How to survive at the Cell

[JonnyRed]

I'll be at the Cell next Friday for the first Cubs/Sox game. Normally I look forward to giving that dump some class by wearing my Cubs gear, but I have to admit that I'm not looking forward to it this year. I really don't need to hear 25,000 Sox fans coming up to me telling me how great they are, while we can't even field a decent team. Anyone else struggling with this one? How will you cope?

[kente777]

I'll be at the Cell next Friday for the first Cubs/Sox game. Normally I look forward to giving that dump some class by wearing my Cubs gear, but I have to admit that I'm not looking forward to it this year. I really don't need to hear 25,000 Sox fans coming up to me telling me how great they are, while we can't even field a decent team. Anyone else struggling with this one? How will you cope?

 

Don't go!

 

Watch the game in the privacy of your own home...so no one will see your tears of sorrow.

 

Ken

[sethuel1]

I'll be at the Cell next Friday for the first Cubs/Sox game. Normally I look forward to giving that dump some class by wearing my Cubs gear, but I have to admit that I'm not looking forward to it this year. I really don't need to hear 25,000 Sox fans coming up to me telling me how great they are, while we can't even field a decent team. Anyone else struggling with this one? How will you cope?

 

it's called ebay, my friend.

[LoneStarCubFan]

You couldn't pay me enough to watch a game at that abortion of a ballpark full of mouth-breathing wife beaters.

 

Stay home. Why give the Sox money so you can be miserable for three hours?

[Garwilly]

You couldn't pay me enough to watch a game at that abortion of a ballpark full of mouth-breathing wife beaters.

 

Stay home. Why give the Sox money so you can be miserable for three hours?

 

I was at The Cell the second weekend of the season this year. I hadnt been there since 2003, and that place looks great. Step into the gate, THEN knock the park if you still have a problem.

[oldstyle81]

You couldn't pay me enough to watch a game at that abortion of a ballpark full of mouth-breathing wife beaters.

 

Stay home. Why give the Sox money so you can be miserable for three hours?

 

unless the cubs blow them out, then it would be kinda fun

[Nobody youd want to know]

You couldn't pay me enough to watch a game at that abortion of a ballpark full of mouth-breathing wife beaters.

 

Stay home. Why give the Sox money so you can be miserable for three hours?

 

I was at The Cell the second weekend of the season this year. I hadnt been there since 2003, and that place looks great. Step into the gate, THEN knock the park if you still have a problem.

 

Seconded. They've made some great changes in the past few years.

 

And as for Sox fans, I know quite a few of them, and while you can certainly fault their judgement, for the most part they're just regular people.

[sethuel1]

You couldn't pay me enough to watch a game at that abortion of a ballpark full of mouth-breathing wife beaters.

 

Stay home. Why give the Sox money so you can be miserable for three hours?

 

unless the cubs blow them out, then it would be kinda fun

har.

[UMFan83]

Yeah, I probably wouldn't go. You know the chances are that the Cubs lose 9-0, and you won't hear the end of it from Sox fans. I dunno, maybe if you have a good tolerance for pain you could go.

[LoneStarCubFan]

You couldn't pay me enough to watch a game at that abortion of a ballpark full of mouth-breathing wife beaters.

 

Stay home. Why give the Sox money so you can be miserable for three hours?

 

I was at The Cell the second weekend of the season this year. I hadnt been there since 2003, and that place looks great. Step into the gate, THEN knock the park if you still have a problem.

 

It would still be full of Sox fans so I'd still have a problem.

[Chocolate Milk]

Bring a head sized paper bag.

[South Side]

I'll give you a little advice from the "other side" to help you "survive":

 

1. Don't rip on the ballpark. Wrigley Field has plenty of flaws also. The Chicago media just doesn't rip on them constantly. Enjoy tailgating before the game, the food inside the park, the fan deck, outfield concourse, etc. Its become a nice place to see a game.

 

2. Don't rip on Sox fans, as the posts above have. Both parks get their share of losers. Claiming that Cub fans have some sort of social or economic advantage is not only stupid and elitist, but its asking for trouble.

