63 Comments - Anonymous - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:34 am: If they build it to look exactly the same, what’s the point of knocking it down? - Bill - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:35 am: YESSSSSSS! Move to it Arlington Heights where it belongs. - Scooby - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:38 am: It’s days like this I wish Marriotti was still alive so I could read about how this is all Ozzie’s fault. - Levois - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:38 am: I wish they could have done this with old Comiskey. - Downstate weed chewing hick - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:40 am: Well, when you are usaed to the best fot he best and you are making millions of dollars playing baseball but then you have to take a cold shower because the club house is so outdated, I get the frustration, but Wrigley Field is part of the Cubs tradition. It is part of why they sell out games even when they are 20 games under 500. Would you rather play for the Reds, and their 5000 fans per game, or put up with a lack of modern convenience and play for 40,000 who live and die with every pitch? - Joe in the Know - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:41 am: I say move the Cubs to the old Thillens Stadium. That’s where little leaguers play anyway. - the Other Anonymous - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:43 am: If they knock down Wrigley, then the Cubs become much more dependent on winning ball games. At least Wrigley lets them ride out crappy seasons. The first Anonymous is right: if they do knock it down, why build a replica? If they want to build a replacement, they should go the opposited of what they have now and build a state-of-the-21st-century-art stadium. - South Side Mike - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:43 am: I say, “Mayor Daley, get the bulldozers ready. We’re going to have a little all-night party.” - Fan of the Game - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:43 am: Tear it down and build new. Marquis’s thoughts are good ones. Build it with the same style and improve the infrastructure and the amenities. Make it a great place for the fans and the players, staff, media, etc.. - tubbfan - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:45 am: Diehard Cub fan says “tear it down, build a new one in the ‘burbs” - VanillaMan - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:47 am: They can get a new stadium when they win the World’s Series. - BandCamp - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:47 am: When (not if, Rich) the CUBS win it all next month, knock it down, disband the CUBS and we all become White Sox fans and party at a real ballpark. - Fan of the Game - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:49 am: ===I say, “Mayor Daley, get the bulldozers ready. We’re going to have a little all-night party.” === It’s a rainy night at Meigs Field, A rainy night at Meigs Field. Lord, I believe it could “rain” at Wrigley Field, too. - GoBearsss - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:49 am: How about we tear it down, put up a brand spanking new, state-of-the art ballpark, and then sell the naming rights less than a decade later so that we can fix how poorly we made it the first time? Brilliant! We can call it, US Cellular Field. - Joe in the Know - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:50 am: What do the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago Cubs have in common? Neither team has won a world series in their new stadium. - Crimefighter - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:53 am: JITK - that didn’t make ANY sense. - Springfield Alum - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:55 am: Zell should tear it down before he sells. It’s probably worth more as a vacant lot than a ballpark anyway. - Joe in the Know - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:58 am: Crimefighter: Think about it. The Cubs have not won a world series since 1908. Wrigley Field was built in 1914, making it the Cubs’ “new” stadium. Miller Park is only a few years old. - NIU '89 grad - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:00 am: They should’ve knocked it down after the last no-hitter. - wordslinger - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:11 am: No. I think they should take the lights out, too. Having said that, I understand the viewpoint of these millionaires. The home clubhouse is a dump. The only thing worse is the visiting team clubhouse. - Dan S. a Voter and Cubs Fan - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:15 am: National League Central Team W L PCT GB Chi Cubs 91 58 .611 - Milwaukee 83 68 .550 9.0 Houston 80 70 .533 11.5 St. Louis 78 72 .520 13.5 Cincinnati 69 81 .460 22.5 Pittsburgh 63 88 .417 29.0 They should build an updated stadium that could retain the history of Wrigley. To all you bitter Sox fans see above and the 2007 Central Division Champions magic number