I can’t help but wonder why people have such a problem with Barry and the Giants. Anyone with a smidgen of baseball knowledge has to admit he is a talented player. He doesn’t blab about how he’s the best, he just does his job to a degree that most players will never achieve. And there’s a few other decent players on that team - Schmitt, Alfonzo, Aurilia, Cruz Jr., just to name a few. So what’s the big deal? If Barry played for your team, would you still dislike him so much? Doubtful. You’d be screaming your head off every time he was at bat, and booing anyone who walked him intentionally. The guy is up there with the best of them.
And our manager kicked ass out there all season long, too.
A bad team doesn’t win 100 games in a season, it just doesn’t happen. The Giants had a good year, and I think most baseball people respect and admire them individually and as a team.
I was 7 years old when the Cubs last played in a World Series, and I remember a few things. Nonetheless, any such person would have to be at least 100. Check the Chgo papers see if they are.
essvee:
Well, I suppose everyone knows about the curses placed on both the Cubs and RedSox. The owner of a downtown pub, where Mike Royko used to frequent BTW, tried to bring his goat into the World Series game in 1945 and was refused admission. He placed a curse on the Cubs. After 95 years, has this curse expire? The RedSox were cursed for trading the Bambino.
IMHO the Cubs should beat the Marlins in a 7-game series, since they have a better pitching staff, and, despite what the announcers said, I think the relief pitching of the Cubs is outstanding.
What else you want me to tell? How can I tell you about all those heartbreaking years following the Cubs? How can I tell you about the early 50’s when the detested White Sox were doing so well (the Hitless Wonders) with great pitching, great fielding, and great speed, while the Cubs were floundering? And can anyone forget 1969 when the Cubs blew a 13 game lead in September? No Cub fan can.
No old time Cub fan can forget Roy Smalley. Remember him? In the good ole days (1908 and earlier), it was Tinkers to Evers to Chance. Well, when Smalley played (in the 1950s), it was Smalley to the grandstand.
I remember before Ernie Banks was brought up from the KC Monarchs. I was living in a changing neighborhood at 16th and Spaulding, changing from Jewish to Black (we called them “colored” at that time, and now they are called African Americans), and a black guy who lived next door would sit on his chair outside and we would discuss baseball sometimes. He claimed that the Cubs would never draft him. Well, he was wrong, and, of course, Banks became an All-Star.
Then there was Hank Sauer and Ralph Kiner. Brought up after their prime, and both as slow as molasses in the outfield. Yet I remember one game the Cubs won 3-2 on Sauer’s three homeruns. I was sitting in the grandstand then. I usually sat in the bleachers. 50 cents for a bleacher seat. Them were the days.
Amazing to see the attendance for the Cubs this year, but even in their bad years they drew a million or nearly a million every year. Yet, I remember one weekday when I called Wrigley Field to find out the starting time of the game. The guy on the other end said, “When can you make it?”
I don’t deny that he’s a talented player. One of the best to ever play the game - right up there with Ruth, Mays, etc. And I will bounce my grandchildren on me knee and tell them of the times I saw him play. But he’s still an asshole and I don’t like him.
**
He doesn’t? Excuse me? Isn’t this the man that only a few months ago said he doesn’t want to hear about Babe Ruth anymore because he’s better than Ruth was?
I would still dislike him as a person just as much as I do now, even if he was on my team. Let me give you a little story about Bonds. A friend of mine went down to Florida for Spring Training in the late 80s. They hit the Pirates’ facility and were watching the players toss the ball around. Bonds is about 20-30 feet away talking with someone, so naturally, all the kids start trying to get his attention and hopefully some autographs. Now, this is a group of about 15 kids, no adults in there. So Barry turns around and says, hold on, let me go get something to drink and I’ll be right back. The kids are now getting really excited, thinking they’ll get an autograph. A few minutes later, Bonds comes out drinking a can of Pepsi. He chugs it down, then throws the empty can into the group of kids and walks away laughing.
And that’s just one story, out of the thousands of other stories, to give as a reason why Bonds is such an ass. And why I’ll never like him as a person and why I hope he never gets a World Series ring.
The Giants I dislike just because I’m from southern California, but I might grudgingly root for them depending on who they were playing if they didn’t have Bonds.
Too bad he screwed the pooch in the postseason and took too many crappy pitchers.
I never said they were a bad team. I said I don’t like them and am glad they’re out of the playoffs. Just like the Braves. And hopefully, the Yankees.
What a great first round of baseball we had here. A little bit of everything. You want home plate collisions? We got 'em. Every variety. Catcher drops ball, run scores. Catcher holds on, runner out- and on a series-ending play, no less! Catcher drops ball, runner misses plate, catcher retrieves ball to tag runner who is staggering around like Wile E. Coyote. You like odd plays? We got 'em. One runner called out for interference with a fielder. A runner who should have been awarded home for fielder interference but wasn’t. A batter passes a runner on the bases. Like dramatic finishes? We got 'em. A two out bases loaded game ending bunt. Two out bottom of eighth hit to go from behind to ahead. Easy dropped fly ball leads to a sure victory changing to a cruel defeat. Great pitching performances? Got 'em in spades. Too many to name.
Lots of things to throw bouquets at, but also some skunk cabbage to pass around.
1- First and foremost, to Bob Fick. What a gutless and amateurish play. Don’t look for him to embarrass the Braves again.
