While the 162-game schedule is unique to MLB, it’s fair to make some comparisons with the other professional sports. We might even learn something along the way.

While he wasn’t discussing the length of the season or the number of games that hockey players play within short periods of time, I appreciate Nick Foligno’s sentiments.

The longtime NHL veteran, and Blackhawks forward was discussing the team’s rough, early-season schedule. He said, “Every team gets screwed (by the schedule) somehow, someway throughout the season. So who cares?”

ML teams don’t go on circus trips the way the Hawks and Bulls did for years, but they (agreed) do play a ton of games without many days off a couple times a season. This past season, David Ross and every one of the Cubs 14 broadcasters belly-ached about the schedule-somehow forgetting Foligno’s words. My response to the Cubs and every other ML team, “Cry me a river.” Talk to the hundreds of thousands of folks that have pulled double shifts. Professional athletes always have explanations with “we’re not using that as an excuse” thrown in.

I’m not suggesting the Cubs are the only ones guilty of this. They’re the only ones I follow that closely and can’t verify others whining. Incidentally, none of the broadcasters (and I’m including the pre and post-game staffs) are in any danger of breaking Calvin Murphy’s consecutive game streak.