for a repaet now is down to 4. GO CUBS GO - Dan S. a Voter and Cubs Fan - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:19 am: Crimefighter - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:53 am: JITK - that didn’t make ANY sense. Crimefighter, Wrigley is the “newest” stadium the Cubs have, get it? I was an attempt at hummor - Wumpus - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:21 am: Kevin, what’d you do with Rich?!? Tear it down! The constant renovations are like putting lipstick on a pig. Please tear it down and build a new stadium with all the ameneties like bathroom stalls, non-falling concrete, suites, etc. A nice post WS treat - Frank Booth - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:24 am: I’ve always assumed this was part of the gov’s $34 billion capitol bill and why he didn’t want projects line-itemed before a vote. I’m only half kidding here. - Leave a light on George - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:32 am: If Yankee Stadium can be replaced so can Wrigley. - Joe in the Know - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:33 am: Dan S wrote: “I was an attempt at hummor” And a damn good one at that! - trafficmatt - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:34 am: Can they knock down Wrigley Field and rebuild it in Portland Oregan? - Speaking At Will - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:46 am: There is a baseball team that plays at Wrigley Field? - Elliot Ness - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:51 am: Did we have a “Mark Buerhle Day” in April of 2007? - ArchPundit - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:56 am: I always wondered whether the owner of a blog could be a considered a troll on the same blog. - Rich Miller - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 10:57 am: lol - Arthur Andersen - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:15 am: If the proposal under debate is to tear down Wiggly Field and leave the Flubs in Milwaukee, AA votes Aye! - Phineas J. Whoopee - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:16 am: Wrigley is a landmark so it has to stay, but if the Cubs want to move to Arlington then we could get a minor league team to play there. I don’t think it would affect attendance all that much and will even lower the price of tickets and beer. - Honest Abe - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:33 am: Well that would please the politicians! The Cubs could become a taxpayer subsidized team like the other franchises in Chicago and the pols’ contractor pals could gobble up the construction contracts. Wrigley Field is a relic of an era in which team owners paid their own freight. How many seasons have the White Sox gone without paying rent due to their sweetheart deal with the state? In 2005, Illinois collected not a penny during the postseason and World Series from the Sox — the contract made no provision for rent after the regular season ended. What a loophole! - Anon - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:34 am: I’ve been warning friends who are Cubs fans for some time now that the Cubs are outraged by the Mets laying claim to the all-time greatest season-ending choke, and are on a mission to reclaim it this year. IF I am right, I suspect that the issue won’t be whether to tear down the old stadium, but whether to build a replacement and where. - bored now - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:35 am: carlos is only saying what apparently most players think. the facilities (for the players) at wrigley are apparently outdated. if i understand correctly, apparently the tribune marketed wrigley to be the attraction. if that’s the case, then there is no reason for a major league team to play at the park, fans will come to see any baseball game! probably would be a great place to watch the little league world series. but it’s no place to play professional baseball… - A Citizen - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:39 am: I think if they are just patient they can save the cost of tearing it down - it is falling down all by itself. - Team Sleep - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:41 am: I used to think that as well. But there are two parks you cannot knock down: Wrigley Field and Fenway Park. Both places are landmarks and hold a lot of history. If Cuban buys the team, he will want to build a new stadium. While this next statement will contradict my previous statement, if Cuban is willing to spend the money and make the Cubs a perennial World Series contender, Wrigley could come down. It can’t just be knocked down for the sake of building a new stadium; there has to be sound reasoning to do so. - Smack-o-cratic - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 11:50 am: Foul pole to foul pole remains untouched, it is landmarked anyway. The rest? Rebuild it with all the amenities for fans and players that Mark Cuban can afford. Give it the old timey feel (ala the Jake), make sure the