You’ve got to hand it to the Cubs: They’ve opened some eyes in the first few weeks of the season.
The Cubs lead all National League teams in batting average and are third in ERA. They’re making all kinds of exciting things happen on the basepaths and have one player after another — Cody Bellinger, Patrick Wisdom, Marcus Stroman, Justin Steele — rising to the occasion.
Is this team legit good? In this week’s “Polling Place,” your home for Sun-Times sports polls on Twitter, we asked which three words best describe the 2023 Cubs: “the real deal,” “potentially pretty good,” “average at best” or “destined to lose”?
“It’s early,” @RogersParkMan commented, “but W’s in April matter.”
We ran an identical poll about the White Sox, who have been — perhaps you noticed — losing their rear ends off.
“Same old song,” @JCOLSCS wrote.
“Stink, stank, stunk,” @MikePTraffic chimed in.
Last, we wanted to know which TV network does the NFL Draft better, ESPN or NFL Network? The draft begins Thursday.
On to the polls:
Poll No. 1: Describe the Cubs in three words.
It’s time for this week’s “Polling Place.” Let us hear from you! Selected comments will appear in Saturday's paper.
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) April 20, 2023
Q1: Describe the Cubs in three words.
Upshot: Even after a 10-3 stretch that included a 5-1 trip to see the Dodgers and A’s, the Cubs clearly still have some convincing to do. Props to the fans among our respondents for taking it nice and slow in their assessment of the team’s early success. See? And some people still think Cubs backers are just a bunch of pushovers.
Poll No. 2: Describe the White Sox in three words.
Q2: Describe the White Sox in three words.
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) April 20, 2023
Upshot: The bad news is that 90% of respondents are in the Sox-are-going-nowhere camp, but the good news is . . . hang on, still checking . . . OK, never mind. But wait! The baseball forecast might be gloomy, but closer Liam Hendriks is in remission after a bout with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and soon will be on the comeback trail. That’s something we all can feel great about.
Poll No. 3: Which network carries the NFL draft better?
Q3: Which network carries the NFL draft better?
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) April 20, 2023
Upshot: As @RonaldVoigt4 put it, “Criticize ESPN’s East Coast Bias if you want, but they are unquestionably the gold standard.” You still have to be pretty dang wonkish to watch hours of draft coverage, no matter which hosts and analysts are your cups of tea. Some of us can wait to read about it in the paper.
