IowaCubsFan

I hate this effing team. I hate them with all my soul. How can a team not scrape together more than a single run against David Wells' broken-down ass?

Someone please explain to me why Izturis is even occupying a roster spot on a major league team. What a waste of space that guy is. Why can't he snap a wrist, and be gone the rest of the year?

I questioned the hiring of Lou Piniella from the beginning; I said that it would be much better for the Cubs in the long run to admit that paying a crapload of money for free agents wouldn't work, and employing a manager on the downslope of his career were recipes for failure. I said that the Cubs should go out and trade guys like Prior, Dempster, Howry, Eyre, Jones and Barrett for prospects, and put those young guys under a savvy, aggressive young manager like Joe Girardi. Unfortunately when you have a marketing guy in charge of a baseball team, you end up doing things that are stupid. There was no way this team was going to contend in 2007, and admitting that to the fans as part of a comprehensive plan to rebuild this franchise would have been the way to go. Instead we got platitudes and retreads, and us fans are pissed again. This franchise is going to be in serious financial trouble for a lot of years with all these massive contracts.

Did I hear right that Grace is doing the commentary for this game?

I always thought it was Vizcaino. Even if it is Orta, I'm going to stick with the memory of Vizcaino as it's better. I always like how he struggled with people's names: Mike La-vall-lie-rre Hector Vill-a-nu-ve-ey-via Joe Orsh-u-lak Every reference to John Candelaria almost always required a reference to him as "The Candyman" And IIRC, his reference to Hideo Nomo went, "He's got them slanty eyes." As far as game-related calls are concerned, I'll always remember when Rick Sutcliffe wrapped up a two-hit shutout against the Pirates in '84 to clinch the Eastern Division: "THE CUBS ARE THE CHAMPIONS! THE CUBS ARE THE CHAMPIONS!"

It's too bad they're going back to the names on the home jerseys. I liked the old ones from back in the day, no red outline on the number and no names. But then again, I think they need to scrap the red bills on the away caps and end the practice of wearing alternative jerseys at home. I don't have a problem with the replicas. They're a lot cheaper than the real things, and actually are more comfortable.

You guys would be better off with Hillary. She said that she's been a Cubs fan her whole life. http://www.fenwaynation.com/hillary_yankees.jpg

I got my tickets too. Looking forward to it.

I found out my wife will be going to Chicago for a meeting the same weekend as Cubs Convention, so I decided to tag along with her so I could attend my first CC. Who here has gone? What did you think? Is it difficult to get tickets when they go on sale next week? Should I take a camera with me, or will that be too geeky?

Hendry: "Unfortunately, some good things must come to an end, or at least that's what Dunkin Donuts told me when they decided to discontinue to the chocolate frosted, jelly-filled bismarck."

Yeah, I know all us fans can breathe a sigh of relief now that the Cubs have that all-important 63rd win... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . On September 23rd.

The time the Cubs usually stretch before the game is currently being taken up by corporations renting the field for their own stretching sessions.

This is more like it. Come on, guys. Only 10 more losses to make 100 for the year! I know you can do it!

Damn. Now they have to go 3-12. This is unacceptable!! I won't settle for anything less than 100 losses.

Dude, you can't let Theriot play. Then all the racists in Chicago win.

I was living in Lincoln Park that summer on an internship, and that was the first time I ever got to see a Cubs game at Wrigley in person. My first game that summer I got to see Sammy's first two bombs against Florida in his magical month of June in which he hit 21(!) homeruns. I also remember a late July night game comeback against Montreal in which Henry Rodriguez hit a 3-run homer to take the lead, and seemingly every drunk idiot I sat next to in the bleachers threw their beer cups onto the field. The Brant Brown game was memorable, but for different reasons. I'm sitting in my apartment's living room after getting home from class, and as soon as Brown dropped that fly ball I was prone on the carpet, pounding my fist into the floor. My future wife was in shock as well. All I remember hearing was Ronnie's "O NO!!! NOOOO!!!" I think Terry Mulholland pitched every inning of that last series in Houston, or so it seemed. That's why I kind of laugh when I think of pampered princesses like Mark Prior not being able to handle pitch counts of 120 or so, while Mullholland and Beck were absolutely gassed at the end of the season and still found ways to get it over the plate. Steve Trachsel had a perfect game going into the sixth inning in the playoff against San Francisco, if memory serves. I remember seeing Gracie catch that fly ball and thinking, "I'm glad he's going to get another shot at the playoffs." I was on my way back from Great America at night, listening to that Saturday night game against Philly when Glenallen Hill hit the homerun on top of the roof across the street and Wood went yard as well. Good memories.

Something tells me the Cubs are going to struggle to win 60 games. They should just call everyone up that's in single A and let them play. Could they be any worse than this bunch?

I think that was the game when Nevin hit the deep line drive to win it. Can't remember who it was against.

Maybe Murton just looked on fire, cuz his hair and all. Does that work Iowa? I forgot about him. Ok, Murton can survive too. He did after all have to sit in the back of the bus, where the other survivors were, because of all the empty seats that Dusty reserved for Neifi, Hairston, and Macias, "just in case they come back."

Your response is what I'm looking for. Dark comedy is needed at times like this.

The driver of the team bus falls asleep at the wheel, the bus goes careening off a cliff and erupts in a ball of flame. Lee, Ramirez, Zambrano, Cedeno, and Barrett all are able to crawl out of the wreckage, but the rest of the team dies when Dusty refuses to let anyone walk off the bus, accusing the other players of "clogging the aisles."

Why can't we do to this team what they do to horses who have outlived their usefulness?

Dude, Neifi was wayyy better.

Awesome video. Well done. I'd love to see some walkoffs from earlier years, and even dare I say the Harry Caray era. Sounds like you could have an ongoing project.

The thing that's amazing about that video is that the Cubs were 17 games over .500 in the second week of August, and in first place. I'd forgotten how competitive the '01 team was. I seem to remember a series in Florida in late August/early September where the wheels came off the wagon, and for some reason Tom Gordon is coming to mind as the reason why.