world famous marquee adourns the outside main gate. The fans will still come see the Cubs play. - Angry Chicagoan - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 12:24 pm: Maybe they can build it as a theme park — Wrigleyville Park®. Fake ‘el trains can take customers from the cheap parking spots to a stop by the stadium. Rooftop bleachers, fake storefronts and “street-level”, um, access-road-level bars can form the stadium frontage of the close-in parking ramps, where suburbanites will happily pay just as much as they do now in the real Wrigleyville. - Louis G. Atsaves - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 12:55 pm: Saw a double header at Camden in Baltimore on Saturday. The Orioles did the Sox no favors by losing. The idea of building a walkway into the park where all the vendors would be would open up the inside of the stadium where they are now at and solve a lot of problems. The club houses can be expanded as well as the washrooms modernized and expanded with no problems. They also need to remodel the upper decks. Keep it and open up the side wall opposite Sheffield along the third base side and mimic what I saw this weekend with the old warehouse building across the street from the park. Outstanding! - TAG UP - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:04 pm: Just imagine if the Sox play the Cubs in the World Series and the Sox win. The Cus fans will riot and tear down Wrigley themselves. - A Citizen - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:06 pm: And ala the Lions at the Field Museum they could place two huge statues of Billie Goats by the Main Gate. - 4 is the Magic Number - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:16 pm: I’m not an engineer so I don’t know if this is even possible. Basically, I would keep the “front of the house” while completely rebuilding the back end. You gotta keep foul pole to foul pole along with the ivy, but perhaps rebuilding the bleachers with better ingress and egress. Also keep the shape of the field and most of the brick surrounding it (all the brick behind home plate is new, so do whatever there). Keep the angles of rise for both the lower and upper decks so fans are still on top of the action — in this case obviously some seats should be realigned because of bad angles. Finally, keep the facade at Clark & Addison along with the Welcome sign. Demolish and rebuild everything in between — new concrete, new concourses, engineer it so there are no support beams and hence no obstructed view. Expand the stadium westward into the players’ parking lot, the facade all the way to the corner Clark/Addison, close Sheffield and Waveland behind the park for some expansion underneath in that direction, rebuild and add all the amenities. It’s essentially rebuilding while keeping key elements and probably would cost as much as a new stadium, but I think it’d be worth it to keep the nostalgia of an old park with the amenities of a new park, and it’d still be “legit” unlike those old park wannabes in other cities. - Go Cubs Go - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:41 pm: A new stadium? Having an old stadium is about pride. We dont need “bells and whistles” to come to the ball park. We dont need comfortable seats, we stand the whole game anyways. We dont need “bring in a pop can for half price mondays” (Sox fans). How would you like to say that the Rays have an older stadium than the Chicago Cubs…Gross. Just renovate the inside SLIGHTLY. Soldier Field did it, albeit poorly, why cant Wrigley do it? - He Makes Ryan Look Like a Saint - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:41 pm: I have been a die hard Cub fan my whole life. I love Wrigley, but it is time for something more Modern. Plant the explosives. - Black Ivy - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:46 pm: YES - knock the den of debauchery, the haven of hedonism DOWN. I am all for getting rid of Wrigley Field. Perhaps the Cubs can play at one of the softball fields at Grant Park? - Amy - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 1:52 pm: Dan S., let me quote all White Sox fans on the World Series…. been there, won that. Remember 2005, and 1906 for that matter. - Legal Eagle - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 2:33 pm: Wrigley Field is a dump. Keep the whole outfield/bleacher area and scoreboard, tear down and rebuild the rest of it. Eliminate all the bad seats, pillars, narrow aisles, and dreadful bathrooms. Have to play a year elsewhere, but it has to be done. - Captain America - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 2:39 pm: I think a tastefully-designed new stadium designed to look old-fashioned/traditional, like the one in Baltimore, would be fine. - Team Sleep - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 2:57 pm: He Makes Ryan, I don’t think dynamite is a good idea in a residential area like Wrigleyville. You’d have to take that bad boy down piece by piece. In other areas of the country where ballparks