Even a Cubs fan such as myself has to hand it to the White Sox: this "Well, if we can't be in the playoffs so we might as well completely screw up the playoff picture for someone else" attitude is pretty addictive. The White Sox downed Detroit 5-1 last night, forcing the Tigers into a tie with the Minnesota Twins heading into the last day of the season. Adding a little fun to the festivities, if the Twins and Tigers finished tied, the Twins host a playoff which will have to be played Tuesday because of the Vikings-Packers Monday Night Football game at the Metrodome. Anything that messes even the slightest bit with Bud Selig is totally awesome with us. Okay, but there was a game last night, too. Freddy Garcia looked sharp, pitching seven-plus innings, striking out seven, and giving up only a single run. Carlos Quentin had a two-run homer and Alex Rios also had a great night, knocking in three runs. The Sox wrap up 2009 against the Tigers today at 12:05 p.m. (WGN). more ›

Oh, hey, the Blackhawks started their season today! That's right, lost amongst the Chicago 2016 hoopla and fall-out, the Chicago Blackhawks opened their 2009-2010 season in Finland today against the Florida Panthers but wound up on the wrong end of a 4-3 shootout. The Blackhawks got on the board for the season first in the second period courtesy of a Patrick Kane goal early in the second period. That began a see-saw battle of the teams exchanging goals. Florida answered to tie the game 1-1 by the end of the second period. In the third, Dustin Byfuglien got a goal early, less than four minutes into the period. Florida bounced back with a goal of their own a few moments later. Once more, the Blackhawks went ahead thanks to Patrick Sharp's first goal of the season but, once more, the Panthers battled back and with a little over two minutes left in the game. After a scoreless overtime, the Panthers took the victory with a two goals to one shootout. Cristobal Huet stopped 21 of 24 shots but the Blackhawks managed a mind-boggling 55 shots on goal - 24 in the third period - but only came away with the three goals and a loss. The teams tangle in Finland again tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. Chicago time (CSN). more ›

The NHL announced today that the Chicago Blackhawks would be one of four teams opening the 2009-2010 season in Europe as part of a special series. The 'Hawks will head to Helsinki, Finland to take on the Florida Panthers in a two-game "home and home" series while the Detroit Red Wings and St. Louis Blues will tangle in a pair of games in Stockholm, Sweden. Not so coincidentally: Finland and Sweden are the top two countries in terms of non-North American visitors to the NHL's website. While the Panthers have never played a game outside of North America in their existence, the 'Hawks have skated on the other side of the pond before. In September 1992, the Blackhawks and the Montreal Canadiens faced off in a pair of exhibition games at London's Wembley Arena. It will be the third straight year the NHL has opened a season overseas. more ›

If you haven't been watching Beardo on Pitchfork.tv, you've been missing out. Chicagoan Fred Armisen makes an appearance in this latest episode of Tim Harrington's eccentric show, along with an all-star indie rock cast under the moniker USA for Affluence, singing an epic ode to consumerism. more ›

Zambrano No-Hits Astros more ›

Last year, the Blackhawks won just 26 games, ahead of only two teams in the NHL. Although it is just the preseason, Blackhawk fans have to feel good about the upcoming season. The Chicago Blackhawks have played five of their eight preseason games and are off to a perfect 5-0 start. The Blackhawks have not had troubles sounding the horn, scoring 19 goals for an average of 3.8 goals per game. In four of the... more ›

Lately, it has seemed like the Bears players just cannot stay out of trouble with the law. There were so many inciidents that we even suggested a Clue-like game to predict who, where and why a Bears player would next be arrested. Following two incidents by Tank Johnson, Daven Holly was nabbed after shots were fired from his SUV. Now, even guys who haven't officially joined the team are going that extra step to prove... more ›

