MESA, Ariz. -- Here’s something that would have added to the charm of taking in a game at Wrigley Field: Cubs players taking warm-up swings on the concourse during games.

Give manager Dale Sveum credit for trying, but his efforts to put a batting cage somewhere in the bowels of Wrigley Field behind the dugout were unsuccessful. About the only area there was space for guys to take a full swing was near the concession stands on the first-base side.

That won’t happen, of course, and players will stick to the practice of hitting balls into a screen in the clubhouse.

“We searched a lot of little places and man there was just nothing where you can get a full swing anywhere unless you went out in the concourse there,” Sveum said. “That’d be great.”


Sveum found out just like other Cubs managers before him that space is nonexistent in the classic stadium. He even tried to convert the postgame interview room into a place guys can take their cuts, but it didn’t work.

“It ain’t going to happen,” he said. “The pillars were in a bad spot. The swings would have been [altered].”

Sveum did say that an additional hitting area was added under the right-field bleachers, but didn’t think it would be accessible during games. He hopes a potential renovation in a few years will address the batting cage issue.

“I think most of that stuff is overrated, too, because this game went on a long, long time without batting cages and flip swings and all that,” Sveum said. “Sometimes when you get ready you’re dry swinging it, but you’re doing it visually, preparing yourself visually, stuff like that. It’s nice to have and we will here in a couple of years.”