Boo birds making themsleves heard at Wrigley
Once upon a time, the only players booed at Wrigley Field wore visitors gray, but not anymore.
Apparently that's what 99 years without a World Series title will do.
Cubs fans have become a tougher crowd to please. Some believe it began to change after the heartbreak of 2003, when the Cubs came within five outs of the World Series only to collapse against Florida in the NLCS.
Ticket prices are higher than ever, and so are the expectations on the Cubs.
Carlos Zambrano heard the boos loud and clear on Monday after pitching poorly in his fifth straight loss.
Against Houston on Sunday, left fielder Alfonso Soriano was booed when he failed to catch a ball that dropped on the warning track.
Aramis Ramirez has been booed for his errors in the last week, and closer Ryan Dempster heard boos for a blown save after coming off the disabled list.
"As a visitor when you came here, you never really heard booing, but now it's a little more common," said Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee, formerly with the Marlins. "I'm not sure the reason for it, but we can't let it affect us. Fans are going to do what they want to do."
There were more boos Tuesday night in the Cubs' 6-2 loss to the Dodgers when they hit into five double plays. The loudest were directed at reliever Will Ohman, who faced three batters in the eighth inning and couldn't get anyone out.
Cubs manager Lou Piniella knows all about playing where there are high expectations as a former member of the New York Yankees.
"When I played, and I played on many successful teams in New York, when the fans didn't like what was going on they let you know it," Piniella said. "The best way to quiet them is to go out there and do well. They'll cheer you right back. They want to see you do well.
"The same way that players get frustrated, fans get frustrated. You don't like to see your players get booed, but what can you do? It's part of the emotion. The thing about it is you turn a deaf ear to that and you go about your business as a professional, and you do good things and they'll cheer you again. I think the only sport they don't boo is golf, that's it."
It's going to be awhile until Zambrano finds out how the fans react to him again. His next two scheduled starts are on the road -- Saturday in Pittsburgh and Sept. 13 at Houston.
Zambrano's next Wrigley Field start wouldn't be until Sept. 17 against Cincinnati, and Piniella hopes the fans are forgiving.
"I hope so, because he's a good kid, he really is," Piniella said. "He's a good young man. He doesn't mean any harm. He and I probably have a lot in common because I've stuck my foot in my mouth a lot of times too."