The Art of Being a Baseball Fan: An Excerpt

The following is an excerpt from my book, The Art of Being a Baseball Fan, which is now for sale on Amazon. You can also order a signed copy by emailing Brian at brjohnston1985@yahoo.com.

(April 2015)

It was on to Denver to face the Colorado Rockies. The Cubs lost the series opener 5-1 on Friday, but on Saturday, the offense finally busted out in a 9-5 win, setting up the rubber game on Sunday. In the second inning, the Cubs struck first for a run before a frustrating bottom half. With one out and runners on first and second, Daniel Descalso hit a ground ball that could have been a double play; instead, pitcher Kyle Hendricks deflected it away from Starlin Castro and everyone was safe. Former Cubs prospect DJ LeMahieu proceeded to clear the bases with a triple as part of a four-run inning. The Cubs got two back in the fifth but should have gotten more. After a Hendricks RBI single, they loaded the bases with nobody out. Anthony Rizzo hit a sacrifice fly, but then Jorge Soler hit a bullet right to second that turned into a double play.

Heading into the ninth, down 5-3, it was another one of those hair-pulling games I’m so accustomed to. I decided to stop watching and start dinner while tracking the rest of the game on my phone. After Miguel Montero struck out to lead off the ninth, the Rockies brought in LaTroy Hawkins to get the last two outs. If you’ll recall, Hawkins was the goat of the Cubs’ late 2004 collapse. Now in the 20th and final year of his career, he finds himself trying to get the save against his former team. Arismendy Alcantara walked and went to second on a wild pitch before Mike Olt struck out. Welington Castillo kept the game alive with a single that drove in Alcantara. In the kitchen, hoping for a small miracle, I quickly turned on the radio feed on my phone.

Hawkins got ahead of Dexter Fowler 0-2 before hanging a slider over the plate. Fowler launched it into the second deck in right field – Cubs lead, 6-5. I typically don’t show much emotion while watching games. But when I heard Cubs broadcaster Pat Hughes call that home run, I found myself shouting and pumping my fist. Hector Rondon was able to secure the victory with a scoreless ninth, and I celebrated again when they got the final out. That was the most excited I can remember getting over a Cubs game in a long time. When your team hasn’t been relevant for five years, there aren’t many such opportunities. It felt really good.

The Cubs came back home for a three-game series with the Cincinnati Reds. The good feeling I had from the previous day went away quickly when Jon Lester again struggled, giving up three runs in the first. However, the Cubs quickly came back with three of their own, including a two-run homer from Jorge Soler. Lester settled in before running out of steam in the sixth, surrendering three more runs to make it 6-3.

I pretty much conceded this game. Like I did on Sunday, I turned the game off my computer and followed updates on MLB Gameday. But for at least another night, this wasn’t the Cubs of the past five years. Chris Coghlan homered in the seventh to make it 6-4, then Jorge Soler hit his second homer of the game in the eighth to tie it. Again, I quickly got the game back on my phone.

The game went into extras. In the bottom of the tenth, the Cubs loaded the bases with none out. Starlin Castro hit a hard ground ball to shortstop and the Reds got the force at home. My negative instincts kicked in again. They were reinforced when Arismendy Alcantara, 0-for-16 on the season, swung and missed at his first two pitches – looking horrible in the process. My groans were getting louder. But on the next pitch, he hit a ground ball through the drawn-in infield to win it.

The next morning, I had this unusual feeling come over me: I was actually excited for the next game. Not since those division-winning days of 2007 and 2008 did I get this enthusiastic about watching the Cubs. When they were down late both Sunday and Monday, I found myself giving up and falling into apathy again. Five years of constant losing will have that effect, even on the most diehard supporters. But I suddenly felt like I had come back to life. Maybe, I thought, this year will be different.

Or maybe that was just my “overreacting to what happens early in the season” impulse kicking in.

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They next hit the road for four in Pittsburgh followed by three in Cincinnati. The Cubs cruised to a 5-2 win in the first game in Pittsburgh, led by Kris Bryant, who drove in three runs. The next day came a surprising announcement: The Cubs were calling up another top prospect, Addison Russell, who they got in a midseason trade last year.

Much like Bryant, Russell had a rough first game, going 0-for-5 with three strikeouts. But it was a memorable game for other reasons. The two teams went back and forth before the Cubs tied it at 5 in the top of the seventh. In the bottom of the seventh, the Pirates loaded the bases with two outs. I got that feeling of frustration I’ve gotten hundreds of times, that the game is about to fall apart. Sure enough, the Pirates’ Jung Ho Kang cleared the bases with a double to make it 8-5.

Again, I gave up on this game. I figured there’s no way they’d come back from this. But in the eighth, Welington Castillo started the comeback with a homer… 8-6. In the ninth, Anthony Rizzo singled on the first pitch of the inning, then Jorge Soler doubled on the second pitch. Again, I fervently got the game back on my phone. Kris Bryant walked. Then Starlin Castro came up and hit a chopper to the left side of the infield. The camera panned over to Josh Harrison at third. The play seemed to be going in slow motion. Harrison jumped into the air to reach for the ball. I tried by best to will the ball by him. After what seemed like several minutes, the ball cleared his glove. “YES!”, I shouted, as it went into left field. Two runs scored, and the game was tied.

Now, Bryant is at third and Castro is at first. Castillo hit a ground ball on the infield, and the only play the Pirates had was at first. Bryant scored the go-ahead run. Hector Rondon pitched a clean ninth to preserve the 9-8 win. How could I not be pumped after this game? The Cubs were 8-5 and had already played in several crazy games. This was a team I could get behind.
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The Cubs last made the playoffs in 2008. They last finished with a winning record in 2009. For five straight years, from 2010-14, they stumbled out of the gate and never recovered. Already this season, they have had several thrilling victories, a few tough losses, and plenty of story lines. A lot of fans that had stopped paying attention are coming back. But speaking as a diehard, I’ve been touched with Cubs Fever.

The day after their comeback win against the Pirates, while at work, I was having flashbacks to 2003. I pictured the moment when Joe Borowski struck out Andruw Jones to win the decisive Game 5 of the NLDS over Atlanta. I could hear radio announcer Pat Hughes’ exuberant call, “Bring on the Marlins!” I’ve thought about this moment many times over the years. But on this day, it was giving me chills. It’s been years since I experienced this. I couldn’t wait for another moment like that. With the way the team was playing, it suddenly seemed possible. But then I snapped out of my daydream and looked over at the calendar at my desk.

It was still April.