"You just don't understand." That is a phrase I have found myself saying over and over again, when it comes to my love for the Chicago Cubs. Being from the North Shore of Chicago and being at a school in Wisconsin, I haven't met many passionate, loyal, die-hard Cubs fans. A lot of people have asked me why do I love a franchise so much that hasn't won a World Series since 1908. A lot of people were asking me in the off-season, why I was itching to get back to Wrigley Field so bad.
Every sports fan has that one team. That one team that means the world to them. That one team, that is bigger than sports to them.
Something about living in Wisconsin for the past six months, is that I have witnessed firsthand the all-consuming love people of Wisconsin have for their Green Bay Packers. A lot of my friends here are very passionate about their Packers. All of them will tell you that the Packers are their favorite team in all sports. For many, it is something that has been passed down to them.
These Packers fans are crazy. They spend their Sundays decked out in Packers' gear- in fact, you'll see many people at church wearing Packers jerseys. Something I've noticed about Packers fans is that they only like one NFL team, and that team plays in Green Bay. They don't like any other teams in the league. If they're watching games with other teams playing, they'll be very casually rooting for the team between the two that they hate less. Packers fans hate the Bears, Vikings, and Lions, and the newest victim of their resentment is the San Francisco 49ers, who has beaten their beloved team in the playoffs the last two years.
In addition to cheese, they eat, sleep and breathe Green Bay Packer football. I really can't do these fans justice by just writing about them. You have to encounter them firsthand, and you will see that they are one of the best fan bases in all of sports.
Now, I can't share that same love for the Packers. I watch a Packers game, and I think, "man, I really hope they lose this one so the Bears can climb higher in the standings." I like watching Aaron Rodgers play, and I'll admit that there are a few guys I like on the team. For example, over the past couple of years of my life I have been very involved in a Christian para-church organization, called "Young Life." Aaron Rodgers did Young Life in high school, and wide receiver Jordy Nelson donated $100 to YL for every catch he made during the 2013 season. There are a couple of guys on the team that I like as people, but on Sundays, I'm not rooting for the Packers. I'm hoping they lose.
While I can't say that I share the same love for the Packers that Packers fans do, I can say that I can relate to them. Because, I have the same kind of love for a sports team myself. And that team is the Chicago Cubs.
"Why do you love the Cubs so much if they just continuously break your heart? They haven't won the World Series in 105 years! They're never going to win a World Series! So why waste your time with them?" I hear these remarks far too often. And I always go back to, "you simply don't understand." Every sports fan has that one team.
Every sports fan has that one team, but there's something different about the Cubs. No other fan base has had to wait this long to see their team win. You could point to a team like the Tampa Bay Rays and say "well they've never won a World Series, period." True, but the Rays are a young franchise. They didn't exist until 1998. They have accomplished a lot over the course of their first 15 years as a competitor, and they have gone deep in to the playoffs several times.
But for the Cubs, suffering is a theme. Every generation of fans has seen some kind of disappointment from the Cubs. For my parents, it's been the fall of the '69 Cubs, the June Swoon of 77-79, the heartbreak of 84, another heartbreak in 89, and more disappointment in 1998.
In my time as a Cubs fan, I've witnessed the collapse of the 2003 and 2004 Cubs, and then disappointments in 2007 and 2008. And we haven't made the playoffs since.
In the movie Fever Pitch, Jimmy Fallon plays a crazy-obsessed Red Sox fan during the 2004 season. (Fun fact: they were filming the movie while the season was going on, and once the Red Sox were down 0-3 to the Yankees in the A.L.C.S., they had planned for the film to end with the Sox losing, and Jimmy's character learning something from the loss. Once the Red Sox came back and won it all, they had to change the plot on the fly.) In one scene, Jimmy is talking to a kid, and the kid says, "When was the last time the Boston Red Sox loved you back?" This question applies to Cubs fans. When was the last time the Cubs ever loved me back?
