So, this morning, Paul Sullivan — Impartial and Balanced Chicago Tribune Cubs Beat Reporter — decided to go partial and, if I may say so myself, unbalanced:

Ron Santo, who has spent the last 19 years as the Cubs’ radio analyst, would be an obvious choice to swing over to the TV side if Brenly departs for Milwaukee. You can almost hear the critics howling: “Santo? Oh, nooooo.”

[...] But if Santo became the TV color man, the reasons for his groaning (and cheering) would be more apparent because you actually could see what he was getting so excited about.

Though Santo is considered a homer’s homer, there’s no doubt he wouldn’t hesitate to criticize Alfonso Soriano for a defensive lapse, Kosuke Fukudome for one of his spin-o-rama strikeouts or any middle reliever who walks the first man he faces. While it’s true he’s over-the-top happy when the Cubs are playing well, Santo’s disgust with the team is palpable when they’re not.

Manager Lou Piniella often reminds us that baseball is entertainment. If so, the most entertaining choice for Brenly’s replacement would be “This Old Cub” himself.

I’ve already written about this at NBC, where, for better or worse, I said: RON SANTO IS TERRIBLE AT CALLING BASEBALL GAMES. EVEN CUBS FANS DON’T LIKE HIM. WHAT IN THE NAME OF PAT HUGHES ARE YOU THINKING?! (I didn’t use all caps over there, though. Have to stay professional!) But you get the gist. This is one of the most unspeakably dumb, silly, and weirdly insider-y ideas Sullivan, or anyone else, has ever dreamed up. Anyone who has ever heard Santo talk doesn’t need me to tell them why.

What I’m more interested in at this point is why Sullivan, a Cubs beat reporter, is openly campaigning for another Cubs media personality to get a job. First of all, he’s a reporter and not a media columnist, or a columnist of any sort. I thought his mandate was to report stuff after it happened, not advocate for news that doesn’t exist yet.

Second, it feels weird and vaguely unethical for Sullivan, a veteran of the Cubs beat, to use his newspaper space to get what I would assume to be a friend — or at the least, an acquaintance — a prime TV gig. That’s the sort of thing that doesn’t belong in the newspaper. Even one run by Sam Zell.

I’m genuinely curious. Are Trib reporters allowed to do this now? Is Paul Sullivan free to blatantly opine? (Even on the Trib’s baseball blog, Sullivan is a reporter, not a guy giving his opinion.) I don’t think it’s a bad thing; I just need to know. Because if we’re dropping the conceit altogether — the idea that reporters report and columnists analyze — I’m cool with it. Let the freak flag fly a bit, eh? It’s just … if Paul Sullivan thinks Ron Santo is what Cubs fans want, or need, from their broadcast, maybe there’s a reason he’s not paid to give his opinion.