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Go, go White Sox!

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* I think I told you this already, but years ago I turned down one of Pat Quinn’s White Sox tickets. Some of his lieutenant governor staffers were going to a game and they offered one of his tix to me.

Call me a snob, but I hate the upper deck and that’s where Quinn’s season tickets are. Dan Proft and I went to a game years ago and we sat in the upper deck and I vowed I wouldn’t ever do that again.

* Anyway, Steve Bogira at the Reader was surprised that Quinn would sit there…

I leaned down to him. “Governor—what are you doing in the upper deck?”

He turned and said, “I’ve got season tickets here. Had ‘em ten, 11 years.”

“But why in the upper deck?”

He shrugged. “You can see the game.”

Quinn doesn’t ordinarily look down on Chicagoans, but he does at Sox games.

I know what he means: the height offers a nice perspective. But this benefit is mostly canceled out by the yawning span between you and the field. Even Adam Dunn looks small. And the sound delay is disconcerting—the crack of the bat you hear in the second inning was the double in the first.

Bogira writes later in the story that Quinn was going over fundraising schedules. I asked Quinn about that when the story came out and he said he wasn’t doing fundraising stuff. He told me what he was actually doing, but it was a couple of months ago and I’ve since forgotten. I think it was bill lists.

* Anyway, that brings us to this Kurt Erickson column…

Quinn’s campaign manager Lou Bertuca sent out a fundraising appeal in which a lucky donor could win an afternoon at a Chicago White Sox game sitting in the stands with Illinois’ chief executive.

“This isn’t just a handshake and a photo op – this is a real opportunity to hang out with the governor of Illinois,” Bertuca wrote.

The letter noted that anyone who chips in $5 or more is automatically entered in the contest.

Because reporters don’t give money to politicians, I was about to close out the email.

Then I read the small print. It said, “No purchase, payment or contribution necessary to enter or win. Contributing will not improve chances of winning.”

Excellent, right? I clicked the link to enter and got this message: “Page not found.”

Oops.

Then again, I clicked the same link last week and it worked for me.

* And that brings us to the new Quinn campaign video…

Simon’s back on his game.

* And that brings us to this from Rep. Jeanne Ives…

Representative Ives is organizing a Health and Fitness Boot Camp for children in her district, ages 8-12.

Last year, the event was a great success! This year Ives has expanded the program to promote fitness throughout the summer.

I’m really excited about this event,” Ives told reporters last year. “It’s something I started doing just as a mom. Having been in the military, I knew my kids loved fitness and they loved to do it in a fun and exciting way. So we came out to Cantigny to build this bigger event about kid’s nutrition and kid’s health and fitness, which we hope to grow every year.”

This year, recruits will be able to pick up a fitness pass book at their local library, community center or Ives’ District Office. Recruits will use the pass book to track their fitness level over the summer by completing four fitness activities each week, which parents will sign off on in the passbook. Each completed week will be a raffle entry for prizes from local businesses. Parents are also encouraged to administer an initial fitness test at the beginning of the summer (optional). On August 15, those who have taken the initial assessment will re-test and if a recruit shows a 20% improvement in their fitness level they will be entered into a “Grand Raffle.”

Children can join the contest and fun at any time over the summer or just show up to participate in the Boot Camp on August 15.

At Ives’ Fitness and Health Boot Camp, recruits will participate in a variety of health and fitness events, including:
Complete an Obstacle Course by FTX Crossfit
Scale a Climbing Wall
Participate in a Fitness Test
Earn personalized, commemorative dog tags
Receive BMI testing and learn safe stretching from Advanced Healthcare Associates
Take part in basic First Aid Instruction from Cadence Health and Edward Hospital
Participate in activities from FORWARD of DuPage County
Receive samples of healthy snacks
First Aide provided by Superior Ambulance

Raffle Sponsors include:

Eagle Martial Arts
MOVES Dance Studio
Sports Authority
Sox tickets from Dan Proft, WLS-AM

I hope those Proft tickets are better than the ones we had back in the day.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 10:57 am

Comments

Hopefully they’ve nixed handing out the white hoods, too.

Comment by Mittuns Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:04 am
=== nixed handing out the white hoods===

LOL

Yeah, that was really unfortunate.

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:07 am
Jessie White tumbled into office.
There is no reason Ives can’t also tap into the work she is doing here for kids. If she focuses on kids, and not politics, she can get seen in a better light than she has.

As for The Cell - I was in a box seat above home plate and watched a game, catered in luxury. I might as well been at home watching it on television.

The best seats are the ones at the edge of the field. Get as humanly close as possible. It is far more exciting and entertaining, even on a losing night.

Love the Sox, miss the old field - just a wee bit.

Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:17 am
The upper deck is just too steep, it’s scary. The concourse is so much fun, and you can usually sneak down behind home plate by the fourth or fifth.

Used to love watching Buehrle deal from there. Dude couldn’t break glass with his fastball, but he could hit his spots.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:19 am
Another great investment on the Governor’s part, considering remaining games this season on a certain reseller website have over 1,000 tickets per game starting at under ten bucks.

Comment by Ron Burgundy Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:22 am
-Having been in the military, I knew my kids loved fitness and they loved to do it in a fun and exciting way.–

Huh?

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:22 am
Cute video. Terrible seats. If I had something I wanted to talk to the Gov about for 2.5 hours, it would be a great opportunity. The ballgame rarely gets in the way in those seats. Bring Kleenex for nose bleeds though.

Comment by A guy... Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:24 am
that video for Quinn is wonderful. of course, I have a bias…Abreu rules!

Comment by Amalia Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:25 am
===Huh?===

If Scott Drury does somethng similar, it would read, “as a former federal prosecutor, I knoew my kids loved fitness and they loved to do it in a fun and exciting way.”

Comment by 47th Ward Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:30 am
Only one thing worse than sitting a couple of hours watching a game with PQ - that would be watching two games with PQ.

Love the White Sox to death and we even had season tickets in the upper deck the first year New Comiskey opened. That being said PQ takes this “everyman” thing way too far. I just get tired of it.

Comment by Stones Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:39 am
As a CapFax blogger, I knew my kids would love mocking public officials and twisting anything they write in a fun and exciting way.

Even when their message is understood, as Ives is here.

Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:41 am
*reaches into fishbowl* “And the winner of the Attend a White Sox Game With Pat Quinn Sweepstakes is…

The Department of Justice!”

*stuffs slip back into fishbowl*

Comment by Ron Burgundy Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:43 am
Been to Sox Park once in 2005. As a Cardinal fan I was aghast at the World Wrestling Federation atmosphere that lives at the Cell. No campy organ playing. Its all AC/DC and fireworks. Still can’t make myself appreciate junior circuit baseball. The DH is an abomination. The upside was that I got to see Frank Thomas hit a bomb shell to center field that night.

To the video: Great. A + Quinn better get more of this imagery out, he sells it well.

Comment by John A Logan Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:44 am
===The DH is an abomination. The upside was that I got to see Frank Thomas hit a bomb shell to center field that night.===

Which is why there’s a DH

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:46 am
But with the DH, I would’ve missed the excitement at Busch this weekend of watching .030 Lance Lynn hit and Joe Kelly bunt into a double play.

Comment by Ron Burgundy Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 11:49 am
The DH distorts statistics. A guy just swinging the bat ain’t a ball player, he’s a side show. I will give Frank Thomas credit, at least he attempted to play some first base in his career.

Comment by John A Logan Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:01 pm
If I could I would fix the raffle so Sheila Simon would win. Wouldn’t that be a fun afternoon.

Comment by a drop in Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:02 pm
= He shrugged. “You can see the game.” =

Wisdom.

To the discussion - I’d be more open to the DH if managers were allowed to use pitchers in that role in addition to mounting the hill. No one NEEDS to burn a spot on the roster for it, and the hurlers who can actually hit still have a chance while those prone to injury can watch from the dugout.

Comment by Dirty Red Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:06 pm
Hey, for this $800,000 donation to the Illinois Freedom SuperPac, the DGA could have bought 160,000 chances to see the game with the Governor

http://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/A1List.aspx?ID=538833&FiledDocID=538833&ContributionType=All%20Types&Archived=False

Comment by When I'm in the Thompson Center I eat at Arby's Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:20 pm
VMan, cutting and pasting a quote verbatim is hardly twisting someone’s words.

I’m quite sure you and Ives are on the same wavelength.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:23 pm
— I vowed I wouldn’t ever do that again—

What, go anywhere with Dan Proft? badumpbump!

Comment by Wumpus Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:28 pm
compare that to the shot of durbin, preckwinkle, lisa madigan and rahm all sitting behind ricketts in his box next to cubs dugout.

Comment by Shore Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:34 pm
What’s is so completely nonsensical about the DH is that it only applies to one “League” (the AL). I’m a National League fan (”Hey Chicago, what’ya say…”) and I think the DH is in someway sacrilegious, but geeze Louise, if you’re going to have a rule, make it for all the games played. The NFC and the AFC have the same rules. The Easter Conference and the Western Conference have the same rules. It makes MLB look goofy.

Comment by Try-4-Truth Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:34 pm
John, I hadn’t noticed that a game at Busch was a sober experience, lol.

You got lucky, Frank missed most of 2005.Sad story, dude didn’t play during that amazing series run.

