The Kansas City Royals have handed their crown over to the new World Series champions – the Chicago Cubs.
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Fans packed morning commuter trains, causing delays despite increased service and capacity, while draped in the Cubs’ white and blue “W” victory flags before 7 a.m. Crowds along the parade route outside Wrigley Field were several people deep. They can easily afford to possibly pick up a player or two over the offseason to add some depth and very well be back in the same position next season.
OK, it was the Cubbies, but let us make a case for those who pay for the World Series rights.
Reliever Mike Montgomery, who just so happened to get the historic final out (and a shot in every highlight video made); inactive starter Jason Hammel; pitching coach Chris Bosio; and assistant hitting coach Eric Hinske.
The 8-7 extra-inning victory over the Cleveland Indians in Cleveland came after the emptiness and bitterness of years past when the Cubs found spectacular and sometimes downright unusual ways to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
This cameo appearance from Bill Murray was kind of incidental to the skit. “If you want to believe in that kind of stuff, it’s going to hold you back for a long time. But curses and superstitions are not”.
It was the most-watched World Series game since 1991, when 50.3 million people saw the Minnesota Twins beat the Atlanta Braves in game 7. “It will be a parade and celebration that all of Chicago for 108 years in their mind’s eye have been envisioning and we’re going to make it a reality here in the city of Chicago-tomorrow”. In 2012, five Cub fans, who dubbed themselves “Crack the Curse”, walked all the way from the team’s training camp in Mesa, Arizona to Chicago’s Wrigley Field, a distance of 1,700-miles with a goat named Wrigley in tow! “For my grandparents, for everybody’s grandparents, this is the best feeling in the world”.
The Cubs are no longer lovable losers, and that will take some getting used to.
“I think I hugged them a little bit harder than everybody else”. They coaxed a hotshot general manager to leave the Red Sox and come to town. But on Wednesday night, none of that mattered, because the Cubs won the World Series. “So now that standard of excellence can be carried through for many years to come”.
They spoke of heartbreak and black cats and goats. There’s also a home plate, and bricks and seats from Wrigley Field.
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At this point, I am aware that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said that though “logos are primarily a local matter”, he wanted to speak with the Indians about Chief Wahoo, and he was planning a meeting with Indians CEO Paul Dolan after the World Series.