Now I am going to explain what people don't understand. Both of my parents grew up as North-Siders. My mom grew up on Sheridan Road in Winnetka while my dad grew up in an Italian neighborhood on the north side of the city. Both of my parents grew up Cubs fans.
My mom marveled at the teams of the 60's that featured hall of famers Billy Williams, Ernie Banks, and the iconic, heel-clicking Ron Santo. When my dad was a kid, he would rush home after school to catch the end of Cubs games. And when he was old enough, he would spend his summers at Wrigley Field. They used to have a deal at Wrigley where if you helped clean up the park after the game, you would get a free ticket to the game the next day. So my dad would spend his summers at Wrigley. Whenever the Cubs were at home, he was at Wrigley.
When I was old enough, my dad started taking me to Wrigley. Every Cubs game I would go to was special. I have gone to so many that I cannot remember each specific game. But when I was in elementary school, I would often go downtown with my dad in the morning and go to work with him. He would buy me candy and sports magazines to read, and then let me sit in one of the conference rooms where I could watch two big screen TVs. I normally would watch the ESPN show Cold Pizza, which is now today known as ESPN First Take (trust me guys, it was a much better show ten years ago!). Once my dad was free to leave work, sometimes we would go out to lunch somewhere before going to Wrigley. My favorite place was Giardano's. Great Chicago deep-dish pizza not far from my dad's building. After lunch we would take the L over to Wrigley and watch the game. If we didn't go out to lunch before, we would get hot dogs at the park.
Something about baseball is it has the most father-son feel, than any other sport, epitomized by spending hours together taking batting practice, hitting grounders, and playing catch. Driving to Cooperstown to visit the Hall of Fame with your dad is a must. Going to a baseball game with your dad just feels right. And girls love Wrigley too! Oftentimes my sister will get asked to go to Cubs games with her friends, because her friends know she loves the Cubs, cares about the team, and loves going to Wrigley Field more than their other friends. There are fans like my sister all around the city.
When you walk in to Wrigley, it's different than walking in to the United Center for a Bulls game. When you walk in to Wrigley and see the freshly cut grass, and the beautiful ivy on the outfield wall, you feel like you have reached baseball salvation. Sure, it might not be the newest ballpark. And yes, there might be a horse trough where urinals should be in the men's bathroom. The park might also be filled with many drunk people. But there's still something special about it all.
To me, Wrigley Field is a home. It's where my dad grew up, and it was a huge part of my childhood. The fans you sit next to are your brothers and sisters. You all share this common bond. You all share this deep, emotional connection with the team. You'll find yourself high-fiving and hugging the fans next to you after home runs, and double-plays.
No matter how good the team is, or what the outcome of the game is, you'll never regret going to a Cubs game. You'll have a blast singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" with famous longtime Cubs fans like Jim Belushi, Bill Murray, and Jeff Garlin, watching drunk middle-aged men dancing the "YMCA", and celebrating a Cubs victory by singing "Go Cubs Go" with 40,000 fellow Cubs fans.
As much as we love our Cubbies, it hurts that much to see them lose. We thought we were going all the way in 2007 and 2008. We were swept both years. And don't even get me started on 2003. White Sox fans like to make fun of us Cubs fans and give us a hard time because they ended their World Series drought in 2005 and we have yet to do so. We have been laughed at and mocked. But one day, after years of heartache and heartbreak, the Cubs will win it all. And when it happens, it will be the greatest sports story ever told. For 86 years, Red Sox fans were in the same situation that we are in. For 87 years, White Sox fans knew how we feel. If they can conquer their demons and win, why can't we? Theo's got us on the right track, and when the Cubs win it all it will be the most meaningful championship to a fan base.
And if you say the Cubs will never win the World Series, my friend Krystal points out that in Back to the Future 2 the Cubs win the World Series in the year 2015. So it has to happen soon, right?
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