The Real Dog Days

The Real Dog Days

I don’t want to hear anything about the dog days of summer.  November in Chicago, when various shades of gray come dripping down out of the sky, is the time that will try anyone’s soul.  How all those Hollywood types doing TV and movies here must hate it.  Me, I just try to hang on until the sun decides to put in its next appearance.

So, given that these are the true dog days, baseball news is in short supply.  Thank God for the Transactions column in today’s Sun-Times; lots of teams making moves to their 40-man rosters.  Hello, Zack Burdi, goodbye, Jacoby Ellsbury.  I only wish the type weren’t so small.  A person could go blind before ever getting to what teams are doing in the National League.

The Internet is dicey for different reasons.  I don’t much care for MLB-Pravda, aka MLB.com, because every story is a form of click-bait.  That, and the photos take forever to download on my computer.  As for the sites dealing in rumors, too often they veer into pure fantasy.  For instance, I just read a story calling on the White Sox to sign as many as the top eight free agents as they can.  In this alternate universe, Anthony Rendon, Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg can all end up on the South Side come Opening Day.

Better to stick to Transactions.  I see the Yankees have let go of first baseman Greg Bird, who has just the right combination of raw power and chronic injuries to interest my Sox.  Now, there’s a rumor you can believe in.