Tough opening week for the Chicago Cubs, who lost young slugger Kyle Schwarber for the season.
Schwarber thoroughly wrecked his left knee in a collision with a teammate. His recovery and rehab is expected to take 10 full months.
It's a blow to the Cubs. Schwarber was the Cubs' No. 1 draft pick in 2014 and was fast-tracked to the major leagues last season. He hit 16 home runs in 69 games, then added five more homers in nine postseason games.
Cubs manager Joe Maddon was understandably mournful over losing Schwarber:
"Young man, sophomore season in the big leagues, one of the most refreshing talents in all of Major League Baseball. And now to be out for the rest of the season, it's not easy."
It isn't. The Pirates know what an impact a sudden injury can have. Last Sept. 17, Jung Ho Kang's season ended when his lower left leg was broken on a slide by the Cubs' Chris Coghlan. It wasn't a dirty play. Kang made a big mistake by staying in the path of the runner.
The distasteful part was Maddon's reaction to the play. Asked about Kang's injury afterwards, he made the bizarre smart aleck comment, "I heard he has plantar fasciitis."
Plantar fasciitis is a foot pain that will usually send people to a podiatrist, not a surgeon.
Kang is still doing rehab work at the Pirates' Florida training base. As of last week, he had still not been cleared to make left turns while running, nor had he attempted to slide. It has been nearly seven months since his injury. The Pirates signed David Freese as insurance this year.
The Cubs and Maddon will now seek ways to make up the offense they lost when Schwarber was carted off the field.
Watch out for karma, Joe. Sometimes it's as nasty as 100 mile per hour fastball.
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--HIT THE JACKPOT
With one swipe of a pen -- lovers of irony hope it was a 50-cent Bic -- Gregory Polanco guaranteed himself $30 million from the Pirates.
It's been mentioned that's a lot for a person who comes from humble means in the Dominican Republic. The fact is it's a lot of money for anybody not named Rockefeller or Trump.
People scratch off lottery tickets with the dream of getting a small fraction of $30 million.
This year will mark the 40th anniversary of free agency in baseball. The process is radically different than it was in 1976, but the theory remains the same. The players can shop their services and find out what someone is willing to pay.
The fear of that open market leads to the kind of pre-emptive contract Polanco signed last week.
He can make more than $30 million, but that amount is assured. Getting contracts guaranteed was one of the most significant steps the Players Association ever negotiated.
It doesn't work that way in the NFL. Jerome Bettis had a contract with the Steelers, but circumstances changed. In consecutive years, he agreed to cut his salary by $2.7 million and $2.9 million to stay with the team rather than being released.
The contract that called for the original high figures? Might as well use it as a placemat for all it was worth.
Baseball GMs probably fantasize about a system that would let them re-do multi-year contracts, but it's not possible.
When the player signs, he's assured himself of the money. Every MLB player's home should have a portrait of Marvin Miller in a place of honor.
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--NEW LIFE
Here's hoping 14-year-old Drake LaRoche is adjusting to his retirement from the Chicago White Sox.
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