Just last weekend I had a very memorable experience at Wriglyfield with Palmer and Kyle Lindsay's family. We got tickets on the rooftops, which meant all you can eat and all you can drink. The last time I had seen the Cubs play at Wrigley was in 2010 with Reggie. I had been aching to revisit for some time now and several chances fell thru in the past couple years. Finally the chance came at EJ's bachelor party a couple weeks ago, when I got to talking to Palms. He invited me to tag along with his roommate's family (Kyle Lindsay, Coach Lindsay, and Molly Lindsay from the high school days). Although this was an unusual invite, I couldn't pass up the offer and was excited to finally return to Wrigley field.
We drove up early Saturday morning, and stayed at an older hotel near the ballpark. We had a couple beers in the hotel, then met Kyle's family outside the stadium at Papa Murphys. Just walking around the city already reminded me of my days living there. The environment was incredible as I always remembered it; passionate fans, beautiful women, and the majestic view of Wrigleyfield. The weather was a bit misty out, however it wasn't too hot out which was nice. The food was great, I had some Italian Beef and lots of Corona. Although they loss to their rivals, the White Sox, it was still an incredible day that just flew by. Coming home I was very satisifed with my return to Chicago and promised myself not to wait another 5 years to get back to Wriglyfield. It's always been one of my favorite spots and one of my favorite teams since I was young.
How it All Started
Baseball became my first sport of choice as a young boy. I'll never forget the summer afternoon where my dad pulled up in his Ford Escort with some new baseball gloves, a bat, and a ball. I remember all us kids began playing in the backyard that summer and so the love for the game was born. We played almost everyday and even joined a summer league of Wildcat. I remember I picked it up pretty quickly as a shortstop and had the knack of great defense, diving, and agility. Baseball had become my first athletic passion, and just like every other kid I wanted to be a professional ballplayer.
The baseball obsession phase lasted for a few years, and I remember even sharing it with my cousin Marc, who was a Detroit Tigers fan. He was also pretty good at it and we'd often fantasize about starting our team someday, the Washington Bombers. However in the season of 1994-1995 there was major strike that stopped the full season. This brought an abrupt freeze to our following of the professional league. While we continued to play that summer, I remember at that time I also began to grow an interest in the NFL and later playing soccer.
To this day I'm not quite the dedicated baseball fan I once was. That attention has rather been pulled towards the NFL and European futbol, which frankly I find to be much more exciting. Yet thru and thru I have always supported the Cubs in the matter of baseball. As I began working Pitch FX in 2011 for the Indianapolis Indians, my appreciation for baseball was reborn. Now-a-days I'm of the mind that to follow a baseball game on TV and to be there in person are two completely different matters. And I would always chose the 2nd, especially if it were the nostalgic home of my Chicago Cubs.
Memories as a Fan
- Watching Cubs baseball games on local TV at our house, in Michigan, or at my mom's work of Quinn House.
- Collecting the baseball cards, singing all our Cubbies songs
- Philip's favorite player being the catcher Rick Wilkins
- All the games that relief pitcher Bob Scanlon blew
- Going to the stadium a couple times with my parents and the Martinez. Sitting up high in the upper decks as they played the Houston Astros. Harry Carey waved to us.
- The 1998 season where the Cubs made a great run into the playoffs; this was the year that Sammy Sosa was engaged in a home-run race with Mark MgGwuire and broke Roger Marris' single season record. I remember this was all the talk among my classmates in junior high.
- Becoming friends with Ryan Palmer, whose entire family were avid Cubs fans and their house was practically a shrine to Wrigleyfield
- The 2003 season where the Cubs had one of their best teams in many years and made a good run into the playoffs. I remember this season had a significant place in my memory because it was my first freshmen semester in Bloomington. I'll never forget watching the many games in our Forest dorm with Ryan or my other IU friends who were also Cubs fan like Rupright, Molly Lindsay, and Laura Oberhaultzer. I remember the Cubs hype was heavy that fall, especially around their pitching staff led by, Kerry Wood, Mark Pryor, and Carlos Zambrano. Then of course came the infamous game 6 of the NLCS against the Florida Marlins. I remember watching the game with Ryan as the Chicago Cubs were only 5 outs away from the World Series, then went on to blow it in the bottom of the 8th thru a string of bad luck and bad defending.
- When I lived in Chicago for a year in 2008, I had a rebirth of appreciation for the Chicago Cubs. Every time I had friends visit we would go out drinking at the bars of Wrigleyville or try to catch a Cubs game. I had many good times at those bars.
- There were 3 games I went to in the spring/summer of 08. The first one I was visited by several of my old Btown friends (Palmer, EJ, Karlan, Zach Fredericks, and Mark) Palms was our Cubbies expert and showed us the ropes to the bleachers, as it was my first game there in many years. I remember we got extremely wasted among other extremely wasted fans and the Cubs went on to win a great game. Then I'll never forget after the game, the celebratory atmosphere throughout the bars and streets. As we walked into the Vines on Clark, I remember the song "Cecilia" by Simon and Garfunkel was blasting on the speakers and I couldn't be more happy and excited.
- About a week later Jackie came to visit me with her boyfriend Erik. I remember this time I was the tour guide and we emulated the experience I just had with my college friends. We sat in the bleachers, got drunk with the other fans, the Cubbies won, and we then went out to the bars to party again. It was yet again another very memorable experience.
- A couple months later I had my third experience at Wrigley that summer, as Palmer came to visit yet again with Greg Causey. I remember it was an especially hot day, but we still had a very good time in the bleachers and drinking at the bars afterwards. I'm also quite certain the Cubs won, which made my record at Wrigley 3-0 that year.
- However in late August, my Wrigley experience took a turn for the worse, when Reggie visited. We went on to scalp some tickets, yet only to find out at the gates that they were fake tickets and we were out $30. This was a devastating blow to my Wrigley experience, yet we still went on to have a good time at the bars.
- Two years later I had a week's vacation from the BACA, and returned to my favorite city with Reggie. This time we were eager to redeem our Wrigley experience and bought some legit tickets online along the 1st baseline. This was a very enjoyable view as we had beer, hot dogs, and enjoyed the game. (See My Return to Chicago)
- For the next five years I had been wanting to go to a Cubs game, however had many opportunities fall through. In 2011 I went with family, however the weather was terrible and rainy. In 2012 I had a great time with my family as we stayed at the beach in Rodgers Park and walked around downtown and the Navy Pier however we did not make it to a Cubs game. The following couple years I tried to make plans with family, Lauren, Ryan, my co-worker Adam, and other friends however no one bit at my plans.
- Finally just last weekend I had my long overdue return to Wrigley with Palmer. This was a different experience from the rooftops and with a family I hardly knew, yet still a very memorable experience. My spirit was high and the entire day flew by like a blur, and I left very satisifed. I've told myself and others that I cannot wait another five years to return to Wrigley, I'd like to make it an annual stop on my yearly trip to Chicago.
Favorite Players- Ryne Sandberg (1982-1997) 10x All Star
- Shawn Dunston (1984-1995) 2x All Star
- Sammy Sosa (1992-2004) 7x All Star
- Carlos Zambrano (2001-2011) 3x All Star
- Derek Lee (2004-2010) 2x All Star
- Ernie Banks (1953-1971) 14x All Star
Notable Team Records and Statistics
| Major league titles | |
|---|---|
| World Series titles (2) | |
| NL Pennants (16) | |
| Central Division titles(3) | |
| East Division titles(2) | |
| Wild card berths (1) | 1998 |
| Name | |
|---|---|
| Other nicknames | |
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| Ballpark | |