 

3. Don't make fun of attendance. Unless you get some sort of dividend from the Tribune company, the Cubs higher attendance figures only line the owners pockets, it does nothing to improve the product on the field or the fans' experience at the park. Sox fans understand this, and consider attendance talk to be another form of Cub fan elitism.

 

4. Wear your Cubs gear, pull for your team and enjoy the game. I'll be taking a couple of Cub fans with me to one of the games, as I do every year, and they've never had a problem.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

3. Don't make fun of attendance. Unless you get some sort of dividend from the Tribune company, the Cubs higher attendance figures only line the owners pockets, it does nothing to improve the product on the field or the fans' experience at the park.

 

Do you have some sort of proof that filling the stadium does not guarantee a winning tradition?

[Andy]

I'd go and just laugh along and agree with any Sox fan that tells us how much we suck. Maybe if I felt like arguing I'd sarcastically ask when the last time one of their best players suffered a serious injury was.

[thedaymen]

Welcome to my world! The world of a Cubs' fan that doesn't live in Chicago. I'm dreading the three game series with the Mets I'm going to in July.

[South Side]

I'd go and just laugh along and agree with any Sox fan that tells us how much we suck. Maybe if I felt like arguing I'd sarcastically ask when the last time one of their best players suffered a serious injury was.

 

Be careful- someone might point out the starting 3B, LF, DH, one starting pitcher and the closer all spent time on the DL last season. Depth is actually a good thing, keeps teams from using injuries (especially injuries to the same player over and over again) as excuses.

[SouthSideRyan]

When they yell at you don't respond. Ignore every insult hurled at you, and when the Cubs score/hold the White Sox, stand up and clap as loud and obnoxiously as you can. If there's a big situatino for the Sox, let's say bases loaded, 1 out, and all the fans are on their feet so tehy could hit an inning ending double play, turn up the obnoxious clapping even more. If they were chanting said player's name, make sure to chant it loudly as the inning ends. Keep all your obnoxiousness towards the product on the field, none at the fans. It wouldn't hurt to have some friends with you for the end of the game, as it's going to be a lot of drunk people around, some doing nothing but looking for a fight.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I'd go and just laugh along and agree with any Sox fan that tells us how much we suck. Maybe if I felt like arguing I'd sarcastically ask when the last time one of their best players suffered a serious injury was.

 

Be careful- someone might point out the starting 3B, LF, DH, one starting pitcher and the closer all spent time on the DL last season. Depth is actually a good thing, keeps teams from using injuries (especially injuries to the same player over and over again) as excuses.

 

He said a serious injury. Crede and Podsednik were both at 130 games last year, and the worst starter on the team(including his replacement) was the only one that didn't make 30 starts(but still made 22). Thomas maybe, but he plays the easiest possible position to replace, and wasn't exactly a force himself.

[SouthSideRyan]

Doug Eddings and catcher's interference references are encouraged. As are Pierzynski's resemblence to Ben Seaver.

[sethuel1]

Doug Eddings and catcher's interference references are encouraged. As are Pierzynski's resemblence to Ben Seaver.

or the Pillsbury Doughboy

[South Side]

I'd go and just laugh along and agree with any Sox fan that tells us how much we suck. Maybe if I felt like arguing I'd sarcastically ask when the last time one of their best players suffered a serious injury was.

 

Be careful- someone might point out the starting 3B, LF, DH, one starting pitcher and the closer all spent time on the DL last season. Depth is actually a good thing, keeps teams from using injuries (especially injuries to the same player over and over again) as excuses.

 

He said a serious injury. Crede and Podsednik were both at 130 games last year, and the worst starter on the team(including his replacement) was the only one that didn't make 30 starts(but still made 22). Thomas maybe, but he plays the easiest possible position to replace, and wasn't exactly a force himself.

 

Podsednik's injury was serious. Take a look at his numbers from mid-July on. Had the Sox not been in the pennant race, he would have had surgery and missed the rest of the season (as it was, he had surgery in November and was not recovered completely in time for spring training).

