Point of View

Holy Cow

Holy Cow the Cubbies are going to the playoffs…again. Where is Harry Caray when you need him? This entry alone my be all that is needed to "curse" my beloved Cubbies chance of victory. My participation as a Cubs fan has caused a family rift since I was a young boy. Normally, Cub fans are “north-siders”, while the “south-siders” typically root for the White Sox. I grew up on the south side so you might imagine, I have been the brunt of many-a-Cubs joke, but I usually let it slide off my shoulder without incident. I remember as a boy going to my first Cubs game.
Wrigley Field is one of the last original ball parks still in use in the country. It has not fallen prey to the corporate name change like so many other parks and venues these days. Wrigley Field is in Chicago and has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales. It was also the home of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League from 1921-1970. Located in the residential neighborhood of Lakeview, Wrigley Field sits on an asymmetric block bounded by Clark and Addison Streets and Waveland and Sheffield Avenues. The area surrounding the ballpark contains bars, restaurants and other establishments and is typically referred to as Wrigleyville. The ballpark's mailing address, as many fans of the movie The Blues Brothers know, is 1060 W. Addison Street. During Cubs games, fans will often stand outside the park on Waveland Avenue, waiting for home run balls hit over the wall and out of the park. (However, as a tradition, Cubs fans inside and sometimes even outside the park will promptly throw any home run ball hit by an opposing player back onto the field of play, a ritual depicted in the late-1970s stage play, Bleacher Bums, and in the 1993 film, Rookie of the Year.)  I can still smell the freshly cut grass. The arriving fans would fill every seat and the park would come alive with echoing announcements and pre-game activities. In field, the team would be warming up, much like you see today, but fan-player interaction seemed more the norm and getting an autograph was a simple procedure of hanging over the dugout roof and handing a ball to your favorite player.
Despite their rollercoaster record and predictable habit of “blowing” games, it’s hard to top the magic that fills this park and the energy emitted by the fans. I have little memory of a time before Harry Caray, although he did announce for the White Sox until 1981, his ever-famous “Holy Cow” and his slurred rendering of “Take Me out to the Ball Game” during the seventh inning stretch are only a few Harry-moments. Sometimes I was certain he was going to fall out of the booth as he leaned out to greet fans and lead them on to a Cubs victory.  Harry would normally get the first letter of the players name correct and completely butcher the remaining syllables much to the amusement of the fans and television announcers. Since his passing in 1998 guest celebrities now fill in during the seventh inning stretch, but it’s not quite the same. Still, the magic remains and the die-hard fans patiently wait for a World Series victory…hopefully before they too pass.

*Historical data from Wikipedia