muscle
Both players will be missed and again the Bears will use the ‘next man up’ mentality to see what they have on the roster.

​On to week 2! The Bears head to Tampa Bay at kickoff at 10am Sunday against a Bucs team that had off last week due to Hurricane Irma. Let’s hope that this is a revenge game for Mike Glennon (spent last 3 seasons in Tampa) and the Bears can get their first win of the season. As Bears fans, we need to be optimistic but in reality, the Bears are again underdogs as the Bucs on paper have more firepower on offense and a defense that should pin their ears back and attack Glennon while challenging him to throw to one of the worst receiving corps in the NFL. Unfortunately, the schedule doesn’t get easier either. After this week the Bears face the Steelers, Packers, Vikings, Ravens, and Panthers. These 5 teams all won and looked solid in week 1…
Week 2 match-ups and predictions here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-week-2-how-bears-can-beat-buccaneers-20170915-story.html
On the glass is half full side of things, the Bears did almost beat a team in week 1 that was up on the Patriots 28-3 in the Super Bowl last year. We need to find a silver lining in the Bears team and let’s root for continued improvement on defense and see what the tandem of Howard and Cohen can do on offense behind an above average offensive line. Also, the clock is officially ticking on when backup rookie QB, Mitchell Trubisky, will get his first NFL start. His athleticism could have been useful last week and the coaching staff along with the fans know that. Stay tuned Bears fans, this may be a long season but it should all be a building block for an exciting future.

See you all at 710 this weekend to cheer on DA BEARS!
On a side note: The Cubbies while playing .500 ball over their last 10 games have now won 3 in a row and are still 3 up on the Cardinals and Brewers in the NL Central. Don’t forget all Cubs games shown at 710!

Labor Day weekend is upon us! While living in San Diego this doesnt necessarily mean an end to the summer but it does signal that the NFL season is about to start at that Baseball is in its final month heading to the Playoffs.

Being Chicago Fans we have a lot to look forward to this time of year. The Bears coming off a disappointing 2016 campaign look to be much improved in 2017. Probably not Playoff caliber but a step in the right direction. Thursday night the Bears had their 4th preseason game and will now be cutting their roster down to 53 men before they open the season at home on Sunday, September 10th.
Here is some observations on the last preseason game: http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/09/01/pompei-observations-from-bears-browns-2/and on the final 53 man roster: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-projecting-bears-roster-10-thoughts-biggs-20170901-story.html It doesnt appear the Bears will have too many tough decisions with the 53-man roster this season which is a good thing. Yes, the Bears lost Cameron Meredith in preseason game 3 but other than that they appear to be fairly healthy. Some rumors are that the Bears could cut butt-fumble Mark Sanchez and head into the season with 2 QB’s but most likely he will stick so there is a veteran presence with Trubisky. No matter how down some may be on the Bears they do look like they have improved depth and barring injuries should be improved from last year which is all we can ask for at this point.
On a more positive note the Cubs are 3.5 games ahead in the NL Central over the Brewers and hopefully will finish strong heading into the post season. Addison Russel is out 3 weeks but that shouldn’t matter much. The rest of the team including Jon Lester seems to be getting healthy and finding their stride. The Cubs even made franchise history earlier this week with 6 players hitting 20 homers in a season: http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/08/30/cubs-set-franchise-record-with-6-players-hitting-20-home-runs/. Let’s hope the bats stay hot as we enter the stretch run for the playoffs.

​On the other side of town the White Sox stink but are rebuilding they are battling for a top 3 draft pick. And the Chicago Bulls they stink too and are in a rebuild mode so we will wait to see how that shakes out. Blackhawks regular season starts in early October as well so that is fast approaching.
Everyone have a fun and safe Holiday weekend and see you at 710 for the Bears season opener vs the defending NFC Champs Atlanta Falcons on Sept 10th at 10am and for all Cubs games!

