I opened my eyes Sunday AM and everything was OK. I was alive, still had a roof over my head and could smell bacon and eggs cooking in the distance. Life would go on. But for many of the Cubs faithful Sunday AM must have been like the day after the death of a loved one. The Cubs were kind of like that patient battling with a long illness who seemed to be in remission. They looked strong and healthy and just when you least expect it they drop dead.
I won’t lie, I picked this team to win it all. How could any baseball analyst pick against them to get at least to the Series for the first time since 1945? They had the starting pitching, tough relief and a very tough line up. The pitching staff led the league in wins and ERA. They were led by manager who won a championship with the Reds and led Seattle to a franchise record 106 wins. Everyone certainly had the pedigree and look of a champion. However these players and managers all shared one affliction…they are Cubs.
The Cubs of the late 60s and 70s couldn’t get to the big game and they had MLB greats like Fergie Jenkins, Bruce Sutter, Ernie Banks, Don Kessinger, Ron Santo and Billy Williams. The Cubs of the mid/late-80s couldn’t do it and they had Sandberg, Matthews, Durham, Ron Cey, Sutcliffe, Eckersley, Lee Smith, Mark Grace, Greg Maddux and Andre Dawson. Now, in the new Millenium they have had a few really good teams. The 2003, 2007 and 2008 Cubs were all good enough to win a championship. One of those teams should have broke through and won it all. The 2003 Cubs were absolutely stacked and with Atlanta and San Francisco out of the way it looked like they would cruise on to a World Series matchup with the Yankees. However, the Cubs decided they would BLOW a 3-1 series lead over Wildcard Florida. Many blame BARTMAN who was an ass for making a play on that ball. But let’s be honest, our A Rod makes a double play after that and the Cubs still have a shot. If Alou and Prior keep their cool we probably prevail.
I don’t know what it is. Maybe it is something cosmic? Maybe it is all about the stupid goat? Maybe after 100 years of losing the pressure is just too much for anyone to bare. Instead of approaching the game as the NL’s best team and kicking ass like they did all season they they go out and try not to lose. Let’s not kid ourselves though. Zambrano was damaged goods. He had a dead arm back in August (with one super human effort thrown in between). Rich Harden was a good pick up but you can’t use him after 5 innings. Ted Lilly, the Cubs best pitcher in the 2nd half of the season, didn’t even get to pitch in the series. Derek Lee is a good player who can’t hit in the clutch and Soriano can’t hit in the lead off spot. Mark DeRosa was playing hurt and Fukudome who hasn’t hit his weight in the 2nd half of the season started both home games. They left a ton of guys on base. The pitchers walked a ton of guys and for the first time all year the Cubs solid infield gave up 4 errors, one at each position. If I was a conspiracy theorist I would even say MLB wants the LA Dodgers v. the Boston Red Sox.
So what am I saying here? This series was lost by our manager. Lou didn’t make the right adjustments and motivate the team to get a win in Chicago and win that 3rd game in LA. Lou was expressionless for the most part. He made bad decision after bad decision. The worst decision being not getting on his team. He should have been vocal. Sometimes that is the wrong play but looking at the expressions on their face I certainly would have lit into someones ass. The team actually look like they gave up after that Loney grand slam in Game 1. Veteran teams that give up are one of my top pet peaves in ALL of sports.
So now what Cub fans? What do we do as a fan? That was the Cubs best chance to get to the big game in about 50 years. The Cubs are one of the few teams that actually make money. When they sell they are going to net about $750 million. One of the main reasons for this is the die hard loyalty by it’s fan base. The Cubs fans buy season tickets, pay for parking, drinks, food, purchse jerseys, hats and shirts. The fan base travels 3 hours north on a weeknight to watch Zambrano throw a no-hitter. They board planes in March by the thousands to watch the Cubs take batting practice in Arizona. The loyalty of this group blows me away to be honest. With some clubs all it takes is a few bad teams and you can literally count the nights attendance by hand. The Cubs get between 36,000 and 40,000 every single game.
My suggestion fans. @$#% the Cubs! That’s right. I have only been around this Earth for 36 years but my 75 year old father hasn’t seen them win a championship. His father was a young lad still fighting for Irish Independence the last time they did anything. It is truly amazing to think the flying machine (now the airplane) had only been around for 5 years the last time they won it all. US President Teddy Roosevelt was in the 3rd year of his 2nd term. The United States wasn’t a world power and the United Nations didn’t exist. Things like the television, stainless steel, computer, microwave, instant coffee, crossword puzzle, bra, pop-up toaster, traffic signal, post-it notes, robot, pennicilin, bubble gum, velcro, Aerosol spray cans, ball point pen, tommy gun, FM Radio, jet engine, credit card, power steering, diet soda, optic fibers, non-stick pans, ATM, VCR, Astroturf, liquid paper, atomic bomb, cell phone, ink jet printer and the World Wide Web weren’t even invented yet. Tell me, in light of this discovery, why we should stick by them? Is it a testament to the fact that as Americans we just don’t give up? Is it that we won’t quit and no matter how long it takes we will stick in their until we do finally win it all? Well, I’m not sure I buy all of that but it is time for this fan to get off at the next stop. Derek Lee says he can’t believe fans would take it harder than they do. Really Derek? Are you serious? You’ve been a Cub how long? There are 70 and 80 year old fans being wheeled down to the front row who can’t remember the Cubs last World Series game. To me that is horse shit. The Chicago Cubs have taken my last dollar and if you were smart you would do the same thing. There are plenty of teams to root for. I am not advocating cheering for the team on the other side of the city. I would rather get a sex change and dance on stage for dollars before I would ever do that.
What I am saying is you have Milwaukee, Detroit, St. Louis, Cleveland, Boston, either NY team, Atlanta, LA, etc. Pick a new team and watch with the confidence that you will probably see them win one or more championships in your lifetime. Buy the hats and the shirts of your new team and walk by Cub fans and just say “Sorry, better luck next century.” The time has come to move on Cubby fans. You don’t need to do this anymore. Think about this for a minute. As bad as KC, Baltimore, Cincinnati, San Diego and Pittsburgh are I remember the last time they played in a World Series. All of the late 90s expansion teams have played in and even won championships. The Cubs…nada.
Look at it this way disgruntled Cubs Nation, people leave jobs they aren’t happy with, an unhappy wife or husband will file for divorce if the relationship goes south and every four years the country has an opportunity to change its leader. So don’t feel bad about divorcing your team. Give your Cubs stuff to friends and family. Take all of those photos of you and your friends at Cubs games and burn them. I would literally have a NEW TEAM party. Host a party and put teams on a dart board. Each person gets to throw a dart and become the new fan of that team. Trust me, this will be a lot of fun. At first it will be sad knowing you are not a Cub fan but you will be in a room full of former Cub fans so it could be fun couseling each other over cocktails. Trust me guys! It is time to leave the Cubby nest. Just sit on the edge, flap your little wings and never look back.
