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Post by philknj on Jul 30, 2024 1:27:39 GMT
It reminded me of being 10 years old in September, 1969, watching the Cubs lose every day
 HEY! HEY! WOOOOOOOOOOO! ****** You should have been a front-runner like me ... whoever was leading the American League Eastern Division was my team.
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Post by haneymademedoit on Jul 30, 2024 3:22:37 GMT
It reminded me of being 10 years old in September, 1969, watching the Cubs lose every day
HEY! HEY! WOOOOOOOOOOO! ****** You should have been a front-runner like me ... whoever was leading the American League Eastern Division was my team.
The Cubs still had a 1.5 game lead when that cat showed up on the field in early September. I always believed that the true sign of the Cubs' impending doom happened when they played the Mets in mid-July, and Al Weis, a weak-hitting infielder whose lifetime BA was .219 and lifetime HR total was 7 in 10 seasons, hit homers in back-to-back games against the Cubs. Just like I always believed that the Cubs collapse in the 2003 NLCS had less to do with Steve Bartman reaching out of the stands for a foul ball, and more to do with the fact that on a subsequent pitch, the batter hit a sure double play ball directly at the shortstop... and it went through his legs!
Both Brickhouse and his famous successor, Harry Caray, died in 1998, as did one of my sisters-in-law who supported the Cubs in the NL. She was a Tigers fan being from SE Michigan, but went to Cubs games with my wife and me and other members of both of our families occasionally in the 80s. My last words to Ellen before she passed in January were, "If it's possible, please do something about the Cubs!" Then less than a month later, I woke up in the morning and started to pull off a old Cubs championship t-shirt, don't remember if it was 1984 or 1989, to take a shower. The shirt ripped in two as I was pulling it off! Later that day, the news announced that Harry Caray had died. Brickhouse died in August. I always attributed the Cubs 'championship' that year to the intercession of Ellen, Harry, and Jack. (Yes, I know it was not really a championship, they got into the playoffs as a wild card and promptly were eliminated...)
So did you cheer for Detroit in 1984 when they won the AL East?
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Post by philknj on Jul 30, 2024 11:47:12 GMT
I loved watching the '76 Yankees seize first place early on and hold it for the rest of the year ... a true "team", meaning everyone had a specific job to do and knew it. They were my team after that into the 90's, which unfortunately was a head-banging experience during the Winfield years ... although no one was catching the Tigers in '84 after they opened 35-5.
It's hard to believe Leo's Cubs won 90 games only once ... there was a ton of talent on those teams ... I think Milt Pappas said in his book that Leo was a little over the hill as a manager by then.
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