The Bears had their first pre-season game Thursday night in Chicago vs the Broncos. It was a meaningless game with the final score Broncos 24 Bears 17. The real story from the game was the buzz generated by the performance of Bears Rookie QB, Mitchell Trubisky. He completed his first ten passes and ended up 18 of 25 for 266 yards, 1 TD, and a QB rating of 103.1. The said to be #1 starter, Giraffe-looking Mike Glennon, threw a pick 6 on his third throw of the game and ended with a QB rating of 0.0. Yes, that is right, a goose egg!
It’s true that Glennon played against the starting defense of the Broncos that is tops in the league while the Rookie went up against 2nd and 3rd stringers, but who cares… The Bears didn’t trade up (whether that was necessary or not is still up for debate) to #2 to grab Trubisky to sit on the bench and rot.

​So the question already has become, when will Tru (this is what Chicago die-hards are calling the rook) be starting for this team? For this season many fans already think it’s a matter of when not if. Glennon is owed $16m this year but who cares, nobody thinks he is the future and if the kid can play throw him out there. Bears fans are desperate for a QB that shows emotion and wins some games. Whether Trubisky ends up being a stud QB no one knows but its fun to have some hope. Overall, it’s going to be very interesting to see how this plays out.

If it were up to 710’s unofficial mascot and spokesman, Mike Ditka, he would be the starter tomorrow!
After the game Da Coach was caught telling TMZ, “What I saw out of Trubiksy for a rookie in his first game I thought was outstanding. I don’t know too many rookies, including Tom Brady, Fran Tarkenton or anybody else that’s ever had that kind of a start. Now, one game doesn’t make a career — I understand that — but the kid looked awfully good, he looked awfully composed, he threw the ball very accurately. I thought he made good decisions all the way through; avoided the rush at times. I don’t know what else you can ask of a quarterback. If he’s not your quarterback, you’ve got problems. It’s clear-cut. He should be your starter.”
Well there it is Chicago fans, if Ditka himself wants Tru to be the starter then let’s all jump on the bandwagon now! One preseason game in and the controversy is already national news. Now we all have to sit back and watch how this unfolds as the first game is still more than 4 weeks away.
Learn more about Tru’s eye-opening debut:
http://www.espn.com/blog/chicago-bears/post/_/id/4705965/how-long-can-bears-avoid-qb-controversy-between-mitchell-trubisky-mike-glennon
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000828546/article/mitchell-trubisky-turns-heads-across-nfl-with-fine-bears-debut
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-mitch-trubisky-mike-ditka-brian-urlacher-20170811-story.html

The Cubs are currently on a 13-3 run following the All-Star break and in that time they have gained 8 games on the Brewers! The Cubs are now 2.5 games up on their slumping rivals to the North. With the trade deadline being July 31st the Cubs added to the Jose Quintana trading by trading with the Tigers for backup catcher Alex Avila and left-handed reliever Justin Wilson. Epstein and the Cubbies are definitely going all in for a repeat in 2017.

The White Sox continued to deal as well but for prospects. The South Siders in a 17 day period up to the deadline dealt 7 players from their opening day 25-man roster. They now boast one of the best farm systems in baseball with as many as 10 of the top 100 prospects.

More info on the Cubs and Sox at the trade deadline: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-cubs-white-sox-trades-haugh-spt-0801-20170731-column.html
In other news, even though the Cubbies extinguished the curse of the billy goat last year it looks like 2017 might be haunted by Steve Bartman. Bartman was officially given a 2016 world series ring this week. Bartman while honored with the ring made sure to tell everyone to stop picking on him. “My hope is that we all can learn from my experience to view sports as entertainment and prevent harsh scapegoating, and to challenge the media and opportunistic profiteers to conduct business ethically by respecting personal privacy rights and not exploit any individual to advance their own self-interest or economic gain.”
More info on Bartman and his ring: http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/20210036/chicago-cubs-giving-world-series-ring-steve-bartman

​Joe Maddon’s take on Bartman and the ring: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-steve-bartman-world-series-ring-joe-maddon-20170731-story.html
See you all at 710 for Cubs games as they make their playoff push!

