Fans in Wrigley Field bleachers a welcome sight

Cubs left fielder Chris Coghlan made a nice running catch Monday night to end the top of the third inning against the New York Mets.

Then he got to do something he hadn't been able to do this season until then: Toss the ball to the fans in the bleachers.

The newly expanded Wrigley Field bleachers opened Monday in left field, as did those under the center field scoreboard and in far right-center.

New and bigger bleachers are part of the multiyear renovation of the 101-year-old ballpark. In addition to the bleachers, a new videoboard was ready for Monday's game, and it kept fans apprised of stats before the game and lineups during the game.

It had gotten lonely for Cubs outfielders since Opening Day with no fans behind them to cheer them on.

“I guess ‘awkward' would probably be the word I would use,” Coghlan said. “It's different ... Any time you look out there and there's not the same hometown crowd, and as hectic as they are and as fun as they are, it's been kind of a bummer not to have them.”

Relief pitcher James Russell has had a different view of the bleachers. From 2010 until being traded to the Braves last July, Russell observed the bleacher fans from the left-field bullpen.

He rejoined the Cubs last week on the road, so he's getting a first look at all the ongoing work. He, too, seemed happy to see fans, many of whom were decked out in pink to raise awareness for the fight against breast cancer.

“I just remember all the fun people had out there, just pounding some beers and yelling at whatever left fielder was out there,” Russell said. “I'm sure they're going to be a little wild. They've got to make up for lost time.”

The new right-field bleachers will open in June.

K-ration talk:

The Cubs entered Monday with 304 strikeouts by their batters in the first 30 games of the season. That was far and away the most in the National League.

Manager Joe Maddon and the front office attribute some of that to the large amount of young players on the team.

“If you look at it, why are we striking out?” Maddon asked. “We're chasing pitches outside the strike zone. I really believe, and I've worked with a lot of young hitters in the past, eventually they stop swinging at pitches outside the strike zone.”

Strikeouts are a hot topic in baseball, with some people believing they're not all that bad, depending on the circumstance of the game.

“For me, the most egregiously offensive strikeout is runner on third base and less than two outs,” Maddon said. “That one I don't like. The second one would be the runner on second base, nobody out. Not advancing, that's not a good strikeout. Two outs, nobody on, go ahead and strike out. Runner on first base, two outs, go ahead and strike out. We try to drive the ball in those moments. It depends on the placement of the runners. The less outs, the more you like to see the ball put in play.”