Barack Obama signs an autograph at the 2005 White Sox Championship rally downtown. (Flickr - Therese Flanagan)
He had to go there, didn't he? He had to dig into that scabbed-over wound that Sox fans love to irritate and play the "Cubs fans-are-drunk-idiots" card, didn't he?
Democratic Presidential Nominee Barack Obama recently told ESPN's Stuart Scott that he would be rooting for the White Sox if they squared off with the Cubs in the fall classic. Here is a portion of the transcript:
Scott: “If the Cubs and the White Sox both make it to the World Series?
Obama: “I would be going.”
Scott: “Who would you root for?
Obama: “Oh, that's easy. White Sox. I'm not one of these fair weather
fans. You go to Wrigley Field, you have a beer, beautiful people up
there. People aren't watching the game. It's not serious. White Sox,
that's baseball. Southside.”
Cubs fans have reacted with a ferver over the remarks. MLB.com and other major websites featuring baseball-related blogs are bursting with comments bashing Sox fans and Obama alike.
However, was Obama wrong in his statement?
As a lifelong Cubs fan, I can't say that I disagree with the Illinois senator.
I have attended hundreds of Cubs games in my day - including 39 when I lived near the park in 2003 - so it is safe to say I have a large sample size for my observations. Many people at Wrigley Field are fair weather fans. Many Wrigley Field patrons are there for a good time - whether it is as a tourist or to get sloppy drunk and give your number to some 40-year old woman from Iowa. When I go to the games, these people frustrate me because I'm the guy with the scorecard, often yelling "down in front", shooting darts with my eyes at the guy squeezing through my row every half-inning to use the can. I'm that guy. I consider myself a true Cubs fan.
The biggest problem I have with the Obama remarks aren't the remarks themselves, but rather the reaction to those remarks.
It is important to distinguish between the terms "Cubs fans" and "Wrigley Field patrons". There is a tremendous difference here. The Wrigley Field patron was the target of Obama's slam, not the Cubs fan. White Sox fans pride themselves on being the "anti-Cub" of anything - they are proud of their shopping mall-like ballpark and minor league-like in game antics. Perhaps most important to all Sox fans is the way they differentiated themselves from the Cubs in 2005 by winning the World Series.
Having said that, as a true Cubs fan, let us worry about what really matters - winning. Screw the Wrigley Field patrons. If you aren't tired of the "lovable loser" credo, go pop a squat in the bleachers with the drunk guy in the cargo shorts. I have no use for you. And if Sox fans and others want to judge "Cubs fans" as a whole based on their actions, let them be. Would you be as upset if a Mariners fan said the same thing? If Wrigley Field patrons want to go to the game and spend $100 for a seat to buy $6.50 beers all night, please go right ahead. I'm just fine over here with my HDTV, my pooch, and a mean sixer of Diet Cherry Pepsi.
Cubs fans - yes, Cubs fans - should be concerned about one thing right now: winning the World Series. Do not lose sight of the fact that we have the best team in the National League, if not all of baseball. Do not lose sight of the fact that we have a better chance of winning this year than I can remember at any point in my lifetime. Sox fans will talk. Presidential candidates will talk. Wrigley Field patrons will drink. As Cubs fans, dial it in and enjoy.
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Jeremy Shermak
Jeremy Shermak has been a Chicago sports fan since Harry announced for the Sox, Wrigley bleacher tickets were $5 bucks, Soldier Field had Astroturf, the Bulls wore short-shorts, and people really care More
Comments
Probably the most literate and rational response I have ever heard from a Cub fan on the whole Cubs vs. Sox thing.
No doubt there are REAL Cub fans out there. And they care more about the Cubs left handed hitting problems than if they are going to meet at Goose Island before the game and Cubby Bear afterward.
I grew up decades ago in Chicago when the Sox did not play second fiddle in the Second City. My dad took me to Sox games because he worked days, and weekends too for that matter. The Sox played night games -- so if you wanted a baseball fix - and you worked - you were a Sox fan.
I don't know exactly when the term "lovable losers" became palatable. My guess is sometime in the early 80's when an influx of "yuppies" migrated to the city and decided the Southside was no place for smarmy youth with wallets full of cash.
I agree with Shermak, that those people took more of a shine to Wrigley Field and a caricature of Harry Caray than to the Cubs themselves. Which is not to say that Cub fans don't exist. No doubt Shermak is an actual "Cubs" fan. And he kind of made me feel sad for Cub fans like him who would love to take their kid to a real baseball game and teach them how to track a scorecard. Probably not gonna happen in the bleachers of Wrigley.
Obama may have been tongue in cheek with his remarks, but I'll bet the element of truth in his comments hurts old Cub fans whose team is barely recognizable as having its first legitimate shot at baseball's golden ring in far too many years.
Amen, Jeremy! I couldn't agree more. I've been trying to explain the crucial difference between True Cubs Fans and Wrigley Field Fillers since the bandwagon filled to capacity during the 2003 playoffs. It's a crime that the Wrigley Field bleachers--once home to the most passionate, involved fans in baseball history--is now a haven for pre-gaming frat boys and cell phone-yapping yuppies. Tickets are too expensive to put up with that for three hours.
But let's focus on the positive, shall we? Jason Marquis didn't suck today!
The Daily Fix over on WSJ.com linked to this column yesterday:
http://blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2008/08/28/obama-isnt-the-only-cubs-detrac...
Second paragraph. Kudos.
Which is more exciting? Senator Obama being the first African-American delegate to be elect by the DNC or the Chicago Cubs on the path to the World Series?
http://www.mbd2.com/forum/balloon_Animal_Blog/index.php/2008/obama-vs-th...
Cubs fans seem to have long given up hope of winning and are just in it for the fun of it. A different breed of fans, but they can be fun to hang around with.
An insight into Obama's politics in just a few lines of dialogue about baseball. Looking forward to his presidency.
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