Those loveable losers, the Cubbies,

June 13, 2001 9:39 PM

Those loveable losers, the Cubbies, are six games up in the standings and have been in first place for most of the season. Are these guys for real? Or will Slamm'n' Sammy and Co. fall to the curse of the goat once again? They're made a believer out of me, but being a Cubs fan I know their failure in '69 hangs over these guys like an evil shadow.
posted by Bag Man (14 comments total)

well, to be honest, i had no idea that this team would do as well as it has (i'm a huge cubs fan) this year--it was a transition team. i think if they do get to the postseason, they will fade.

that being said, the cubs have done a bang-up job improving their farm system. yah i'm one of those geeks that follows the minor leagues. they have some really nice talent. corey patterson needs a bit more work, but 3B dave kelton has really turned it on in aa west tenn and they have pitching coming out of their ears. if hee seop choi can get healthy and really start to mash, he will definitely be in the mix for 2002.

if you think this is good, wait till the years beyond. this team is similar to the braves in '90 and '91. a good team just getting started. hopefully wood won't suffer the same fate as steve avery did.
posted by moz at 9:49 PM on June 13, 2001

Moz, good point, but you're wrong about their farm system. At the beginning of the season I looked into my crystal ball and saw a .500 team, but now I believe. However, they're farm system was recently rated #1 in the NL by Baseball America.

My predication: If they're up six or more by August 15th, the NL Central will be theirs.
posted by Bag Man at 11:03 PM on June 13, 2001

oh, sorry if i gave the impression that their farm system was recently bad. i meant over the last few years it's improved a great deal. '97 and '98 were really the beginning i think. it's too bad lynch dealt garland. i don't believe you should mortage your future for a wildcard birth, which is what lynch did, and i didn't think it made him a "bright young gm" as some people wrote back then. but jim hendry, the guy responsible for all the drafts but the 2001 one, is now an assistant gm and should be promoted by the end of the 2001 season, and i have a lot of confidence he and john stockstill will keep the flow coming.

boy remember when the cubs system produced guys like maddux, jamie moyer, rafeal palmeiro, mark grace, joe carter, shawon dunston, frank castillo... it'll be good to get back to those days.
posted by moz at 12:24 AM on June 14, 2001

Not only the best in the Central, but the best in the NL period as far as records go. The Korean First Baseman should improve the situation even more.

What's surprised me the most is the pitching. It's been incredible, especially Tapani and Wood. Go Cubs!

(As a big Cubs fan born in Boston, me and a bunch of friends are quite ready to drain our savings if the Red Sox and Cubs both make the Series. Of course, that would mean the apocalypse, since one of them would have to win).

Peace,
Kevs
posted by Kevs at 12:55 AM on June 14, 2001

Oh, yeah! Red Sox vs Cubs in the October Classic! The Curse of the Bambino vs The Curse of the Goat. The last two old-time ballparks. The two longest World Series dry streaks. Sammy vs Ramon. Bring it on.
posted by briank at 6:43 AM on June 14, 2001

I love the success the cubs and red sox are having this year, as Kevs said, it give me hope that the curse of the bambino may finally be lifted (who needs a stinking goat?). Of course, the last team the Red Sox beat in the world series was, of course, the Cubs in 1918.
(For the record though... ahem).
posted by trox at 6:46 AM on June 14, 2001

FWIW, the Cubs' magic number was 94 as of this morning.
posted by luke at 7:16 AM on June 14, 2001

Small voice: Go Mariners
posted by Skot at 8:09 AM on June 14, 2001

As a life-long Devil Rays fan, I say phooey!!!

Just kidding. I like the Pirates, and I'm glad to see someone from the NL Central that isn't the Cardinals or Astros winning.
posted by jasonepowell at 8:45 AM on June 14, 2001

I put a curse on the team too, but nobody ever talks about my curse!

My curse is "Lose enough games so that strangers will not be compelled to ask me what I think about the team, and never win enough that people will take to the streets to celebrate"

It is a 2 part curse you see.
posted by thirteen at 8:56 AM on June 14, 2001

Think I will get lunch at the Billygoat tho.
posted by thirteen at 8:56 AM on June 14, 2001

Since I moved to the northeast, I've been unable to catch the Cubs games regularly since we don't get WGN here. If this keeps up, I might just have to breakdown and get DirectTV.
posted by ry at 11:38 PM on June 15, 2001

I never could watch baseball on TV. Going to Cubs games is the only way for me. Of course, now that I'm in Seattle the Cubs are winning.
posted by john at 12:00 AM on June 16, 2001

I have to say that Cubs games are probably the only games that I enjoyed watching on TV. IMHO, Steve Stone was one of the best color commentators on air. He really had a deep knowledge of the game and the Cubs organization. Not having seen a game on WGN in 2-3 years, I was surprised to find out that he'd retired at the end of last year.
posted by ry at 9:38 AM on June 16, 2001