have been demolished, you have a lot of barren areas close by. - Go Cubs Go - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 4:37 pm: Amy, let me quote all of America on the 2005 World Series, Only 9% of us cared enough to watch… - Six Degrees of Separation - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 4:48 pm: I second the idea of a partial rebuild, keeping the bleachers, scoreboard and entrance sign at Clark/Addison intact, and completely gutting the stands and facilities and replacing them with a modern retro-look facility. The idea of wizzing in a trough with other guys pretending not to look has not gotten better with age. Legal Eagle: Have to play a year elsewhere, but it has to be done. Cubs fans pay taxes, too. How about getting a return on investment by playing at the Cell? - South Side Hit Men - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 5:02 pm: Dear Go, “Only 9% of us cared enough to watch…” I was one of the 9% that watched……watched my team win the World Series. It wouldn’t matter to me if 99% of the people watched the Cubs choke with 5 outs to even make it to the series. Our team won the series this century and the Cubs didn’t. - wordslinger - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 5:09 pm: ==The idea of wizzing in a trough with other guys pretending not to look has not gotten better with age.== Six, never understood the antipathy to the trough. It’s highly efficient, saves space and conserves water. It was green (in the environmental sense) before green was popular. And do us all a favor — don’t PRETEND not to look, just don’t look! - Jaded - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 5:10 pm: The only reason for not tearing down Fenway and Wrigley would be all the displaced rats that live in the stadiums. Tear it down and build a new one just like it but better. - Six Degrees of Separation - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 6:02 pm: WS - Whenever I get that tingling feeling that someone else is, shall we say “checking the unit”, they always seems to quickly snap their head back in place:-) Oh well, we’re in daytime talk show territory now! - ZC - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 6:28 pm: My sense from the article is that Zambrano and Marquis want their locker room knocked down. Look, eventually Wrigley will be replaced. Everybody knows or should know that. It’s a matter of physics and of entropy. But it’s not going to happen for a while, still. I’d guess it’s got at least ten more years of life to it, possibly two or three times that much. The new owner would be a nutcase to knock it down now. - Disgusted - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 6:35 pm: Wordslinger and Six Degrees: I’m LOL. To all those wanting to dynamite the place, just tear it down and sell it piece by piece. Believe me, there will be a market. My daughter jumped out in traffic on Lake Shore Drive to grab a piece of old Soldier Field when they were tearing part of it down and he has it in a shrine!! - Amy - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 7:30 pm: Dear Go: what South Side Hit Men said. (really great, South Side!) Amy (CQ fan, hoping the wrist heals.) - Quizzical - Wednesday, Sep 17, 08 @ 9:29 pm: I agree with 4isthemagicnumber. When you’re in the stands sitting down, the place is beautiful and traditional. I even like peeing in the troughs. However, walking under the stadium can be scary and I’m often fearful of what would happen in a real emergency if the place had to be evacuated quickly. I’ve been in a lot of other stadiums where its easier to get food and drink. Also, the outside of the stadium isn’t that pretty. It could be rebuilt with as much charm and much better amenities. - Dan S. a Voter and Cubs Fan - Thursday, Sep 18, 08 @ 7:24 am: I root for 2 teams, The Chicago Cubs and who ever plays the Stl Cardinals except the Black Sox. - Go Cubs Go - Thursday, Sep 18, 08 @ 9:26 am: South Side Hit Men, Valid point. I’d be an idiot if I didnt admit jealously throughout that ‘05 season. So i wont argue against you. Thats not what this blog is about anyways. I will however challenge everyone in this blog to stop and consider what baseball is all about. Unlike the NBA and NFL, baseball is not about W’s and L’s and Championships and Million Dollar contracts (although players and fans alike are often blinded by these elements). Baseball is about family. It is about bridging the generational gap. It is old men telling legendary stories to their grandsons. Its about a father calling in sick to bring his son to his first ballgame. Its about grown men who get choked up watching Ray Consella “have a catch” with his dad in the sunset. Tearing wrigley down seems like this childlike awe that we all posses inside would be dying with it. However any rational person will realize that it is ineveitable. Wrigley will have to be replaced at some point. I just hope I’m not around to see it go. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.