For Podsednik, losing his running game for three months and then spending three month recovering from surgery is "serious". The injury still appears to affect him at times.

 

Dustin Hemanson, the closer, had a career ending injury mid season. I'd call that serious.

 

Frank Thomas' career appears to be effectively over. I'd call that serious.

 

The point is, Ken Williams covered for the injury possibilities before the season started. He acquired Jenks (off the scrap heap) in case Takatsu and Hermanson couldn't get the job done. He got Carl Everett in case Thomas failed to return. He did not trade McCarthy (despite lots of interest) in case a starter went down. And this year, when Crede's back problems of last season (again, would have spent much more time on the DL if not in the pennant race) appeared to be possibly chronic he picked up Mackowiak, and replaced the injured Thomas with Thome.

 

My Point: Instead of ripping the Sox for not having enough injuries, why not rip Hendry for not covering the possibility that Wood or Prior might be hurt? Why not rip on Hendry for not adding a real offensive force at OF or SS, so they wouldn't be so reliant on Lee's offense (which I admit is a huge and unexpected problem)? Isn't the goal of the team to stay healthy? Isn't it the goal of the GM to get players that stay healthy, and have alternatives ready for those who don't? Or is it the goal to create excuses?

[Chocolate Milk]

My Point: Instead of ripping the Sox for not having enough injuries, why not rip Hendry for not covering the possibility that Wood or Prior might be hurt? Why not rip on Hendry for not adding a real offensive force at OF or SS, so they wouldn't be so reliant on Lee's offense (which I admit is a huge and unexpected problem)? Isn't the goal of the team to stay healthy? Isn't it the goal of the GM to get players that stay healthy, and have alternatives ready for those who don't? Or is it the goal to create excuses?

 

Have you read the first page of posts on "Baseball Discussions?" We're practially carrying torches and pichforks.

[South Side]

My Point: Instead of ripping the Sox for not having enough injuries, why not rip Hendry for not covering the possibility that Wood or Prior might be hurt? Why not rip on Hendry for not adding a real offensive force at OF or SS, so they wouldn't be so reliant on Lee's offense (which I admit is a huge and unexpected problem)? Isn't the goal of the team to stay healthy? Isn't it the goal of the GM to get players that stay healthy, and have alternatives ready for those who don't? Or is it the goal to create excuses?

 

Have you read the first page of posts on "Baseball Discussions?" We're practially carrying torches and pichforks.

 

Absolutely, I'm actually agreeing with most of you here. Going back to the original post I was disagreeing with, I just don't think its a good idea to throw the injury thing in the face of Sox fans. Its not a valid excuse, nor a valid way to discredit what the Sox have accomplished the last year and a third.

[mjohnson71]

I'll give you a little advice from the "other side" to help you "survive":

 

1. Don't rip on the ballpark. Wrigley Field has plenty of flaws also. The Chicago media just doesn't rip on them constantly. Enjoy tailgating before the game, the food inside the park, the fan deck, outfield concourse, etc. Its become a nice place to see a game.

 

2. Don't rip on Sox fans, as the posts above have. Both parks get their share of losers. Claiming that Cub fans have some sort of social or economic advantage is not only stupid and elitist, but its asking for trouble.

 

3. Don't make fun of attendance. Unless you get some sort of dividend from the Tribune company, the Cubs higher attendance figures only line the owners pockets, it does nothing to improve the product on the field or the fans' experience at the park. Sox fans understand this, and consider attendance talk to be another form of Cub fan elitism.

 

4. Wear your Cubs gear, pull for your team and enjoy the game. I'll be taking a couple of Cub fans with me to one of the games, as I do every year, and they've never had a problem.

 

Good post except for most of number 3.

 

The elitism of some Cubs fans and northside residents can sometimes be disheartening.

[J.R.]

Whatever you do, don't let your tickets fall into the hands of the enemy. Better to eat them than to let some sorry Sox fan have them.