May 15, 2017 ESPNChicago.com, Cubs know off-the-field fun has to wait when baseball is your career http://www.espn.com/blog/chicago/cubs/post/_/id/44147/cubs-fun-has-to-wait-when-baseball-is-your- career ESPNChicago.com, Has the bar been lowered for Cubs' Jake Arrieta? http://www.espn.com/blog/chicago/cubs/post/_/id/44158/has-the-bar-been-lowered-for-cubs-jake-arrieta ESPNChicago.com, Sarcastic Joe Maddon has 'ideas' for safety rules http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/19382689/sarcastic-chicago-cubs-manager-joe-maddon-ideas-safety- rules CSNChicago.com, Cubs Spin After Cardinals Beat Jake Arrieta: ‘I Don’t Think There’s Any Reason To Panic’ http://www.csnchicago.com/chicago-cubs/cubs-spin-after-cardinals-beat-jake-arrieta-i-dont-think-theres-any- reason-panic CSNChicago.com, How Ian Happ Could Force The Issue And Stick With Cubs http://www.csnchicago.com/chicago-cubs/how-ian-happ-could-force-issue-and-stick-cubs CSNChicago.com, Cubs Manager Joe Maddon Trolls Mlb Safety Rules, Proposes Cup Checks, Face Masks And Banning Headfirst Slides http://www.csnchicago.com/chicago-cubs/cubs-manager-joe-maddon-trolls-mlb-safety-rules-proposes-cup- checks-face-masks-and Chicago Tribune, Cubs limp home after 5-0 loss to Cardinals drops them below .500 http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-cardinals-spt-0515-20170514-story.html Chicago Tribune, No head-first slides? Cage in on-deck circle? Joe Maddon sarcastically proposes safety rules http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-joe-maddon-safety-rules-20170514-story.html Chicago Tribune, Jake Arrieta, Kyle Schwarber can't break out of their funks http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-jake-arrieta-kyle-schwarber-notes-spt-0515- 20170514-story.html Chicago Tribune, Cubs' Jake Arrieta watches dominance over former TCU teammate Matt Carpenter end http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-jake-arrieta-tcu-matt-carpenter-20170514- story.html Chicago Tribune, Once part of Cubs' future, Matt Szczur thankful to get a chance elsewhere http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-matt-szczur-padres-opportunity-sullivan-spt-0515- 20170514-column.html Chicago Tribune, Eddie Butler, who won't pitch again until Friday, doesn't mind extra time between starts http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-eddie-butler-20170514-story.html Chicago Sun-Times, Struggling Kyle Schwarber (.179) still leading off, still ‘confident’ http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/struggling-kyle-schwarber-179-still-leading-off-still-confident/ Chicago Sun-Times, Cubs prospect Ian Happ making himself look at home in the big leagues http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/cubs-prospect-ian-happ-making-himself-look-at-home-in-the-big- leagues/ Chicago Sun-Times, Cubs drop series to Cardinals, head home with losing record, questions http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/cubs-drop-series-to-cardinals-head-home-with-losing-record-questions/ Chicago Sun-Times, Cubs’ David Ross admits dancing is more frustrating than baseball http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/cubs-david-ross-admits-dancing-is-more-frustrating-than-baseball/ Chicago Sun-Times, I’m no Ronnie ‘Woo Woo’ fan, but Cubs’ treatment of fixture is dumb PR http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/im-no-ronnie-woo-woo-fan-but-cubs-treatment-of-fixture-is-bad-pr/ Chicago Sun-Times, Cup-check time: Joe Maddon is full of ideas to increase player safety http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/cup-check-time-joe-maddon-is-full-of-ideas-to-increase-player-safety/ Daily Herald, Chicago Cubs shuffle rotation a bit http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20170514/chicago-cubs-shuffle-rotation-a-bit Daily Herald, Arrieta's ERA rises as Cubs lose to Cardinals http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20170514/arrietax2019s-era-rises-as-cubs-lose-to-cardinals Daily Herald, Maddon 'proposes' new baseball safety rules http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20170514/maddon-x2018proposesx2019-new-baseball-safety-rules Daily Herald, Imrem: No surprise this year isn't last year for Chicago Cubs http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20170514/imrem-no-surprise-this-year-isnx2019t-last-year-for-chicago- cubs Cubs.com, Homers aside, Arrieta's start draws praise http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/230273624/cubs-jake-arrieta-allows-homers-draws-praise/ Cubs.com, Cubs shut out on 4 hits, drop set, below .500 http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/230228872/adam-wainwright-cardinals-shut-out-cubs/ Cubs.com, Maddon offers 'protectionism' suggestions