by Mr. Anthony Gargiulo

Exclusive to Chinmusic.net

I guess we shouldn't be surprised that there's something else besides the ivy creeping on the outfield walls at Wrigley Field this year. It was announced last February that ads promoting the athletic brand Under Armour would be displayed on the green doors situated in right and left field, in between the famed ivy-covered walls. This past week fans at the park for the opening series versus Houston and viewers at home got a chance to experience the new images in the outfield.

I'd almost forgotten about it until I saw some of the low lights of the Cubs opener. What was that white blur against the wall as Soriano chased down a Houston hit? It seemed stunning and out-of-place. A Major League Baseball February press release on the new ads described the outfield green doors as being "decorated" with 7 x 12 foot advertisements. Spell check might have missed that one because I'm sure the writer intended "desecrated".

I was not compelled to take up the pen when ads appeared in the dugout in 2000 or over the brick backstop in 2004. Like most fans that treasure the hallowed ground that Wrigley is, I wasn't happy about it, but I felt powerless to do much.

However, this latest attempt at revenue development by the Cubs now enters personal territory. For my grandfather, Albert Gargiulo, was one of the groundskeepers who planted the vines in the fall of 1937 and who went on to be one of their primary caretakers until his retirement in 1966.

Obviously, these ads interrupt the artistic flow of the horticultural mural that defines the essence of Wrigley Field for the sporting world, if not for the entire world itself. Grandpa, who died on January 2, 1987 - the same day and a year after the vines idea man, Bill Veeck - cannot be happy right now.

At the same time I am slightly conflicted, since I owe about a third of my professional career in human resources to time spent with advertising-related companies. Yes, it is a right of free speech for an advertiser to promote products in a tasteful and legal manner, and for media companies and real estate owners to sell time and space for such purpose.

But all advertising has its appropriate time, place and space. My current employer is well-established in the in-store marketing arena. No one will ever accuse us of desecrating a supermarket.

In the years since free agency, baseball owners have failed to manage the compensation of their players. In order to keep ticket prices sane for fans, the tale now goes, the teams need to develop other streams of revenue to compete. Outside of a well-organized boycott, there's not much fans can do to control the rising cost of attending a game.

So, no matter who the owner is, I guess Cubs fans should anticipate increasingly intrusive and unsavory forms of advertising. My imagination conjures up visions of plastic ivy emblazoned with "BUD" on the front and "WEISER" underneath, revealed as the breeze blows through the ball park. Or how about "BUD" and "LIGHT" ?

By the way, a few folks might find it curious that the new outfield ads are technically over armor, as some might describe the heavy metal doors. And some folks (like this writer) certainly would not have minded a more literal application of this brand's advertisement.

A frustrated journalist, baseball player and guitarist, Mr. Gargiulo opted for the frustrating field of human resources as a career. He resides in Oak Park, IL.
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