How Bout Those Cubbies?

I write ever so often about the Chicago Cubs. I am open about my feelings that I do not much care for the Cubs. This was not always true. When I came to Chicago in 1969 and Ron Santo, Billy Williams, Ferguson Jenkins and Ernie Banks were leading the Cubs to what seemed to be destiny in the World Series I made my first visit to Wrigley Field and got on the bandwagon. I had been a lifelong Braves fun but hey, it was Wrigley Field and the Cubs never won so why not celebrate?

But I then went back again and again to the "hallowed vines" and grew weary of the place and the fans. Local writers even refer to Cubs fans as "inmates" who want to run the asylum in our newspapers. And blog spots on the Cubs abound. A recent article asked, "What would happen if the fans ran the team?" Yes, what would happen? The story tells of a British soccer (football) team that was actually bought and run by fans online. So the writer asks, "What would happen if Cubs fans bought the team and ran it?"

Many Cubs bloggers have been writing about this lately. One such blog is called Goat Riders of the Apocalypse and another is The View from the Bleachers. One writer on the blogs adds, "I would really think it'd be awesome to have an ownership say in the team---it would be fun." Yes, really awesome! I can just see these inebriated fans changing the lineup day-in and day-out. It would be a lot of fun!

I often listen to sports radio in my car. I especially enjoy listening to Cubs fans. They are grim, want to break up the team if they lose a few games, and generally pessimistic. There is a kind of bravado about it all but it is most humorous if you are not a Cubs fan. If you are you might need to think about getting counseling because if they fail this year your misery index will go way up since many of the people of Chicago think they finally have the team to win it all. Recent Cub losses, combined with Milwaukee's hot streak, do not give Cubbie die hard fans a great sense of ease right now, especially after blowing home games in the ninth inning this last weekend. And now the Brewers and Cubs play head-to-head this week. It should be fun.

After nearly forty years in Chicago I am reminded of Yogi Berra's famous baseball line: "It ain't over until its over!" For Cubs fans that is more true than for most.