Vendors were "hawking their wares across the street" from Wrigley Field, where business "was good Monday, despite a crackdown on rogue vendors that has pushed even longtime salesmen farther from the crowd than they would like," according to Robert Channick of the CHICAGO TRIBUNE. While some "are licensed peddlers, others carry backpacks for unregulated on-the-fly transactions" such as bootleg T-shirts. Ridvan Mustafa "sells MLB-licensed merchandise from a large pop-up Clark Street Sports stand," which has been in place "for three decades." He said that business "is booming," but that it "can be hard to compete with bootleggers who beat his prices with knockoffs." Harry Gibson sells "custom-designed T-shirts from a duffel bag" which are "anything but official merchandise." On Monday, he was "modeling a [Cubs RF] Kyle Schwarber shirt with the rookie's last name supplanting Schweppes in the familiar beverage logo." Gibson said that an MLB rep "took some photos of his shirts and gave him the green light to keep selling." On the other hand, MLB reps "confiscated supplies they considered an infringement on their trademarks" from licensed street vendor Joanna Seiber. Shirts "bearing 'Friends Don't Let Friends Be Sox Fans,' and 'Sux' replacing the 1980s White Sox logo remained on display." Seiber said, "It's getting worse, with more hassles. (MLB) wrote us a warning and said next time, if they catch us with the same stuff, we get locked up" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 10/14).
FOR THE FANS: Cubs Chair Tom Ricketts yesterday following the team's NLDS-clinching win over the Cardinals said, "We've got two more series to go. But what I will say is, this is fabulous. Fans have hung with us through these years. They know the players, they saw the players that we drafted and traded for." He added, "This is going to be a great run. We're going to go all the way." In Chicago, Scot Gregor writes Cubs fans "finally thought Ricketts [was] pretty awesome after the bellwether win over St. Louis, and the owner gave back the love." Ricketts said, "The crowds were unbelievable, the excitement the last two games was off the charts. I choked up a couple of times" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 10/14).
FULL-GROWN BEARS: In Chicago, David Haugh writes in a year the Cubs "did something no Chicago baseball team had done since 1906 -- clinch a postseason series at home -- nothing seems impossible now, not even ending a 106-year championship drought that hasn't affected this team one iota." Cubs 1B Anthony Rizzo said, "I remember getting here and some people telling me this organization was maybe 30-40 years behind technology-wise, and the things [President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer] did, and it starts with Mr. Ricketts, to turn this organization around, it's really nice for them." Haugh: "This is what happens when an organization hires the best people available, most notably Epstein and [Manager Joe] Maddon, and lets them do their jobs." The Cubs surpassing the Cardinals "feels like the start of something special." Ricketts said, "Nobody here today will forget they were here today. That was pretty amazing." Haugh: "It felt like only the beginning" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 10/14). Epstein said, "It's a wonderful time of innocence, and overcoming and exceeding expectations and bursting on the national scene" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 10/14). In Chicago, Paul Sullivan in a front-page piece writes, "There may have been more talented and experienced Cubs teams, but never has there been one so willing to embrace its role as uniter of a city" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 10/14).