Jon Singer, Mike Simons and David Singer of Intonation Music Festival more ›

This week in Chicagoland is turning out to be the week of updating who will be playing at what fest. Tomorrow at 8:30 am is the big Lollapalooza line up announcement. Official on-sale date for tickets/wristbands to be announced as well. We will be throwing something up regarding this as close to the announcement as possible - we can only type so fast while "working". We're still scratching our heads wondering who thought it was... more ›

Chicagoist always thought that right up there with death and taxes, Monday Night Football on ABC was one of life's certainties. But the NFL's recently negotiated new television deals that move the league's flagship game to a new home with an entirely new broadcast team. Yup, after 35 years on ABC, Monday Night Football is moving to cable. more ›

The Bears magical season came to an end Sunday evening as the Carolina Panthers beat the Bears 29-21 in front of a packed Soldier Field. There will be no trip to Seattle for the Bears next weekend and no trip to Detroit. Steve Smith gave the Bears a preview of what to expect the rest of the game when he scored on a 58-yard touchdown reception within the first minute of the game. He ended... more ›

• In Park Ridge they're adding signs below some stop signs that say "Stop Means Stop." If that doesn't work then maybe they can add another sign under that saying "Dammit, we mean it, STOP!!"
• A Charlotte news station did an article about all the Chicago restaurants in their town as the Panthers look to the Bears playoff game this weekend.
• A couple local art gallery owners are in deep doo for smuggling protected artifacts - you know like carved elephant tusks and ceremonial headdresses made from feathers of endangered birds and a carved shell of an endangered sea turtle.

Having earned a first round playoff bye, the Chicago Bears probably spent Sunday the same way Chicagoist did -- on the couch watching a little football. While we were trying to recover from our Mexican vacation-induced football withdrawal, the Bears were watching to find out who they'd welcome to Soldier Field next weekend. more ›

The Bears came into this weekend with a surprising 6-3 record, which placed them atop the NFC North. But the division and the Bears schedule in general was pretty weak through the first 9 games of the seaon. The Bears wins came against the likes of the New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions. Lots of questions remained about how the team would fare when opposing one of the league's top teams. more ›

Any true Chicagoan knows the true origin of the Windy City nickname, but when events like Sunday's Bears-49ers game are broadcast nationwide it's no wonder that people think it has to do with our weather. Playing in winds gusting to nearly 50 mph, the game saw a number of unusual plays that impacted both teams. The Bears overcame kicking difficulties, an interception in the end zone and three Bobby Wade fumbles on punt returns... more ›

Is Muhsin Muhammad already becomming a bad influence on his new teammates? Early Sunday morning, defensive tackle "Tank" Johnson was arrested on gun charges -- a crime Muhammad plead guilty to in 2002 while playing for the Panthers. more ›

The NFL released its 2005 schedule yesterday, which of course means we learn the Bears' 2005 schedule. Once again, the Bears are denied any Monday Night games. Their only prime time game is their Dec. 18th Sunday night game against Atlanta that will be shown on ESPN. Date Opponent Time 9/11 at Washington Redskins 12:00 p.m. 9/18 Detroit Lions 12:00 p.m. 9/25 Cinncinati Bengals 12:00 p.m. 10/2 Bye   10/9 at Cleveland Browns 12:00 p.m.... more ›

The March towards the Arch returns to action today, including two games at the AllState Arena. In Chicago, there's really only one game -- Cinderella-story Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers vs. top-seed Illinois Fighting Illini. Who'd have thought when the Illini forsaw playing in the Chicago regional, that their opponent's campus would actually be half the distance to the arena? No matter... it'll still be a sea of orange in Rosemont. And that orange sea will be loudly... more ›

Just hours after his release from the Carolina Panthers (who didn't want to pay a $10 million roster bonus), the Bears pulled off a major coup when they agreed to a deal with All Pro wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad. His deal, which guarantees at least $12 million, could be worth up to $30 million over 6 years. Muhammad caught 93 passes last season for 1,405 yards and 16 touchdowns. And that was after fellow WR... more ›