The Chicago White Sox have won their first pennant since 1959.
I wrote two months ago, “I’ve been a Cubs fan for so long that thoughts of the other Chicago baseball team never cross my mind. The Cubs. The Bears. They provoke passion. The White Sox? Well, they had really cool uniforms in the mid-80s.”
I find myself with mixed feelings. In some sense I’m overjoyed–Chicago hasn’t had the best track record when it comes to baseball post-season play. It’s been a long time coming for Chicago baseball fans. The Cubs had their last victory in 1908, the Sox theirs in 1917. The Cubs their last Series appearance in 1945, (until today) the Sox theirs in 1959.
In another sense, though, I’m slightly miffed. The Sox? The Cubs’ crosstown rivals. Their opponents? Either the Astros, now up three games to one in the National League Championship Series, or the Cardinals, both teams the Cubs’ divisional rivals. So, whoever plays in the World Series, whoever wins the World Series, is a team, as a Cubs fan, I’m naturally inclined to dislike.
Oh, the perils of fandom.
In the end, I’m pulling for the Sox. I want to see the White Sox win the World Series. I want to see the Sox exorcise the ghosts of 1919, so that perhaps the Cubs can exorcise the ghosts of 1908 and Merkle’s Boner. (I’ve never held with the Curse of Murphy’s Goat–the Cubs’ curse goes back way before 1945. Snookering John McGraw and the New York Giants in 1908 on their way to the pennant and their last World Series victory seems far more likely the source of the Cubs’ century of futility.)
Like I said, it’s been a long time coming.
Congratulations to the Sox. The Sox in six games, for their victory to come in Chicago.
For those who need a Cubs fix (and some rare joy at World Series time), my novel, How I Helped the Chicago Cubs (Finally!) Win the World Series has just been published by a small press in North Carolina. It’s available from aardwolfpress.com or amazon. Aardwolfpress.com has review comments and a description. Hey, if the Cubs can’t make it to the top of the baseball world, maybe they can make it to the top of the bestseller list!