April 2 (Bloomberg) -- Lifelong Chicago Cubs fan Morgan Murphy is getting nervous. The hiring of All-Star outfielder Alfonso Soriano and manager Lou Piniella created so much excitement that she hasn't been able to land tickets for a game early this season.

``People are really diligent this year, trying to get tickets on line, the only way you can get them,'' said Murphy, 27, of Chicago. ``People are definitely excited. I'm hoping for a winning season.''

Hope springs eternal in Chicago, at least for Cubs fans. After enduring Major League Baseball's longest drought of World Series victories, they are gobbling up tickets and team souvenirs following the franchise's off-season hiring spree.

Fans say this may be the Cubs' golden opportunity to make it to the championship. The team agreed to pay Soriano a team-record $17 million annually and hired Piniella, its first full-season manager with a World Series victory on his resume since Leo Durocher in 1966. The club spent about $300 million in the off- season on free-agent contracts after finishing last in the National League.

As the Cubs approached today's opening game against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, ticket sales for the first home game at Wrigley Field on April 9 were 11 percent above 2006 on the swap site www.ticketsnow.com. First-row, opening-day seats behind the dugout went for $1,265, about five times the $255 they cost at the team box office before it sold out.

Sales of memorabilia such as caps and jerseys are running 20 percent higher than a year ago at Wrigleyville Sports near the stadium, co-owner Trey Carlstrom said.

``There's definitely more jerseys selling because of the new acquisitions,'' Carlstrom said.

Hot Ticket

In March, EBay Inc.'s www.StubHub.com sold 47 percent more tickets for games at Wrigley Field than a year earlier, said Sean Pate, a spokesman for the ticket marketplace.

Cubs tickets were the third-best sellers in Major League Baseball on the site, behind the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees and up from fifth place last year. The average price of a Cubs ticket has risen to $84 from $74, he said.

``People are excited about the run that the Cubs might make,'' Pate said.

Season-ticket holder Patrick Reedy is so excited that he's buying his infant son Cubs gear: pajamas.

``I'm hopeful, as I am every March, that the latest changes will be what the team needs,'' said Reedy, 36. ``I'm also more aware every year how futile that hope often is.''

`Gross Negligence'

Reedy isn't the only Cubs fan losing patience. As part of a tongue-in-cheek series in the Sun-Times newspaper, 73 percent of readers said the Cubs' owner, Tribune Co., is guilty of ``gross negligence'' for failing to secure a World Series win since 1908. Tribune publishes the rival Chicago Tribune.

New team ownership may be on the way. Chicago-based Tribune Co. today accepted an $8.2 billion buyout offer from local real estate billionaire Sam Zell. He already has a stake in Chicago's other baseball team, the White Sox, and says he plans to sell the Cubs once the purchase is completed.

Even as fans fret, the Cubbies' odds of winning the World Series were raised to 30-1, from 75-1 five months ago, by Las Vegas Sports Consultants, which advises Nevada sports books on betting lines.

Tourists flock to visit the vine-covered brick walls at Wrigley, which at 93 years is the second-oldest Major League stadium, after Boston's Fenway Park. In August and September, crowds typically thin as the team falls in the standings.

History of Frustration

The decline comes later some years than others. In 2003, the Cubs were one win from the World Series, leading the Florida Marlins three games to two in a best-of-seven series, only to have a fan deflect a fly ball headed for the mitt of outfielder Moises Alou. The Cubs lost the series four games to three.

The Cubs were two games ahead of the Astros for the last National League playoff spot in 2004, then lost five of their last six games to miss a post-season berth.

History shows the hiring may not buy a championship. Piniella hasn't returned to the World Series since winning in 1990 with the Reds, though he won three American League West division titles as manager of the Seattle Mariners from 1993 to 2002.

Durocher, who had led the New York Giants to a championship in 1954, managed the Cubs from 1966 to 1972 without a World Series win. Joe Altobelli, who managed the 1983 Baltimore Orioles to a championship, coached the Cubs for one game in 1991 before being replaced.

Al Yellon, a season-ticket holder and founder of Web site www.bleedcubbieblue.com, reflects the mixed feelings of fans. While he looks forward to the season, he's concerned that bad karma may catch up with new team members.

``It could come back to bite the Cubs,'' said Yellon, 50. ``Several years from now, the Cubs could wind up with a huge payroll of mid-30s players who aren't performing.''

Murphy, the ticketless fan, is optimistic about the team's chances for success and her likelihood of attending a home game: ``We've got a little time yet.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Tony C. Dreibus in Chicago at tdreibus@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 2, 2007 09:18 EDT