2- To the umpires. You blew the interference call on the A’s big time.
3- To Tim McCarver. Look, Tim. Either the force at second was made before the runner was passed by the batter or not. If it was, then the batter can’t be called for passing a retired runner. If not, then that removes the force at second. Either way, no double play.
I dunno. With the Yankees, you have a servicable villain. Boston also has had a long history of suffering, and I consider them to be underdogs, even when they’re successful. In a Boston-Cubs series, who do you root for? They both can be sentimental favorites. Oakland-Cubs? Maybe Cubs, because it’s a stronger pull than the Athletics, who usually get bounced in the first round.
But Yankees-Cubs? THAT would be a World Series. Everyone who loved the Cubs and everyone who hated the Yankees would be rooting for Chicago. I think that matchup would be more galvanizing - more polarizing, too - than any other possibility. (Red Sox-Marlins? Nah.)
Easy, the Cubs over the Red Sox. Cubs fans are a billion times less irritating. Cubs over the A’s.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
The Yankees must be bounced at the earliest possibility to both ensure that they don’t win the WS and that Steinbrenner has the biggest meltdown possible.
Look, if the Yankees make it to the World Series, they win it all. Dusty Baker is an idjit in big games - look for him to get outmanaged. And look for the Yankees to shut down the Cubs. As for the Marlins. Maybe. They seem to be on a roll, we’ll see how they do against the Cubbies.
The Yankees must lose in the ALCS or evil will be brought back into the world. Plus, I might put something through my TV.
What do the fans have to do with it? You’re supposed to be rooting for the team!
I’m saying that both franchises have long histories of being losers, and so both would be sentimental favorites in an LCS. Ergo, if both made it to the World Series…
Now, I agree with Cubs over A’s, but for me it’s not enough to root for a team I’m not particularly interested in; I should have a reason not to like the other team. Like those annual choke artists, the Braves. With their eminently stupid fans.
The Yankees will not win the 2003 World Series. They will not.
I think Oakland could definitely take them in an LCS, and Boston would have a good shot, too.
Even if they managed to reach the World Series, either Florida or Chicago could beat them.
And I wouldn’t look for a George flameout, if you take him at his word (!) - he’s already said Torre would stay even if they didn’t win the WS. I can almost see Billy Martin nodding and smiling now.
I heard that Robin Williams was on The Tonight Show the other night and reportedly he said "Right now the Cubs and the Red Sox both have a good chance of making it to the World Series and if this happens, even God is going to look down and go… “Huh??”
I’m a long time Cubs Fan… My mom wasn’t even alive yet when last the Cubs went to the World Series, but I’ve been rooting for them for as long as I can remember. There will be joy in Wrigleyville if they take it all the way. I only have one request, and I am sure I speak for many others as well… Please let Sosa take an injury which keeps him from playing in a WS game… I dislike him intensely and do not want to give him the satisfaction of saying he was there.
Don’t mince words. Call a spade a spade. It was a dirty play. I repeat, a damn dirty play that could have caused serious injury. Even the Braves’ management thought so, because he was removed from the lineup and fined big time. Kudos to the Braves management for that. What surprised me is that the 1st base ump called him Safe, and had to be overruled by the plate ump. Granted that the 1st base ump thought the ball was knocked out before the catch (which wasn’t the case), he still should have called Fick out for interference.
Ever since Pafko argued about his “catch,” I’ve always faulted him because the ump called it a trap and the umps don’t miss calls like that. How naive I was. Of course he still should have thrown the ball in.
Can anyone explain why MLB didn’t act quickly to suspend Fisk after that chickenshit play. Cox shouldn’t have had to take him out of the line up, though I applaud him for doing so. That was really low.
I worked at Wrigley FIeld in security for a few years in college, I just called back there and they are all filled up and don’t need my expert help:(
Guess I will be down on Clark St. tomorrow night looking for a scalper to roll
Any ChiDopers want to get together at say, Goose Island to watch the game? email me or reply. If there is enough response, perhaps I will start a thread.
I’m still trying to figure out that gift run that the Braves got last night.
The umps blew the call on the catch, as was seen in the replays. Okay, they’re only human, although one of the two outfield umps should have called it right.
So they rule it a trap, but the ruling doesn’t come immediately. The runner at first (Giles) retreats to first, thinking the ball has been caught. As he returns to the bag, two things happen: the Cubs get the ball into the infield and step on second base. Since the play was ruled a trap/noncatch, this would make Giles out at second. The second thing to happen is that the batter (Sheffield) takes his normal turn at first, passing the now-out Giles. Since Giles was called out on the force, it didn’t matter that Sheffield passed him. Okay, I got it.
(Of course, Furcal scored before all of this happened, so the run counted no matter what.)
It confused me last night, but now that I’m typing it in, it makes some sense.
The doltish McCarver was trying to say it didn’t matter who was out (Sheffield or Giles). Bull, Timmy me lad. Different runners have different talents. One can be more of a threat on the basepaths than another.
After watching the Oakland game yesterday, I’m convinced the fix is in. I’m not going to bother watching tonight, I know the baseball PTB have already figured out that a Red Sox/Cubs World Series will be the most-watched sporting event ever and will let nothing stand in the way of it happening.
I have read all of this and haven’t a fucking clue what you are wittering on about and believe it or not I actually was at Wrigley Field last year having been persuaded to go watch The Cubs.
Sheeeesh!! I have never been so bored in all my life.