http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/230194524/cubs-joe-maddon-still-unhappy-with-slide-rule/ Cubs.com, Lackey, Cubs hope to thrive back at home http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/230188214/seasoned-vets-arroyo-lackey-duel-at- wrigley/?tcid=tw_share -- ESPNChicago.com Cubs know off-the-field fun has to wait when baseball is your career By Jesse Rogers CHICAGO -- While the Chicago Cubs get a much-needed day off to clear their heads with no game on the schedule Monday, they also know that there is a limit to the fun they can have during their time away from the field. The struggling team can’t afford any new injuries right now, as they’ve gone through a spell of nagging issues lately. None, of course, is as bad as what befell San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner in a dirt-bike accident last month in Colorado that will keep him out for several months. That one is a reminder that while off days are times when players can unwind, not all hobbies are good if your career is in baseball. “When I was a kid, I was really big into skateboarding and skimboarding,” Cubs shortstop Addison Russell said. “Never was a surfer, but I’d try that after I’m done playing. “I stay away from that stuff now. I have investments I have to protect.” A player’s body is an investment in and of itself, which means there are lots of offseason and off-day activities that athletes have to avoid until their careers are over. “Snow skiing,” closer Wade Davis said. “I love to snow ski. I used to ski a lot, but I haven’t been in a while.” Outfielder Jon Jay added: “The first thing I'll do when I’m done playing is go skiing. I told my wife to get that ready. When I’m done, we’re going straight to the mountains for a month.” Skiing is overwhelmingly the activity Cubs players would love to participate in but just can’t. Or at least won’t. There is nothing in a player’s standard contract that says he can’t ski -- or play pickup basketball, for example -- but if a player gets injured, the team has recourse. A contract can be voided. “That’s the tradeoff,” Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said. “They want to do those things, and they can -- they just can’t [get] hurt.” As you might imagine, considering his personality, pitcher Jake Arrieta has the longest “bucket list” of recreational activities he’ll dive into after his playing days are over. “There’s a lot,” Arrieta said. “Snow ski. Water ski. Skydive. Bungee jump. All those extreme things, really. My friends growing up did that; my brother-in-law skydives all the time. He’s asked me to do some jumps, but I can’t do it. I want to.” In fact, Arrieta and pitcher Brett Anderson had the same offseason story: Both watched while others enjoyed. “We went to Breckenridge [in Colorado] and a bunch of my friends went skiing, and I’m just sitting there,” Arrieta said. Same for Anderson, also in Breckenridge, but not everyone is an adrenaline junkie. “I’m not that guy,” outfielder Albert Almora Jr. said. “I go on the boat and do my fishing, but I don’t go on Jet Skis and stuff. I get anxiety. I don’t suffer from it, but I think what can happen and stuff like that. Even when fishing. I always have shoes on the boat and am real careful with what’s going on with hooks and stuff. I’m just cautious.” As the weather finally changes in Chicago, players will have more temptations, but most have a routine of saying no to their friends. It didn’t hurt that last week’s day off came in St. Louis instead of Colorado, where there are lots of outdoor extreme activities to participate in. The less that's available to the players, the better. “Riding ATVs,” pitcher Carl Edwards Jr. said. “I would do stuff like that. I don’t ski. It doesn’t get that cold in South Carolina. ... Not even when I retire. I fall and I’m done. Broken hip.” Kyle Schwarber agrees. “Forget skiing,” the outfielder said. “I’ve never tried it. ... I would not skydive. I’d go to some theme parks and stuff. I stick to the things I know.” Schwarber went fishing on the off day in St. Louis; there was no speedboat racing going on. Davis was scared straight early in his career when “he didn’t know better.” “Riding four-wheelers,” he recalled. “Shooting up the side of sand dunes, and some friends had a spill and a couple broken bones, and I thought, maybe this isn’t the best thing.” Surprisingly, players have to stay away from golf for various reasons. “I’m physically limited in a lot of things, but golfing because of my back is something I’ll put off until I’m done,” Anderson said. Davis added: “Golf, for sure. And I’d like to lift more. Upper-body stuff. Can’t do it.” The Bumgarner injury was a good reminder that the “risk isn’t worth the reward,” as Russell pointed out.