Mike McCann's Field of Fotos

My most recent visit to Wrigley Field came 10 years ago -- just months after the passing of "Mister Cub" Ernie Banks.  That season, the club paid tribute by chalking his number just behind home plate. Below: the view toward left field, includes the ivy growing over outfield wall, plus the rooftop bleachers atop the apartment buildings across North Sheffield Avenue.  Wrigleyville!  Below, the area's most famous sports bar, and going strong since 1980 Murphy's Bleachers.  Have you noticed in recent years, how many teams have planned or built entertainment and restaurant districts around their ballparks?  Wrigleyville was the original model. As for Wrigley's bleachers, here's the iconic entrance. 

...you share it with Wyatt Young .  The Honolulu native and Pepperdine product was the Mets 15th round draft pick in 2021.  A middle infielder, he's spent most of the past four seasons at AA Binghamton where he plays hard and is a dependable defender.  Trapped behind Brett Baty, Ronnie Mauricio, Jett Williams and Mark Vientos among the organization's infielders, Young isn't on the fast track or likely, any track, to Citi Field.  You have to admire his determination -- suiting up 100 or so nights ever summer, dedicating himself to the game he clearly loves, even if the payoff isn't a multi-million dollar contract. While Young might not ever see his name in a lineup with Juan Soto or Francisco Lindor, he can take pride in once sharing a field with another future Hall of Famer.  I got a kick from the above image from 2023, when then-Met Justin Verlander had a rehab start with Binghamton before returning from injury.   Not deferring a bit to his teamm...

With three everyday players in free agency, the Phillies could be in for a major 2026 makeover -- or maybe not.  The organization appears to want Kyle Schwarber (above), Harrison Bader (below) and JT Realmuto (bottom) to return -- if the price (and contract terms) is right. The trouble is that at least a half dozen other teams will likely show interest in Schwarber and Bader and at least a couple others for Realmuto.  All could fill holes in lineups, make impacts in the field or clubhouse.  And with all three players on the "wrong" side of 30, do owner John Middleton and baseball CEO Dave Dombrowski want to run back the same squad that struggled in the NLDS before falling to the eventual champion Dodgers?  Will bringing familiar faces back close the gap with LA (or Milwaukee) -- especially with the price tags rising? 

...you share it with Matt Williams .   A gifted 3rd baseman who hit for power, he won four Gold Gloves while cracking 378 home runs over 17 seasons.  (Do you remember 1994, when he was on pace to challenge Roger Maris' record when the players struck in early August?)  Matt was on pennant winners with all three of the teams where he played (Giants, Indians and D'backs) and won a ring with Arizona in 2001.  Before his two year run as Nationals manager, he spent three years coaching with the Diamondbacks. Williams is joined on 11/28 by  Jose Trevino .  The defense-first catcher made the All Star team in 2022, after the Rangers traded him to the Yankees.  But injuries wrecked his 2023 and '24, before he was traded to the Reds.

The Mets and Rangers officially lit the Hot Stove on Saturday night.  In the kind of deal that usually takes place at the winter meetings, a pair of high priced veterans changed teams:  Brandon Nimmo heads to Texas,  Marcus Semien will now call Flushing home. Both players had off-seasons in 2025; both clubs were eager to shake up their rosters after finishing out of the playoff picture. Nimmo has five years and just over $100 million left on his deal; he'll likely replace the non-tendered Adolis Garcia in the Rangers outfield.  Semien, with $72 million remaining the next three years, probably claims 2nd base with the Mets, after the veteran Jeff McNeil and several younger players failed to lock down the position. Nimmo often talked about how he loved being a Met; 10 seasons in Citi Field after being the club's 1st round draft pick in 2011; he often talked about being a career Met and hold some of its offensive records. Semien (seen here with the 2019 A's), who won ...

...you share it with Stan Musial , very simply the greatest ballplayer in St. Louis history.  For 22 seasons, Stan the Man was the model of consistency, productivity and sportsmanship -- admired and respected around baseball and adored in his adopted home town. More than sixty years after he retired, he is celebrated at the current Busch Stadium with a pair of statues, as well as a display across the street at the St. Louis Baseball Museum.   The stats were amazing: 3630 hits, 1815 at home, 1815 on the road. 475 home runs... 7 National League batting titles, 3 MVP awards, 24 All Star Game selections and a spot on the MLB  All-Century Team in 1999. Perhaps the only bad luck Stan had was to not play in the World Series as television became the game's principle media outlet.  After 1946 -- when his Cardinals defeated Ted Williams' Red Sox -- the Dodgers, Braves and Giants kept winning pennants, and kept Musial's clubs out of the spotlight. Visit the Baseball Hall of Fam...