When a Sports Columnist Gets Stuck

The period right after the Super Bowl is a tough patch for Chicago sports writers. No Bulls are in the NBA All‑Star Game, the NHL is on a break for winter events, and the Cubs and White Sox are still in Arizona warming up. With no big local stories or national drama to chew on, the usual routine is a quiet, slow week. The Tribune’s long‑running column “In the Wake of the News” has filled those quiet spots for over a century. Its first voice, Ring Lardner, used to write from the train or the press box, mixing jokes, poems and even invented games into his pieces. When a World Series game was rained out in 1917, Lardner made up a fictional score and sketched a scene with the Giants’ manager in a comic tone. In 1919, while watching the White Sox play the Browns, Lardner wrote a rambling letter to a friend named Harvey.He complained about a stuck typewriter key, then drifted into thoughts about the game’s outcome and even mused on whether it was safer to ride a taxi in St. Louis or play outfield against the famed “Shoeless” Joe Jackson. The whole piece felt like a stream of consciousness, yet it kept readers engaged. Lardner’s style was unpolished—grammar and punctuation took a back seat to humor and imagination. He turned the act of reporting into a playful narrative, letting readers feel the frustration of a stuck key or the chill of a late‑night train ride. That approach made his columns memorable even when the sports world offered nothing newsworthy. Today’s writers can learn from Lardner: when the headlines are empty, fill the space with personality and wit. A sports column doesn’t have to be a straight recap; it can be a slice of life, a joke, or a personal anecdote that connects with fans. If the press box feels too quiet, ask yourself what a classic columnist would do—and answer with your own voice.