MLB

There's nothing quite like the tradition of Opening Day at Wrigley Field--a crisp spring breeze blowing off of Lake Michigan; the brown ivy getting ready to bloom into a luscious green; a sea of Cubby blue in the stands; Under Armour signage on the outfield wall; Devin Hester singing the seventh inning stretch; another Cubs defeat.

The White Sox were able to avoid their first sweep to begin a season since 2003 Thursday, defeating the Cleveland Indians 4-3. The news was not all good for the South Siders, however, as starter Mark Buehrle left the game in the second inning after taking a liner off his pitching hand.

Jason Marquis' impressive performance in his Cubs debut was marred by a bullpen meltdown in which a one-run Cubs lead quickly turned into a three-run deficit, from which the Cubs never recovered, losing 5-2 to the hometown Cincinnati Reds.

Ideal weather conditions in April are uncommon in Chicago, making the Sox 8-7 loss to Cleveland even more heartbreaking.

Lou Piniella proved to be the anti-Dusty following the team's feeble opening day performance, calling out his players, specifically former staff ace Carlos Zambrano, who had to have his diaper changed after throwing more temper tantrums than strikes Monday.

Sox closer Bobby Jenks is hoping to turn in a great performance off the mound when his team visits Cleveland next week. Last Sunday, Indians pitcher C.C. Sabathia challenged for the title of biggest gormandizer in Major League Baseball.

During a pre-dawn auction run in a dilapidated downstate barn, the Tribune Company was sold to the highest bidder. Reclusive billionaire Sam Zell was the winning bidder.