March 26--The Chicago Cubs' festive pre-workout stretching session included a visit Friday morning by two baby bears from Bearizona Wildlife Park in Williams, Ariz.
The players gravitated toward the cubs before preforming their work, and it brought back some memories from last September when the Cubs received a visit from animals from the Cleveland Zoo.
The Cubs have received plenty of attention this week, from mimes to four players being on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
The publicity may lead to more scrutiny, but veteran Jon Lester believes the extra attention is good for the young players.
"That makes it a lot easier," said Lester, who pitched in a media fishbowl in Boston for 8 1/2 seasons. "All the other extra curricular stuff is good for these guys. It's something that a lot of us have gone through at different points in our career and with the hype and hoopla involved, you have to go through stuff like this to make yourself better.
"I think it's good for our guys. I don't think it's going to affect them. I don't think it's affected them so far. I don't see this affecting them."
Because Lester was preparing for his start Friday, he didn't have a chance to visit the bears. But he looked forward to more unusual visits before the Cubs leave Arizona next Wednesday.
"You never know what may show up at Cubs camp or Wrigley Field," Lester said. "It's nice. It keeps us on our toes and we have fun with it. It also keeps the attention of some of these young guys, too."
Manager Joe Maddon plans to start a campaign to get fans involved in the naming of the cubs.
