Reaction to the White Sox' Championship
Hello folks, welcome to my first real post on my blog. Up to this point I have basically been too lazy/busy to post on here, but now that I have some free time/will power, you'll finally be graced with my opinions (try and contain your excitement, please).
Those of you who know me know that I'm a big baseball fan, and that my allegiance lies with the Chicago Cubs in particular. While we've gone without our World Series title since 1908, we've always had the satisfaction of knowing that the Cubs are, at the very least, the #1 team in Chicago. Well, that's no longer the case. Chicago's other, less important team has just won the World Series, and many Cubs fans could not be more shagrined. Can you blame them? The Cubs have the glamour, have the fans with money, have the media coverage (the Cubs are owned by the Tribune Co., who also own the Chicago Tribune newspaper and WGN), but those blue-collar, beer-swilling, salt-of-the-earth types down on the South Side have the title. It's just not fair, is it? Well, of course it is. The White Sox played great baseball all year long, saving their best for the playoffs, and so this World Series title is more than deserved. Congratulations, White Sox, you're the champions of the world. Cubs fans, get off stage, it's someone else's turn right now. Suck it up and deal with it. White Sox are champs, we gotta wait until next year.
The End of the Cubs' World, right? Wrong. While it no doubt stings for us Cubs fans to see those Sox parade around with their World Series trophy raised high above their heads, this is really a blessing for the Cubs. Now they have some competition for the hearts of Chicago, and a little competition never hurt anybody, right? Of course it didn't. The Cubs gotta take their city back, gotta steal the Sox' thunder. How are they gonna do that? Well, they have to win a title of their own now. They certainly can't do that with the team they put out there last year. They need some players other than Lee and Ramirez who can hit the ball with any consistency, and the middle relief platoon of Wuertz/Ohman/Wellemeyer was less than reliable. If the Cubs are gonna steal the Sox' thunder, they're gonna have to go out and be aggressive with free agents and trades. In years past, a complacency related to their higher status in Chicago has no doubt affected their decisions when it came to getting good players, but now the fire has been lit under the Cubs' management's collective ass, having to turn on TV and watch those hated Sox dance around and spray each other with champagne, and so I think Cubs fans should expect an aggressive offseason, followed by an improved 2006 Cubs team. Beating the Cardinals is going to be tough, as always, but with the right offseason personnel moves, a playoff berth is well within reach, and who knows, a World Series title of their own could be well within their sights. Baseball is in a curse-busting mood right now, so why not us? Let the Sox have their fun now, but next year is a clean slate. Next year is when we look to take Chicago back. Let's go CUBS!!!