Banter fantastic as teams play on

You'd think, with the Cubs sweeping the White Sox last week and the Sox waxing the North Siders Friday and winning again Saturday, that each club's fans would tip their cap to the other occasionally. These are, after all, two first-place squads.

And fans will mumble the occasional compliment. Sort of. If pushed.

True, by the eighth inning of the Sox' 6-5 win Saturday, security officials were breaking up the occasional altercation near the Batter's Eye Brew House in centerfield. Including one in which a Cubs fan didn't care much for a Sox fan's description of his girlfriend.

But, hey, that's all fun at the old ballpark beer garden; those things happen. But earlier, before the fifth of this year's Crosstown Classic got under way, some Cub and Sox fans were willing to play fantasy-league ball for a minute: Isn't there at least one member of the opposing roster they'd like to see in your lineup?

"I'd take (Cubs pitcher Carlos) Zambrano, even though he's a head case," said Jeff Young, a Sox fan from Libertyville tailgating outside U.S. Cellular Field. "I'd take him cause he'd fire up the team, just like (Nick) Swisher did."

Young's brother, Dave, of Gurnee, wasn't so sure. He thinks his team has a different sort of demeanor than the guys up north and don't need Zambrano's brand of emotional motivation.

"I think the Sox demonstrate more of a quiet confidence," Dave said. "They don't have to brag or get too emotional."

Which brought Cubs fan Heather Friedman to A.J. Pierzynski.

"The easy choice for us to take would be (Joe) Crede," said Friedman, who grew up in Des Plaines before moving to Chicago. "But we don't need a third basemen; we've got Ramirez. And I hate Pierzynski."

Stephanie Magoon reminded her friend that Cubs fans used to detest former St. Louis Cardinal Jim Edmonds, too. Until, that is, he donned Cubbie blue and started pounding homers against the White Sox.

"No, I've always loved Jim Edmonds; he's a stand-up guy and a good ballplayer," Friedman said. "Pierzynski is a jerk. That's why I'd kick him to the curb. He's so cocky, and he thinks he's awesome, and he's just not."

But at least the two Maine West High School grads and Cubs fans were enjoying their excursion to U.S. Cellular, right?

"It's in the middle of nowhere, first of all," Friedman said. "I mean the tailgating thing is kind of cool. Outside of that, there's just way more around Wrigley. It's just a better atmosphere and environment."

And you know that frequent Sox fans' claim that the Wrigley rooters are more about gabbing and soaking up the atmosphere than watching the games? Magoon would like to put that to rest, too.

"Their fans do just as much drinking and sitting around and not watching the game," she said, "especially if they're in the bullpen seats."

Lisa Bauer's 9-year-old son, Joey, had just come within 4 mph of throwing as hard as the 30-year-old guy who preceded him on the Southpaw Speed Pitch, which, for a price, shows fans how close they come to matching a Bobby Jenks' 96-mph bullet.

"I do like all the activities and things here for the kids to do and the entertainment," said Bauer, a former Schaumburg resident decked out in Cubs gear. "But I like the beauty of Wrigley Field. It's an old-time, hometown baseball field; I just like it better than here."

Surely, though, Cubs fans would like a chance to erect something like U.S. Cellular's Champions Plaza, unveiled as this season began to commemorate the South Siders' 2005 World Series title. Wouldn't they?

"We'd find a way to outdo this," said Cubs fan Chris Henderson, of Peoria, nodding at the plaza. "I expect the Cubs to win the World Series; they're the best team in baseball."

They'll get to test that again tonight, as the two teams go at it again to wrap up the Crosstown Classic.