Thoughts (from a PO’ed Cubs fan) On Opening Day…

Well, this was going to be a blog post where I was going to stay upbeat.  I was going to talk about the positives and (as it became apparent) the negatives of the 2010 Chicago Cubs team, but I was going to do it as sort of an objective sportscaster…  until the bottom dropped out, and I realized, for the first time on the opening day of a season, that the Chicago Cubs might just have to be written off in APRIL…

There have been seasons where the Cubs look great – they might make me nervous, but even in those years, providing they get a few lucky breaks and play some great baseball, they have a chance to make it into the post-season, if not the World Series.  And then there are the years where they can be completely written off; years where even the most optimistic of true fans can tell that our beloved Cubbies won’t get much further than the dog days of summer, if we’re lucky.  I remember a year when I had to write off the Cubs in May.  It was late May, but May, nonetheless, but it had become apparent to me that the Cubs were not going anywhere and that I had better explore the idea of a back-up team; not because I love the Cubs any less after all of their failures but simply because I love baseball, and I needed to have a team to follow into the post-season…

But I digress…  back to today; the Cubs 2010 season-opener…

First inning was great – the Cubs were up 3-0…  until the Braves got their turn to bat, and Zambrano (the famous hot-tempered Cubs pitcher) fell apart.  While he did deliver on his promise to curtail his outbursts, that didn’t stop him from choking.  First the Cubs lost a fly ball in left field between 3 players – one of those ‘who’s-gonna-get-it-anyone-but-me’ scenarios that should not exist in games where the players get paid millions of dollars to play baseball.  Next, in the bottom half of the same first inning, Zambrano gave up a homerun, got an error (with an idiotic play – the ball got through the infield, but good fielding managed to make up for it and got the out at first.  Apparently, Zambrano, who was covering first, got so high off the save of the play that he decided to throw to third base to get the runner, but he was so hepped up on his save at first that he overthrew third and got himself an error, which led the Braves to score – UGH).  So back to my list of things Zambrano did wrong…  So then, in his trademark frustration, Zambrano proceeds to bean a batter with the ball and give up yet another homerun – and he was finally out of the game, but at least he left the field tantrumless, per his promise…  at least?!?

Then I find myself at the top of the 5th inning when there is a double play on the Cubs – a line drive was hit, but the runner at first couldn’t get back to the base in time – terrible base-running!!  Honestly, it looked worse than spring training out there!!  Again, these guys get paid millions for this?!?  WHERE is the coaching?  I find myself wondering, just like I did at the end of last season – has Lou Piniella just given up?  But isn’t it too early in the season for that?!?

Next, to end the top of the 5th inning – Nate McCloud (on the Braves) makes a great catch – it was a great hit by the Cubs, but the Braves seem to have a team – why can’t WE catch balls like that?!?

And then, at the top of the 6th – McCloud makes a diving catch…  but wait, he drops it.  He picks it up so quickly that the umps rule the ball caught and runners out – Kudos to Cubs coach Lou for not losing it and abstaining from performing one of his famous dirt-kicking tantrums, which is more than I can say for myself…  total crap, and a few choice words were said in my living room…  but to my credit, the kids were upstairs.

Bottom of the 7th – some Cubs pitcher named Samardzija walks 3 in a row but still gets to stay in the game somehow – maybe the team really does think it’s still spring training?  Then there is a huge error, but thankfully, I had to go to the bathroom so I missed it.  Good thing too, I haven’t yet learned how to control my cussing during baseball and my kids were still awake…  And then…  what’s THAT?  Someone hits a ball way back into the outfield which bounces into the stands, and the ball is played wrong, plus the throw to third is terrible…  And that’s it, I’m done.  I’ll watch the rest of the game and maybe offer some final thoughts, but the bottom line is this – I am sad to say that the Chicago Cubs did not show up to play baseball today.

At least the Detroit Tigers, a team I chose long ago to be my back-up team due to their close proximity to where I live plus the fact that they are in the division of my nemesis team, the Chicago White Sox, won their opening game, albeit against the Kansas City pushovers.

And as for the Cubs…
It’s not about the 11 run deficit; the fact that the Cubs lost 16-5.  If they had tried, been well-coached, and played good baseball, it would just be me here pouting.  Fact is, they played terribly.  It’s one thing to have a bad game; that can be forgiven.  But when you’re a team who has so many dedicated fans, and you have so much to prove…  how can you possibly recover from a debut this horrible?  The Chicago Cubs looked like they don’t even know how to play baseball.

I do have a tendency to over-dramatize things, so here is my plea to what I fear are the hopeless 2010 Chicago Cubs:

Surprise me.  PLEASE.

**An addendum…  After this sorry excuse of a baseball game, I did a google search for ‘cubs logo sad clown face’ – thinking it would be easy for me to find a Chicago Cubs logo that someone had morphed into a sad clown face -after over 100 years of disappointment, does it really seem that far-fetched?  I did not find what I was looking for, but I found this amusing blog entry instead…

Lisa