Hot dog! Cubs players share their favorite varieties of the ballpark dish

The Chicago-style hot dog has always been a Wrigley Field favorite, of course.

What Cubs fans may find disheartening is that it is not necessarily a favorite among the Cubs players -- at least not with the requisite toppings of yellow mustard, chopped onions, green pickle relish, dill pickle spear, tomato, pickled sport peppers and celery salt.

Cubs pitcher James Russell might as well be shunned by the Chicago community for his taste in hot dog fixings.

"Ketchup only," said Russell. "I didn't realize that whenever you get into Chicago, it's kind of frowned upon to just put ketchup on your hot dog."

Center fielder Matt Szczur likes his hot dog with a few more toppings, but not quite the Chicago way.

"I just like ketchup, mustard and relish and I'm satisfied," said Szczur. 

Although Szczur enjoys his simple hot dog, he has had the Chicago style before.

"When I was drafted, that was one of the things they wanted us to do was to have a hot dog," said Szczur.

Not a bad welcome to Chicago.

Some players enjoy the Chicago dog, but struggle when it's time to eat it.

"Sometimes it's tough to eat," said second baseman Darwin Barney. "If I'm eating a hot dog, I want to demolish it."

On the other hand, pitcher Matt Garza is all for the famous Chicago favorite -- except the peppers.

"I order it with everything, no peppers," said Garza. "It's not spicy, I just don't like the taste."

Well Garza, that just means more for the fans.

This post is part of a Cactus League partnership between MLB.com and Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

-- Chelsea Bolyard / Contributor to MLB.com