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player ready...In recent years, Chicagoans have been spoiled with playoff appearances by nearly all of its major pro sports franchises (sorry, Blackhawks). But what has been lacking in most of those recent playoff runs is a championship, which only the White Sox achieved.
The Fire hopes to change that when it opens the postseason against D.C. United on Thursday at Toyota Park. The home-and-away series, which is determined by whoever scores more goals in two games, will give the Fire a chance to move one step closer to its second MLS Cup title.
Here is a look at the recent postseason runs by Chicago’s other sports franchises and how those teams compare with the current Fire team:
Cubs
A new coach can take a while to get used to for some teams, especially when they’re a more intense version of the previous low-key manager.
The Cubs learned to adapt to fiery Lou Piniella, the Fire would do the same with the vocal Juan Carlos Osorio, and both teams would advance to the postseason with their first-year coaches.
Piniella’s Cubs were swept in the opening round of the playoffs. Osorio shouldn’t be too worried about his opponents lighting up Fire goalkeeper Matt Pickens. The Fire’s back line really has come on in the second half of the season, giving up only 10 goals in the last 14 games.
Bulls
The Bulls broke the bank to sign Ben Wallace, only to fall in the second round of last season’s playoffs to the Detroit Pistons. The Fire hopes its big-money signing, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, will have better luck in his first postseason with Chicago.
Wallace’s young teammates were too inexperienced for the Pistons’ veterans, but Blanco shouldn’t have that problem. The Mexican striker will be surrounded by Chris Armas, Diego Gutierrez and C.J. Brown, all members of the Fire’s 1998 title team.
Bears
Some believe the Bears were a reliable quarterback away from beating the Indianapolis Colts in February’s Super Bowl. A similar argument could be made about the Fire, which is likely a consistent forward away from being a championship team.
The forwards have struggled to finish scoring opportunities, which was most evident during the Fire’s 1-0 victory Sunday over the Galaxy. The score should have been more like 3-0.
Chad Barrett creates chances and always seems to score a goal just when fans have given up on him. And it looks like proven goal-scorer Chris Rolfe could be moved back to forward after playing the last four games as a midfielder.
If the forwards struggle to score, the Fire will likely stumble and Chicagoans will point a finger at the forward position the way they pointed at the quarterback position following the Super Bowl.
White Sox
Good pitching combined with just enough offense proved to be a successful formula for the Sox during their championship run in 2005.
The Fire has more ties than victories during its eight-game unbeaten streak, but when it does win, it’s usually because its defense held up and its offense scored just enough. Not since Aug. 25 has the Fire won a game by two goals or more.
The question is whether the Fire has enough offense to keep up with D.C. United, which has scored 56 goals this season compared with the Fire’s 31.
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