September 19, 2004
Cubs Fans Searching for Signs
By Pete Khazen
(Editor's note: After a trip to his Wrigley spa for rejuvenatation, our St. Louis-based Cubs aficionado provides a more optimistic report than last time. However, in my book, the only sign that matters is the standings. Unfortunately, that truth is a bit more unsightly. The day this was submitted, the Cardinals are expected to reduce their magic number to zero at the Cub's expense. In addition, even though their September is being spent feasting on the weak underbelly of the NL Central, the Cubs have still been unable to take a lead in the Wild Card chase. The good news is that if the season were to end today, the team would have more time for off-season stadium repairs. - Brian)
Last week I wrote an article as I raged in frustration at recent events of the Cubs 2004 season, which I called a painful waiting game. Not surprisingly, much has transpired in the topsy-turvy Cub world since then.
Since March, when the injury bug began to hit the clubhouse, Cub fans have been searching for signs that this season is going to turn around. Every time there has been a would-be turning point; Prior comes back
off the DL, the Cubs trade for Nomar, etc. something else has happened to quickly make everyone in Cubdom realize this is not going to be an easy season.
I made the trek up I-55 to Wrigley last weekend. Listening to the radio during the drive, I suffered through the Cubs double-header against the Marlins as Dusty Baker decided to save Aramis Ramirez and Moises
Alou for the second game. He chose to not play his top stars against Marlins ace Carl Pavano so that they can beat up on the single-A pitcher, Logan Kensing, starting game 2. Pavano shut the Cubs down 7-0, but the
Cubs managed to beat Kensing 11-2. Not exactly the sign I was looking for.
On Saturday I was fortunate to be in the crowd in the shrine more commonly known as Wrigley Field. Regrettably, I hadn't been inside the stadium in over a year. It had changed. I noticed a number of changes
that were not good signs.
The old school stadium, which used to boast purity, void of major advertisements, had been given a facelift. New color screens could be seen in the upper deck and under the old scoreboard flashing advertisements every chance they could. Logos for a popular department store labeled the dugouts. At least the ivy wasn't torn down in favor of billboards. You'd think that the added advertising revenue would help keep the stadium maintenance up to par. But the plush Wrigley grass had a big dead brown spot in right field where Sammy apparently has been pacing quite a bit this year. And more notoriously, due to falling concrete, unsightly black netting and steel cables were hanging everywhere like Spidey had been swinging through the rafters. Not exactly the signs I
was looking for.
The most noticeable sign I didn't care for was the frustration in the crowd. I have felt it all year and have heard it when listening to games, but the feeling was brutal at the game. The "boos" were rampant - let alone all the cuss words. Other than expectations not being met, the only way I could explain it was that a lot of frustrated people blew a good part of their savings to be first time season ticket holders this year. Their hopes to bear witness to what was supposed to be a magical season, similar to what the 2004 Cards are experiencing, had
not been panning out as they expected. Thankfully, there were still plenty of fans who bit their lip when they had something rude to say or even kept the cheers positive no matter what happened.
There was one positive sign of things to come, though. Baker finally decided to bat Ramirez 3rd and push Sammy to 6th. The new lineup was unproductive, being shut out until the seventh inning. They were sparked
by Neifi Perez off the bench and carried to a 4-2 victory by, dare I say, a bases loaded double by Derek Lee. Ahh, the first positive sign. It was as if Derek had read the painful article on the Birdhouse and decided to do something about it. The frustration disappeared, and though the advertising and netting remained, Wrigley felt like Wrigley again.
The Cubs faltered on Sunday 11-1 in the series wrap-up with the defending World Champs. Ugh! Another bad sign. Another reality check that this isn't going to be an easy stretch run.
But low and behold, the Pirates were coming to town. And the positive signs were aplenty as the Cubs swept the Bucs. The Who's it going to be today? attitude that the Cubs employed last year and the Cardinals picked up on earlier this year has resurfaced in the Baby Bears. On Monday it was Derek Lee stepping up again. On Tuesday it was Corey Patterson with his walk-off HR in the 12th inning. On Wednesday, it was the return of Slammin Sammy who rocked Wrigley in his 2-HR curtain call performance.
Heading to Cincy, the spark continued as Aramis Ramirez and Derek Lee rocked the Great American Ball Park with separate 5 RBI performances leading the team to a 5 game winning streak.
The most telling sign of it all, which I did not see and only heard mentioned on the radio, was a shaving cream pie in the face received by Patterson during the Tuesday post-game interview. It's definitely going to be a race down to the wire, but it's relieving to see the Cubs are finally having fun and playing good baseball.
