I have lived through many great sporting moments. Being in Toronto to see the Riders win the 07 Grey Cup, being in Northlands Coliseum when the Oilers won their first Stanley Cup, seeing the Seahawks beat the Broncos on my 40th birthday. While I've witnessed great moments with my favourite teams, I have also experienced pain. Last year's Grey Cup, Ryan Stewart's goal in the dying seconds of Game 6 of the 1984 WHL final when it looked like the Pats were going to the Mem Cup, the abomination that was Super Bowl 40 and perhaps most of all is this.....
Seven years ago tonight I became convinced that the Chicago Cubs were cursed. What you have seen was perhaps the longest eight minutes of my life when it comes to sports. The Chicago Cubs were five outs from going to the World Series. Five outs! They led the Florida Marlins 3-1 in the 8th and they were up 3-2 in the series. It was over. Mark Prior was on the mound and he was money. There was no way they could lose. No way! How wrong I was. My daughter Annika was just over a month old. I was watching the game downstairs and I went upstairs to take her from Mom. She sat there on my lap and I told her about the Cubs and how long it had been and how happy Daddy was going to be. Then it happened. Luis Castillo hits a foul ball down the left field line. Moises Alou settles under it to make what would appear to be the catch---but Steve Bartman intervened and became a part of folklore. He tried to catch the ball and prevented Alou from doing so. Moments later, Castillo walked. Miguel Cabrera then hit a ground ball to short for what should have been a double play only to have Alex Gonzalez botch it. At that moment, I got up out of my chair and came back upstairs to give Annika to Mom. Tracey asked me if the game was over and I said "I think so, but not in the way I want." Derrek Lee slams a double down the line to tie it, Jeff Conine hits a sac fly to give the Marlins the lead and then Mike Mordecai crushes a Kyle Farnsworth pitch into the left center field gap to make it 7-3. Juan Pierre singles home Mordecai and it was 8-3. Game over. I was devastated. I was crushed. Game 7 was the next night and Kerry Wood was pitching. They couldn't lose could they. Yeah, they could. The name Steve Bartman still brings controversy. Some Cubs fans have forgiven him, others want to see him strung up on a foul pole. In an instant, Steve Bartman became a celebrity for all the wrong reasons. He was forced into hiding. ESPN found him a few years ago in what was a really good article. A "30 for 30" documentary about Bartman is supposed to be coming on soon. That will be painful to watch, but I will.
When I make my first visit to Wrigley, which will hopefully be next summer, I will go sit in the Bartman seat. I have to. Many others have done the same thing. It was seven years ago. WOW!! That video still pains me. Will I ever see the Cubs win the World Series. I've been rooting for that team since the early 80's. Steve Garvey and Leon Durham hurt me in 84...Will Clark crushed me in 89, Bartman got me in 03 and James Loney's grand slam in 2008 did me in. I don't know what I'll ever do if the Cubs win the World Series. I may never get the chance to find out. SIGHHHHH!!!!
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The Leafs are 3-0. This can't continue can it?
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The Derick Armstrong Rider picture story is one of those stories that makes the CFL what it is. That really is unbelievable.
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What prison inmates will be the lucky ones to beat Graham James to a pulp! If mankind is lucky, maybe he can share a cell with David Frost!
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The NFL could lose a billion dollars if there is a lockout. Why am I thinking there won't be one.
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Premier Brad Wall was throwing some cold water on the new stadium project idea Wednesday. Wall said it looks bleak when it comes to federal money and if that's the case, you can ditch the domed stadium idea. Rod Pedersen got on his soapbox on "The Sportscage" yesterday and said if we can't have a 400 million dollar dome then lets use the private money and the government money that we already have and build an outdoor facility on the same spot. I couldn't agree with him more. As Rod puts in the last line of his world famous blog "We need something new and the time is now." I second that wholeheartedly. Lets get this thing done. Yes, there will be those against it, but there are those against everything these days. DO IT!
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How am I supposed to catch up in the CKRM football pool when Carteri, Lynch, Currie and Remple all make the same picks as me. GRRRRRR!!!
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Have we now finally seen the last of Casey Printers in the CFL?
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Taylor Swift's latest song is called "Mine". I'm hoping she's not thinking of performing in Chile anytime soon. What?? Was that too soon?
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6 comments:
I know that feeling everytime i see last years Grey Cup TSN had the top 10 cfl mouments on It still hurts
B
The scars will never heal. I get a chill down my spine whenever I see Rick Monday at Olympic Stadium. At least you are willing to discuss it.
Matt
Both you and Pedersen make me sick. We want a stadium, we need a stadium, blah, blah, blah. There is nothing wrong with football at Taylor Field. The projects we could have and won't because of this are ridiculous. Why don't both of you get on a soapbox and talk about how the government should fix highways or help the homeless or help high school graduates with university tuition.
The domed stadium as it stands now is too big for Regina. What would the cost of a 40-thousand domed stadium cost. Isn't that the size of the one in Grand Forks? That would be perfect for Regina. We could get concerts, trade shows, etc. etc and we would have two facilities for big name shows in BC and the new stadium. The show lounge would still get acts and I think there would be room at Conexus for various things as well. Hell, Regina might actually have a night where there are two or three things going on at the same time. I want a domed stadium, but I don't want it to be the size that some have suggested.
Grant
Casey Printers is done. His act has worn thin. The guy is all me and has no team mentality in him. Someone at one time thought Casey would look good in green. He would have torn that locker room apart. Any team that takes a flyer on him now is simply ridiculous. Go back to Texas and take your soother with ya!!
Barry
I know your pain Mitch. I went through it in '86, '88, '99, '03 and many, many more times before 86 years of frustration and curses were vanquished in 2 magical weeks in October 2004. They say Red Sox fans and cubs fans were masochists, the way we took on all the years of pain and suffering and kept coming back year after year.
My reaction on Wednesday, October 27, 2004, when Edgar Renteria hit a grounder back to Keith Foulke who fielded it and tossed it to Doug Mientkewicz at first for the historic third out was to drop to my knees, relief finally taking over. The emotion of the moment was too much and I broke down on the spot. My wife was stunned next to me. I don't think anyone else could understand the feeling of that moment. You have to have been a Red Sox fan. I;m sure when the time comes that the Cubs do win, your moment will be very similar.
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