Plenty of work to be done

When the supposedly financially strapped White Sox pulled the trigger on $115 million worth of deals to acquire starting pitcher Jake Peavy and outfielder Alex Rios in a 10-day span, the general reaction from the supposedly deep-pocketed Cubs was, ''Must be nice.''

Imagine that: The Cubs envying the Sox when it comes to spending money.

Pretty soon, it will be back to business as usual for the Cubs -- but not soon enough to rescue the 2009 squad.

The Ricketts family finally cleared the biggest hurdle Friday by signing a definitive agreement to acquire 95 percent of the franchise from the Sam Zell-controlled Tribune Co. for $845 million.

Zell, who has lost his magic financial magic touch since acquiring Tribune Co. and the Cubs in April 2007, didn't get the $1 billion he was seeking, but there is no doubt the Ricketts family overpaid for their fixer-upper. Forbes magazine valued the Cubs at $700 million this year, making them the fifth-highest-valued franchise in Major League Baseball. The New York Yankees were tops at an estimated value of $1.5 billion.

Real face, real office

The group headed by the father-son team of Joe and Tom Ricketts, a lifelong Cubs fan, won't get the keys to its new toy until at least November, when MLB's owners will meet for a previously scheduled meeting in Chicago.

But at this point, the bankruptcy red tape -- and there is plenty -- and getting approval from 75 percent of the owners are mere formalities. For the first time since 1981, when the Wrigley family sold the club and its ballpark to Tribune Co. for $20.5 million, the Cubs will have an owner with a real face and a real office.

And that means no more corporate mazes to negotiate to get approval for even the smallest moves.

That's the way life has been for the Cubs since the for-sale sign was shoved into the ground on Opening Day 2007, the official start of the Lou Piniella era. The Cubs lost Piniella's opener, prompting the new manager to say: ''There are enough distractions on Opening Day without your team being sold.''

The real distractions hadn't come until the last 10 months or so, when the sale process was stalling at every turn and there was a freeze on general manager Jim Hendry's bankroll. You want to bemoan the losses of Mark DeRosa and even Jason Marquis? Blame the lingering sale of the team.

It was startling how the cash flow hit a dam after an unprecedented free-spending mode. Remember the $300 million shopping spree before the 2007 season? The reason Hendry was cut loose to spend like a crazy man was to polish up a clunker of a team coming off a 96-loss season.

The mandate was to make this team look appealing to potential buyers. That's why Hendry overspent -- in dollars and years -- to acquire free agent Alfonso Soriano, a 46-homer, 41-steals player who was the most attractive free agent on the market that offseason.

Wrigley in dire need of repair

Before the Ricketts family signed their agreement Friday, Tribune Co. was negotiating with two potential buyers, the other a group headed by Marc Utay and Leo Hindery. That complicated matters for the baseball side of things because there wasn't a clear-cut buyer.

Now we know it's the Ricketts group.

How they will manage the Cubs is anyone's guess. Yes, they are fans. But they just overspent on the team, the ballpark and a 25 percent stake in Comcast SportsNet. Wrigley Field, which turns 100 years old in 2014, is in desperate need of updating. And you can be sure the city soon will be pressing the new owners to come up with a plan to update the grumbling building.

In addition, the payroll is weighed down by back-loaded and bad contracts, and the farm system is depleted.

The Ricketts family survived the 2 1/2-year battle to earn the right to be considered the next owners of the Cubs. Now the real work begins.

Comment at suntimes.com.

SUGGESTION BOX

Here are five things that should top the to-do list of the Cubs' new owners:

1. Dump Crane Kenney. He went from Tribune Co. lawyer with a good seat for games to thinking he was Connie Mack. Kenney did a decent job shoveling paper during the transition, but he's also the clown who invited a Greek priest to spread holy water in the Cubs' dugout before their playoff series last October against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

2. Update and improve Wrigley Field. The ivy on the walls looks cool, but the smelly concourses and third-world bathrooms are anything but fan-friendly. Minor-league ballparks do a better job of accommodating fans. This is one area where Tribune Co. consistently cut corners.

3. Let the baseball people run the show. As much grief as general manager Jim Hendry and manager Lou Piniella have received this season, they have been more successful in those jobs than any others in the organization in the last 100 years.

4. Don't forget about the farm system. Inheriting a 101-year World Series title drought can make a new owner do crazy things. The Cubs' core is getting older, and the cupboard looks bare below.

5. Let the fans know you're around. For too long, this has been a corporately owned team with no face behind the franchise. You don't have to become George Steinbrenner, but let the fans know there is a real person signing the checks.

Chris De Luca

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