Yes, I am a Cubs fan
Well, I'm listed on the links of Scott's blog as "Tales from a desperate Cubs fan," I guess it's time to mention that I do, in fact, cheer for the longest suffering franchise in the history of organized professional sports.
My beloved Cubbies haven't won a world series since 1908. It shouldn't be hard to do the math since it's 2005 now, but that's 96 seasons without winning a World Series. It's been since 1945 since we've last been TO the World Series, let alone won it.
I get asked all the time how I became a Cubs fan, growing up in south Georgia where you're essentially required to become a Braves fan. Well, the answer is fairly simple. As the oldest of three boys, I didn't have an older brother's team to follow. Neither of my parents were die-hard baseball fans, so they didn't pass on a team for me to live and die with. (Grandma, being from New Jersey, was a huge Mets fan, but apparently being a baseball fans skips a generation.)
So to fill the void in my baseball fandom, I turned to the only place I had left to turn, the television. Fortunately, at that time, our local cable company carried WGN, a Chicago Superstation much like TBS is for Atlanta. Anyway, WGN showed about 100 Cubs games a year, and to make things better for an eight-year-old, the Cubs played in the day, when I could watch. Their games would start at 2:20, which meant they were on when I came home from school. I'd watch until it ended at 5:30ish and then go play or do my homework.
Obviously, being eight, I didn't know the history of the team. All I knew is they had a guy named Andre Dawson that hit 49 homeruns (back when that was a lot) and a slick-fielding second baseman named Ryne Sandberg (though I pronounced it Ryan for the better part of four years . . . I was eight, I figured they were saying it wrong on TV). It was baseball on TV. It wasn't like football with the rules that were fairly difficult to understand. Hit the ball, run to the base.
Add in the fact that the legendary Harry Carey was the Cubs play-by-play man who was drunk by the fifth inning and you've got a recipe for an eight-year-old becoming a fan.
Sure, they lost a lot, but they were on TV and I could watch. I even remember asking my dad why the Twins never played. He told me they did play, but I protested, saying I'd never seen them on TV. (Of course, later that year, they'd go on to win the World Series).
Two year's later, the Cubs, led by Sandberg and always interesting Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams (the same Williams that gave up the World-Series-Winning home run to Joe Carter in the 1993 World Series) made the playoffs. I was hooked.
I've been a fan ever since. I was there when we thought we had a good team in 1997 and started the year 0-14. I was there when the team's marketing campaign was "We're working on it."
And I'm here now, where we've got a decent shot, IF everyone stays healthy, to see them contend for a title. Granted, I'm only 26 years old, but I don't want to be one of those people who dies at 85 never having seen the Cubs win a World Series.
What I'm watching: NCAA March Madness
What I'm reading: Didn't I just say March Madness was on?!?
On Deck: A breakdown of the 2005 Cubs
My beloved Cubbies haven't won a world series since 1908. It shouldn't be hard to do the math since it's 2005 now, but that's 96 seasons without winning a World Series. It's been since 1945 since we've last been TO the World Series, let alone won it.
I get asked all the time how I became a Cubs fan, growing up in south Georgia where you're essentially required to become a Braves fan. Well, the answer is fairly simple. As the oldest of three boys, I didn't have an older brother's team to follow. Neither of my parents were die-hard baseball fans, so they didn't pass on a team for me to live and die with. (Grandma, being from New Jersey, was a huge Mets fan, but apparently being a baseball fans skips a generation.)
So to fill the void in my baseball fandom, I turned to the only place I had left to turn, the television. Fortunately, at that time, our local cable company carried WGN, a Chicago Superstation much like TBS is for Atlanta. Anyway, WGN showed about 100 Cubs games a year, and to make things better for an eight-year-old, the Cubs played in the day, when I could watch. Their games would start at 2:20, which meant they were on when I came home from school. I'd watch until it ended at 5:30ish and then go play or do my homework.
Obviously, being eight, I didn't know the history of the team. All I knew is they had a guy named Andre Dawson that hit 49 homeruns (back when that was a lot) and a slick-fielding second baseman named Ryne Sandberg (though I pronounced it Ryan for the better part of four years . . . I was eight, I figured they were saying it wrong on TV). It was baseball on TV. It wasn't like football with the rules that were fairly difficult to understand. Hit the ball, run to the base.
Add in the fact that the legendary Harry Carey was the Cubs play-by-play man who was drunk by the fifth inning and you've got a recipe for an eight-year-old becoming a fan.
Sure, they lost a lot, but they were on TV and I could watch. I even remember asking my dad why the Twins never played. He told me they did play, but I protested, saying I'd never seen them on TV. (Of course, later that year, they'd go on to win the World Series).
Two year's later, the Cubs, led by Sandberg and always interesting Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams (the same Williams that gave up the World-Series-Winning home run to Joe Carter in the 1993 World Series) made the playoffs. I was hooked.
I've been a fan ever since. I was there when we thought we had a good team in 1997 and started the year 0-14. I was there when the team's marketing campaign was "We're working on it."
And I'm here now, where we've got a decent shot, IF everyone stays healthy, to see them contend for a title. Granted, I'm only 26 years old, but I don't want to be one of those people who dies at 85 never having seen the Cubs win a World Series.
What I'm watching: NCAA March Madness
What I'm reading: Didn't I just say March Madness was on?!?
On Deck: A breakdown of the 2005 Cubs
posted by Luke at 12:59 AM
<< Home