Theo has done it again by making a blockbuster trade for White Sox pitcher, Jose Quintana! As the Cubs head into the second half of the season they needed this jolt-in-the-arm as they try to make a push for the playoffs to defend their title. Currently the Cubs are having an epic World Series hangover being 2 games under .500 and 5.5 games behind the Brewers in the under performing NL Central. Quintana now heads to the top of the rotation and is under contract through the 2020 season. With Jake Arrieta and John Lackey free agents at the end of this season this move makes a lot of sense. With the trade deadline still 17 days away there is plenty of time for the Cubs to make a few more moves.

​The South Siders on the other hand continue their full rebuild and with this trade acquired the #8 (Eloy Jimenez) and #63 (Dylan Cease) ranked MLB prospects. Let’s hope this trade works out for both sides with the Cubs making another deep run this season and the White Sox continuing to hoard prospects to be competitive in a few years.

Click here for full analysis: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2653575-jose-quintana-traded-to-cubs-from-white-sox-for-eloy-jimenez-dylan-cease-more

It is officially summer and we are here to get your head out of the sand with regards to all things Chicago sports!

June 22nd, the Bulls traded the only player on their roster worth a damn in Jimmy “Buckets” Butler. While it is sad to see him go, he was on a team going nowhere fast and it was nice to see the Bulls front office still incompetent realizing this and trying to get some young players to build a competitive roster. Butler reunites with Coach Thibs in Minnesota while the Bulls got two young unproven players and the 7th pick in the draft whom they used on a 7 foot Finnish 3 point player.
More info here: https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-bulls-made-the-right-decision-but-the-wrong-trade/
For one of the teams we ALL care about, the Hawks, a lot has happened over the past few days. First our favorite Slovakian skater in Marian Hossa has announced he is taking all of the 2017-8 season off and possibly career due to a very serious allergy. More hear: http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/19708220/chicago-blackhawks-unsure-how-address-marian-hossa-absence
After that shocker the Hawks lost young defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/hockey/blackhawks/ct-blackhawks-expansion-draft-20170621-story.html

On June 23rd the Hawks made some huge trades by dealing Artemi Panarin to Columbus to bring Brandon Saad back to Chicago, and shipped three-time Stanley Cup champion Niklas Hjalmarsson to the Arizona Coyotes for a pair of younger defensemen. We will see how this all shakes out but GM Bowman is definitely looking to shake things up to ensure a #1 seeded Hawks team doesn’t get swept in the first round of the playoffs again!
More info here: http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/blackhawks-trade-niklas-hjalmarsson-to-coyotes-in-draft-day-deal/

Lastly, a quick update on the Cubs, Sox, and Bears.
​
Cubs – still playing mediocre at best but hanging around the top of a weak NL Central. Look for some moves by the end of July to mainly shore up an underwhelming pitching rotation. Kyle Schwarber was sent down to the minors because he has sucked hard (lowest average among ALL hitters in MLB!). Rizzo on the other hand has been super hot in the lead off spot.

Schwarbs sent down: http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/19706296/chicago-cubs-sending-kyle-schwarber-triple-clear-head Rizzo heating up: http://www.csnchicago.com/chicago-cubs/cubs-wont-look-outside-leadoff-hitter-when-they-have-anthony-rizzo-and-pitching
Sox – kind of in the who cares category. Not playing too well in a rebuilding year and we are all just waiting for the trade deadline to see what can be had for Quintana and other veterans.

Bears – ended mini camp with no major news or injuries. I guess that is a good thing for the lowly Monsters of the Midway. Camp opens in Bourbonnais at end of next month.
Have a great summer and be sure to catch all Cubs games at 710! Check out the new Dude’s BBQ restaurant next door.