Another Sign of Spring
The author rounding third base at the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, IA, on March 2
INDIANOLA, IA - Even if the grass is green, the sun is out, and the flowers are beginning to bloom, there's really only one true sign of spring's arrival: a 9th-inning collapse by the Chicago Cubs. Today I had the unfortunate chance to catch the end of the Cubs' home opener on television at a local Indianola watering hole.
Due to its relative proximity to Chicago - and the
fact that it is home to the Cubs' AAA affiliate - Iowa is a bastion of loyal
Cubs supporters. It occurred to me today that this is only appropriate, given
the humility and philosophical nature of the Hawkeye State's residents. Such
generosity and unwavering hospitality could only come from people who are
well-acquainted with life's uncanny ability to humble even the most optimistic
and deserving of souls in a way that often borders on the macabre.
Sitting by myself at the bar with a soda in front of me, I watched a scene play out on television with which I was quite familiar. The Cubs held a tenuous 3-2 lead going into the top of the 9th inning. If they could just record three more outs, they would win their 2005 home opener, improve their record to 2-2, and give millions of fans reason to believe that their hope is not misplaced - again - this year. If they could just, indeed. Nothing is that simple for the Cubs.
Instead of enjoying another beautiful day of sunshine outside, I chose to sit in a dark, smoke-filled bar to witness a series of events that I so often experienced firsthand when I was in the Cubs' employ:
- the reliever entrusted to nail down the victory came three times within one strike of accomplishing his task in the 9th inning, then promptly relinquished the lead to extend the game.
- the pitcher who came in afterwards, a young man of modest experience and questionable promise, somehow prolonged the game into the 12th inning in spite of throwing very few strikes.
- in the 10th or 11th inning, the Cubs' leadoff man reached. The next batter failed to advance him on a sacrifice attempt, and their would-be winning rally was subsequently thwarted when they could not get a timely hit.
- already having dodged fate for far longer than could have reasonably been expected, the Cubs' young reliever reached the end of his rope in the 12th. The dam burst, and three runs crossed the plate.
- down by three runs, the Cubs finished off this debacle in fantastically mundane fashion, going down meekly in order in the bottom of the 12th. Game over.
If I went back and checked the box scores from the three seasons of home games that I sat through at Wrigley Field as a Cubs employee, I bet I could find at least a dozen games that played out almost exactly like this. Even though I should have known from my own experience to anticipate such a disappointingly brutal outcome this afternoon, I chose to stay at my barstool and watch it transpire. Why? Because, I suppose, that's what Cubs fans do.
My only consolation was that, since I don't work for them anymore, I was spared the unpleasantness of venturing into the bowels of the balllpark to help facilitate the players' postgame media availability. Media sessions after losses were never fun, but extra-inning losses made the work especially bad. If a game went long, it effectively meant that we were working overtime without pay. When they won, it at least felt like the extra time at the office was worth it. When they lost, however, it felt like the players - who, remember, already earned a minimum of ten times our salaries - were literally stealing money from us by forcing us to stay longer just to watch them cough up another one.
Like most people, I find comfort in things that are familiar to me. I frequently write about such things in this space. In the case of today's Cubs collapse, however, there's absolutely nothing about its familiarity that makes me nostalgic or wistful. A rational person might consider changing his allegiance to another team to be spared further humiliation. The world of Cubdom, however, doesn't work that way. I was born to be a Cubs fan, and my loyalty to them was only made deeper by the three years of my life that I spent in service to them.
Our faith in the Cubs will be steadfast and true for eternity, and when the glorious day of their ascension to baseball supremacy arrives, our refusal to turn our backs on them through these times of struggle will make the triumph even sweeter. Until that day arrives, however, I and all other Cubs fans will continue to complain incessantly about how bad they are and how they'll never get their act together.
Yes, indeed, spring is definitely here. Go Cubs.
Sitting by myself at the bar with a soda in front of me, I watched a scene play out on television with which I was quite familiar. The Cubs held a tenuous 3-2 lead going into the top of the 9th inning. If they could just record three more outs, they would win their 2005 home opener, improve their record to 2-2, and give millions of fans reason to believe that their hope is not misplaced - again - this year. If they could just, indeed. Nothing is that simple for the Cubs.
Instead of enjoying another beautiful day of sunshine outside, I chose to sit in a dark, smoke-filled bar to witness a series of events that I so often experienced firsthand when I was in the Cubs' employ:
- the reliever entrusted to nail down the victory came three times within one strike of accomplishing his task in the 9th inning, then promptly relinquished the lead to extend the game.
- the pitcher who came in afterwards, a young man of modest experience and questionable promise, somehow prolonged the game into the 12th inning in spite of throwing very few strikes.
- in the 10th or 11th inning, the Cubs' leadoff man reached. The next batter failed to advance him on a sacrifice attempt, and their would-be winning rally was subsequently thwarted when they could not get a timely hit.
- already having dodged fate for far longer than could have reasonably been expected, the Cubs' young reliever reached the end of his rope in the 12th. The dam burst, and three runs crossed the plate.
- down by three runs, the Cubs finished off this debacle in fantastically mundane fashion, going down meekly in order in the bottom of the 12th. Game over.
If I went back and checked the box scores from the three seasons of home games that I sat through at Wrigley Field as a Cubs employee, I bet I could find at least a dozen games that played out almost exactly like this. Even though I should have known from my own experience to anticipate such a disappointingly brutal outcome this afternoon, I chose to stay at my barstool and watch it transpire. Why? Because, I suppose, that's what Cubs fans do.
My only consolation was that, since I don't work for them anymore, I was spared the unpleasantness of venturing into the bowels of the balllpark to help facilitate the players' postgame media availability. Media sessions after losses were never fun, but extra-inning losses made the work especially bad. If a game went long, it effectively meant that we were working overtime without pay. When they won, it at least felt like the extra time at the office was worth it. When they lost, however, it felt like the players - who, remember, already earned a minimum of ten times our salaries - were literally stealing money from us by forcing us to stay longer just to watch them cough up another one.
Like most people, I find comfort in things that are familiar to me. I frequently write about such things in this space. In the case of today's Cubs collapse, however, there's absolutely nothing about its familiarity that makes me nostalgic or wistful. A rational person might consider changing his allegiance to another team to be spared further humiliation. The world of Cubdom, however, doesn't work that way. I was born to be a Cubs fan, and my loyalty to them was only made deeper by the three years of my life that I spent in service to them.
Our faith in the Cubs will be steadfast and true for eternity, and when the glorious day of their ascension to baseball supremacy arrives, our refusal to turn our backs on them through these times of struggle will make the triumph even sweeter. Until that day arrives, however, I and all other Cubs fans will continue to complain incessantly about how bad they are and how they'll never get their act together.
Yes, indeed, spring is definitely here. Go Cubs.
Posted: Fri - April 8, 2005 at 07:17 PM
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Published On: Apr 08, 2005 07:28 PM
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Published On: Apr 08, 2005 07:28 PM