I think it was like June 25 of last year, and I think it was a wild win over the Rockies (ok I just looked it up and it was June 25 and it was another 10-9 win over Colorado), when I called the Cubs a team of destiny in this blog. It was the type of game you point to in October as proof of something special. Was today's Cubs win over the Rockies along the same lines?
Last year was different because after that wild win, the Cubs were still around .500.
This season they have the best record in baseball and are supposed to win. But still, they've won so many games they should have lost. That usually bodes well in the big picture.
A team of destiny? Who knows. One hundred years of being a team destined to disappoint has a lot of momentum, but maybe this year is different ( I can see Sox fans rolling their eyes).
Maybe they're not a team of destiny, but they sure are a scrappy bunch. Down 8-0, down 9-1 and win 10-9. They have some type of special mojo going. This wasn't a turning-point game, but it was another wild one.
A team of destiny?
That's a given.
They'll eventually (long after I'm dead, and not able to enjoy the anniversary) become THE FIRST TEAM to go 200 years, WITHOUT having won a World Series.
Book it!
I'm enjoying the hell out of the games so far this year. Will they win it all; who knows? Only time will tell. Been tracking them since the mid-60's, have had my heart broken every time, but will more than likely be sucked into the emotion and hype again this year if they make the playoffs.
We need to be careful of what we wish for, because the world WILL end and hell WILL freeze over if/when they win the Series. That, and a lot of people will die of heart attacks with smiles on their faces...
This is a "Tripple Post".
I posted this twice to another subject heading (with numerous mispellings) and decided that my best bet for a response would be on the latest topic of discussion. So even if it isn't relative to the current blog-line ... here goes:
Ok ... I might be a little bit off topic here, but since there's no where else to put it, (and I'm sure that at least a few of you would be more than happy to tell me where I could put it) ... Is anyone here rooting for the Celtics to win the East, and face off with the Lakers?
As a basketball fan, I've always hated Detroit, but now it's just a matter of me being as just about as sick of them as I am with the Spurs. (Thank you GOD, that I don't have to look at Tim Duncan's face for another game this entire season!)
Anyhow: if it's Boston vs. L.A. ... who do you like; and more importantly, why?
I like both of these teams, but I've always been a fan of Big Chief Triangle, and would love to see another pin shoved into the posterior of my Jerry Krause voodoo doll.
I hate this idea of "destiny." Like destiny is always a good thing. The Cubs could be a team of destiny, and their destiny could be to lose. Every time a team has been called a team of destiny, they have lost. So the Cubs are even more doomed than they were before.
Interesting, isn't it, that the same poster putting up the ridiculous 200 year comment, obviously a White Sox fan who has no recollection of how fortunate his team was three years ago (and no idea how far away from another one they are now) should post the completely irrelevant Boston Celtics rambling here. Both make about as much sense as the other. None.
Ricky responds: Three things: a) You are right, Villano's comment was sort of ridiculous.
b) "no recollection of how fortunate his team was three years ago"
In 2005, the White Sox won won 99 regular season games. They went 11-1 in the playoffs. At one point, their starting pitchers threw four straight complete games. You don't win anything in baseball without being lucky (every champ ever has been), but come on.
c) "and no idea how far away from another one they are now"
The White Sox are currently in first place in the AL Central.
Oh and the Cubs are totally awesome. That game today was unreal. This is by far the best Cubs team I've ever seen. They're going to go a long way.
Most of you posters are young guys -- "been tracking them since the mid-60's". I've been a fan since the mid-30's and my Dad took me to a WS game at Wrigley in 1945, but I'm just as frustrated as you are.
Back in the 30's, the great jazz and popular entertainer, Fats Waller, had an expression he used at the end of many of his recordings that applies to whether the Cubs are a team of destiny:
"One never knows, do one?" So let's all just sit back, cross our fingers and root hard for the Cubs to pull it off at last.
Oh, c'mon.....the Cub's are a team of destiny every
year....what Cubs fan doesn't believe that?? And when step 5 comes and we accept they will not win the world series this year(sometimes it is after the first game of the season...some times it's later), then there is always next year. If they win the world series, what is left to live for??
Ricky, the 84 Cubs were Nasty good, and even the 03 team had better pitching....so I don't believe this is the best team you may have ever seen.....unless you were born in 2004.
Are we just ignoring Ted Lily because the Cubs won today? I heard the postgame on the radio, and everbody was talking like they scored 9 runs in the bottom of the ninth and Jesus Christ was resurrected. I am not impressed at all. They should have scored more than 8 runs in 3 games against the Dodgers. The Phillies are going to kill 'em. They need to get bettter now,and leave the come-from-behinds to less talented over-achievers like the Sox.
Told Roman last year, No! It's still too early in the season to call them a team of destiny(unless of course the destiny was to get swept out by the "unknown" Diamondbacks.) They have a nice offense and decent starting pitching, bullpen is horrible, but only time will tell. Call them a team of destiny in october.
And if the White Sox were so lucky, why didn't the Cubs win in '05?
One more thing, I personally don't call shows on the radio, or comment too much on the Sox because this is a Cubs' media town. I think the media plays too much to the Cubs, and I just would rather watch them lose, to hear the hosts get mad than even see the Sox win at times. I think it's funny, been funny for 37 years to me.
Roman responds: The entire bullpen is not horrible. Marmol is as good as it gets. Wood? I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'd almost have '07 Dempster as the closer.
Hell naw!!!!!
Hey Mike, maybe this is gonna be the year!! At least you have already seen world series in wrigley, my mother went to games that year too, not to the series though. She says Billy Nicholson was one of the stars then, do you remember him? Outfielder i think. Not much blogging back in the day eh?
