Why the Cubs-Cardinals rivalry matters again

CHICAGO -- Like the latest episode of HBO's "Game of Thrones," the battle to take place at Wrigley Field this weekend has been brewing for some time. In fact, the rivalry between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals goes back about as far as Westeros. And just like the rise in intensity this season -- television season, that is -- the baseball rivalry has reached another level as well.

If calling your opponent's city "boring" doesn't add to the rivalry, nothing will. Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant was kidding, of course, when he and former Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster took some shots at the city of St. Louis during a comedy sketch at the Cubs' fan fest in January, when temperatures hovered…