Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about a 5-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.
Afternoon Edition
Chicago’s most important news of the day, delivered every weekday afternoon. Plus, a bonus issue on Saturdays that dives into the city’s storied history.
This afternoon will be cloudy with a high near 46 degrees and showers likely. Tonight will be mostly cloudy with possible rain and snow showers and a low around 35 degrees. Expect more rain and snow showers tomorrow with a high near 41 degrees.
Top story
A few degrees above freezing. No matter. Passion burns bright for Cubs fans on Opening Day
How many layers to wear? Whether to share your name with a newspaper reporter and risk the wrath of your boss for ditching work? Whether one should drink cold beer in 40-degree weather?
These were questions several Cubs fans wrestled with today outside the ballpark on Opening Day.
Well, that’s not entirely true.
The last one required little soul searching.
“Is that a real question?” asked one bemused fan.
A beer vendor on his way into the park just laughed when asked if sales would suffer.
The ballhawks — the die-hards who stand outside the ballpark, mitts on hands, hoping to catch a home run — entrenched early Thursday beyond the left-field wall for pre-game batting practice.
Veteran ballhawk Mike Wolf, 41, dreamed of catching a homer on the fly. “I’ve only gotten one on the fly,” he said.
A nearby peanut hawker attempted to convince people the peanuts he was selling were bigger than the ones in the park.
“Opening Day is spring Christmas,” said Jackson Bungart, who flew in from San Francisco for Opening Day.
He was raised a Cubs fan in Highland Park before journeying to the West Coast.
Cubs fans who arrived early also faced light rain and ice pellets with winds gusting to 30 mph.
“It’s warm enough that you can enjoy a good baseball game,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Jake Petr, who hails from Nebraska.
Mitch Dudek and Cadence Quaranta have more from Wrigley Field here.
More news you need
- Two Lyons brothers are facing charges after their mother and sister were found buried in the backyard of their southwest suburban home last year. The bodies were uncovered in August after police conducted a well-being check at the home, police said.
- A Chicago Heights man with a history of violence and several criminal convictions is set to be sentenced today for leveling a threat against President Joe Biden’s 2021 inauguration. While Louis Capriotti’s threats weren’t connected to the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, “the timing of Capriotti’s voice messages should not be ignored,” federal prosecutors said.
- Nearly all Local School Councils have enough candidates to properly function next school year as Chicago Public Schools communities gear up for elections this month. For the first time, kids in sixth through eighth grades are eligible to serve on councils — 759 students that age have submitted applications to run.
- WTTW-Channel 11 and members of the electricians union have reached a tentative deal that could end a three-week strike. The 23 striking employees are casting votes online today to approve or reject the deal, a union official said.
- A cannabis firm with deep ties to city government can’t legally follow through on its plan to move a Norwood Park dispensary to the site of the former Rainforest Cafe on the Near North Side. State law prohibits the shop from opening at 605 N. Clark St. because three other dispensaries are already nearby.
- Four thousand electric scooters will hit the streets next month and take their place as a permanent part of Chicago’s transportation system. Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration authorized three companies to start renting 1,000 scooters apiece outside downtown.
A bright one
Navy Pier’s newest installation: Expo Chicago
Inside Festival Hall at Navy Pier yesterday, art handlers, gallery employees and artists were busy setting up. Art pieces were delicately unwrapped.
Large crates were rolled from one booth to another. Nails were hammered into walls, soon to hold a diverse array of paintings, installations and other artwork.
The preparations mark the return of Expo Chicago, being held in person this year for the first time since 2019. From tonight through Sunday, it will feature modern and contemporary art from 140 art galleries across the world.
Booths display art from galleries in Tokyo, New York, Mexico City, and London, with 25 countries and 65 cities represented in total.
In September 2020, with shutdowns and restrictions in place due to COVID-19, Expo Chicago organized a virtual experience open only to Chicago galleries, said Tony Karman, president of Expo Chicago. In April 2021, it expanded its virtual exposition to a worldwide online audience.
This year’s in-person event will still have an online component, and artists and organizers are excited.
Cadence Quaranta has more on the Expo and artists featured here.
From the press box
- The Cubs took the field this afternoon for their Opening Day matchup against the Brewers with a roster built after a chaotic transaction window. Our Maddie Lee breaks down why this offseason was more complicated than most.
- The White Sox will open their season tomorrow in Detroit with 14 pitchers and 14 position players. Here’s the full, 28-man roster.
- For the Bulls, it hasn’t been pretty for weeks — especially against the NBA’s elite teams. But that doesn’t mean the team can’t find something or at least learn something as the league’s “second season” is set to start. our Joe Cowley explains.
Your daily question ☕
How would you describe what Opening Day is like here to a non-Chicagoan?
Email us (please include your first name and where you live) and we might include your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.
Yesterday, we asked you: As a Chicago resident, how do you feel about a casino being built here?
Here’s what some of you said…
“As a Chicago resident — forget the casino and fix our potholes!” — John Smith
“If it brings more jobs to people, I’m OK with it.” — Rhonda Rowe-Skolnik
“A world-class city does not need a casino. It needs more cultural and intellectual options to keep it world-class.” — Jeera Indica
“Great — they should’ve done it years ago. All the taxes they lost.” — Ronnie Roberts
“I think it would be fine around McCormick Place as it would focus on out-of-town money as opposed to local residents. This way it may generate new tax dollars instead of just moving local money around. Also, it has to be structured as to not take revenue away from local businesses. The casino should focus on gaming only as to not take away from local restaurants, theater district and other entertainment venues.” — Nick Andriacchi
“Terrible idea-try to solve our city’s financial woes with gambling-step back and think about how that sounds. Would we tell our kids to go gamble to get them out of financial problems? I know I wouldn’t. Look at the lottery-has solved nothing and no one knows where that revenue goes.” — Gini S. Ohlson
“Yes I’m tired of going to Indiana. I think it will be OK to have one.” — Brenda Bunch
“I love the idea. It should have been done years ago.” — Irene Garcia-Uribe
“I think it is a bad idea. We need the tourists to come into the city to shop, spend their money at retail, restaurants, and hotels, not gamble it away at a casino. There are plenty of casinos in the general area already.” — Barbara Anne Loth-VanWagner
“Better than a scrap yard lol.” — George Barrera
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