Should be an enjoyable season to be a cubs fan, with a top rate manager and a relatively likeable bunch of players to follow. Beats some of the dregs had to put up with lately...
I'm amazed that any one can have as much disdain/contempt for the Cubs as Villano has. It's obvious to me that he is jealous of the loyalty of Cubs fans win or lose. I have been a Cubs fan all my life but the times the Sox were in the post season and the Cubs weren't I pulled for the Sox because above all else I am a CHICAGO fan and I was happy for the Sox and their fans when they won it all in 2005. Regarding your off topic posting Villano, I responded to it in the previous thread , you just apparently didn't see it and I won't repeat it here.
Meanwhile back to the actual topic here....I will reserve my excitement until late August. If the Cubs are still 13 or more games above .500 then I'll begin to lose control of my bladder. LOL
Yeah Roman, Marmol is about it...Lieber looks nearly done. The 3 ex Sox pitchers will shrivel up in the heat, the Cubs pen looks like the Sox pen of last year (Bobby Jenks, no one else).
Their offense is a beast though, that lineup is nice, once A Ram decides to play team ball that is. He costs them games with his defense (along with Sorriano).
Wanna see them not melt in the playoffs like 03' and 07'.
That offense is for real, though.
If I knew what the term "team of destiny" meant, I might be able to respond intelligently to this rather silly question. This isn't up to your usual par, Roman. Regarding yesterday's game, seeing Edmonds get three hits was great, and the come-back win was fabulous. Now if the Cubs keep winning and those rotten Cardinals would lose a few, one might have cause for optimism, destiny notwithstanding. At least Houston has faded a bit. I think it's too early by far to start talking about destiny or a Chicago World Series,in spite of the Chitown teams' present standings.
Roman, I happened to be in the car heading to Visalia Ca. yesterday, when fate stepped in to see the Cubbies through. No XM. I left my place with a score of 9-1 I think, I don't remember, at any rate I did not feel bad about leaving my MLB.com to get on the road I figured the game was well in the hands of the Rockies. Then I started receiving the texts from the 773 ( couple 312s) When I responded to one with WTF happened? The only response I received was Fate Mr Sweeney. It made me laugh or maybe it was a chuckle.
After I lamented on how I could have missed this one, and then apologizing to the fates for loosing faith, I thought of you. I thought of you and the word destiny and your blogs from last year about how you didn't want to say it seems like destiny but it seems like destiny. I chuckled again. I wondered if you would start it again. I looked into my crystal ball this morning and I didn't see much, but that always works better after the mid summer.
I must admit, when I shut down the computer I thought to my self, this is not over. This team is special. After I typed that I chuckled.
GO CUBS!!!
There is no such thing as destiny. If they win it is because they are a good team combined with good timing and things going their way.
That is the way it is for every team in every sport that wins and there is no stupid super natural cause for any of it.
Blaming the Cubs losing on a goat is dumb and so is giving credit to them winning on anything other than playing good baseball. Instead we get talk of magic beans, curses and destiny.
This is what makes it hard to enjoy this team ever doing anything other than be the longest running joke in pro sports.
destiny? yes destined to be most popular baseball team in chicago, with the most loyal fans, with the classic stadium, with the most fun summer of baseball, and maybe some fall fun too. Other 2'nd rate team in town destined to stew in their own envy, their destiny is not really jealousy of the favourite cubs but only unhappiness with themselves and their own team. I can't really blame them for complaining and continually comparing themselves to the cubs, just deep rooted and probably fated inferiority complex. Go cubs! destined to have far more good times than at that other publicly owned and paid for stadium.
Yeah..Cubbies are the best team in baseball right now...I thinnk they keep this up...100 game winners...World Series Champs...Wrigleyville gets a severe.... make over... and looks ten years younger
Density..
Yeah..Go Cubs
MY PREDICTION IS THAT THIS LYRIC WILL SWEEP THE NATION...
"HEY CHICAGO..WHATTU SAY....THE CUBS ARE GONNA WIN TODAY!!!!"
Anyone want to discuss the Edmonds signing now? His defense has been solid and his bat is coming around, could be the key pickup for a post season run, plus didn't have to trade away any young talent, like Gallagher.
Oh, reason cubs weren't as lucky in 05 as other teams, was cubs like most all other big market teams, were still stuck with bloated contracts for steroid using superstars. And with the MLB new drug testing regime and penalties that year, all those players were mere shadows of their former selves and their teams all slumped and still had to shell out the big money for their huge contracts with no production to show for it. Take Giambi for one example. So any team playing a brand of baseball that didn't rely on big money players who no longer could put up big numbers, was able to find their way into the playoffs and a fluke world series title. The win should have an asterisk for winning in a drug testing transition year with unfair competitive advantages to low budget teams with no big stars. Sox wouldn't have won without league drug testing rules changes.
Excuses, excuses. The Sox were the second best team in baseball for the end of the year. Won the WS, and were a very good team. A lot like this Cubs team, the difference, the Sox won 99 games that year. Cubs haven't won that many yet.
And last I checked, the 05' Sox had steroid players on their team, so drop the lame excuses. Still too early to call them a team of destiny.
Cubs are a team of destiny. No doubt about it! They have a great balance and the coach to get it done. And thats right, I am a die hard Sox fan. But you tip your hat when its due.
Hey Keith, a diehard fan here, too! I was excited in 05' but I really didn't think they could do it until after the huge meltdown in late august, and most of september. After they held off the Indians, I realized they were a special team, but still not WS winner until game 2 of the WS. What a game.