Favorite moment: Sixth inning, game three, Boston, bases loaded, nobody out, Ozzie calls on El Duque from the scrap heap. Two fly balls, strike out Johnny Damon, no runs.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:43 pm
==Even when their message is understood, as Ives is here.==

Actually, no, her sentence as written makes no sense whatsoever. One can’t just stick random phrases into sentences and still expect them to be comprehensible.

Comment by Jabes Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:59 pm
Cheap seats….not so cheap if you follow a winning franchise that makes it to October frequently and the deeper they play in post-season, the higher the view, if you”re lucky enough to have your name drawn in the ticket lottery. That’s ok with me. It’s the moment that counts…..not the seat.

As for the DH….don”t get me started. Purist here.

Comment by redleg Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 1:23 pm
As long as you’re right behind home plate the upper deck is not bad. Once you start moving down the lines it’s a different story.

Comment by Frank G. Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 1:50 pm
I was at New Comiskey for the park’s second game - we had box seats in the second row of the upper deck just off of home plate on the first base side. By the third inning we abandoned them for the bleachers. There is no reason to sit up there unless no other seats are available or you want some space between you and your fellow fans.

Comment by lake county democrat Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 1:54 pm
Quinn is afraid to sit in the boxes immediately behind home plate on the lower concourse because that is where Madigan and Cullerton have their season tickets.

On the North Side, where Cullerton’s former district included Wrigley Field, it was rumored that Cullerton’s switch to the White Sox was part of a larger design to curry favor with the Speaker.

Comment by Under Further Review Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 2:36 pm
–On the North Side, where Cullerton’s former district included Wrigley Field, it was rumored that Cullerton’s switch to the White Sox was part of a larger design to curry favor with the Speaker.–

You can’t be serious. Grown-ups don’t really engage in such silliness.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 2:40 pm
I’m quite sure you and Ives are on the same wavelength.

Your assumptions of expertise regarding what other bloggers think and believe is only exceeded by the number of times you alone reply to other bloggers with confusion in understanding what they had actually wrote.

Help us all out and tell us what it is we all believe on every issue, so that we can meet your assumed expectations.

Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 2:57 pm
==- Try-4-Truth - Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 12:34 pm:==

MLB wasn’t a centralized organization until the 90s when the league offices were abolished. The leagues still had to vote on rule changes separately. The NL did not go forward with the DH in the late 60s when it was tried in spring training, but the AL voted to have a trial for it starting in 1973. The NL voted it down in the 80s as well.

Comment by Precinct Captain Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 3:04 pm
Precinct Captain,

I understand how it happened, it’s just stupid in 2014 to have different rules. When Selig was named commissioner, it was supposed to usher in a new era in MLB. Inter-league play has been introduced and now there is an inter-league game every stinking day! It’s stupid and it should be fixed.

Comment by Try-4-Truth Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 3:31 pm
===Help us all out and tell us what it is we all believe on every issue,===

I thought that was your job, VMan?

Comment by 47th Ward Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 3:31 pm
No way the Player’s Union would go along with getting rid of the DH. That’s a sweet payday for someone who doesn’t have to pack a mitt.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 3:33 pm
Not having a DH is like having the goalie try a penalty kick.

Comment by OldIllini Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 5:28 pm
I think this is a good video. As much as people do not like PQ he is seen as an average guy and can pull it off. I have seen Rauner in action several times and he has improved, but nothing compared to PQ. People think retail politics doesn’t matter, but they are wrong.

When the bright lights come on for the debate you can’t tell me your comfortable putting your money on Rauner after that IEA debate several months ago.

Comment by Almost the Weekend Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 5:41 pm
I’m not a fan of the DH. With it, world-class juicer ennablers like LaRussa are credited as being geniuses by batting the pitcher 8 rather than 9. Made George Will have a big man-crush.

Of course, LaRussa might be a genius, but he has a hard time with his ABCs. And somebody should have told him it’s not cool to pass out in the middle of the intersection with the car running. After two glasses of wine, lol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ckcw8hhwgE

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 5:42 pm
@wordslinger:

Sources in the 19th Ward would dispute your assertion. Cullerton and Madigan have had discussions while at the ballgame.

Comment by Under Further Review Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 6:30 pm
The Ad is Classic Pat Quinn–Man of the People, Baseball Fan/Spectator like YOU (no, not in the FRONT Row like Richie Daley used to do, but in the Upper Deck with the “Real” fans), Next-Door Neighbor, Uncle Pat–it hits home and is the kind of thing he needs to keep doing in his Campaign to remind Illinoisans that in the end, UNlike Multi-Millionaires like his opponent, the ‘Ol Fighter for the “Little Guy,” Pat Quinn really is just One of Us–and that’s when he’s at his best…!

Comment by Just The Way It Is One Monday, Jul 21, 14 @ 7:59 pm