A Trip to Wrigley Field

There are places we hope to travel to in our lifetime. For an historian, the Pyramids or Stonehenge might be a destination. For sports fans, traveling to a place like Fenway Park or Wrigley Field and seeing a baseball game is one we all put on our bucket list. With the old stadiums like Yankee Stadium and the Polo Grounds have recently or have been gone for a long time, leaving only two relics of baseball's golden age to remain amongst the 21st Century architecture of stadiums today.

My dad and I have always wanted to visit Wrigley and Fenway for a baseball game. This summer, we thought we would mark one off the list. To see a stadium like Wrigley takes you back to a simpler time of the early days of baseball with only minor alterations for the new century. As Notre Dame football fans, we see Wrigley Field as another stadium in the Midwest that displays the traditional days of sports, like Notre Dame Stadium still does for college football. As a friend of mine said, "it's like you traveled back in time."

The area around the neighborhood of Wrigleyville seems to always be abuzz when the Cubs play a home game. Regardless of the sub-par season the team is having, attendance out-does other cities with winning ball clubs. To think it has been over a century since this team has won a World Series title and the Cubs still bring out the large numbers for their games.

The view of the old-time scoreboard and the ivy wall are even more amazing than when you see it on television. The rooftop seating is a unique feature you don't see in other cities. The sound of organ music is a far cry from the recorded music you hear in most ballparks today. It reminds me of the days when Pittsburgh's Vince Lascheid would play before Pirate games at Three Rivers Stadium. The flags to display the division standings of the National League remind you of a time when the National League was the only thing that mattered to Cubs fans before Interleague came into play.

There were many people like us from out of town that wanted to see one of baseball's remaining shrines to the old days. For most of us, we hope that Wrigley and Fenway remain forever and long after we're gone. To remind those of the future about the history of this century old game.

It Was Only Two Weeks Ago...

You ever find yourself saying "it seems like only yesterday" and then you go into your story. For me it only feels like yesterday that the Pittsburgh Pirates were above .500 and in first place in the National League Central. I wake up this morning to see the Pirates 10 games out of first, and in fourth place. As a Bucs fan, you have to be asking yourself "how the hell did this happen?!"

Since late June, the Pirates have found a way to compete with the rag-tag team they had. Especially with all the injuries and call ups that they have dealt with since June. There seemed to be a feeling that this would not only be the year that the Pirates not only got over .500, but they had a chance to compete with the Brewers and Cardinals for the division title. It brought out fans in record numbers and made people reformed baseball fans. To hear people telling Neil Walker that he and the team made them love baseball again had to be inspirational for a group of guys playing roulette and winning most of the night. It seems that they finally caught the bullet back during the 19 inning game against the Braves in the early morning of July 27th. Since then, the Pirates are 1-11 in their last 12 games. Going from 54-48 to 54-58 in 10 days. It's almost like we woke up from a beautiful dream and we are now dealing with a realistic nightmare.

OK. I know we weren't dreaming. But think about it. Last month, the Pirates had us all convinced they could could compete with their roster and the Steeler's season was in jeopardy with no CBA in the works. So with no football in the future, and the Bucs showing they could compete, you had to feel like you are dreaming. All you would need to top off that dream would be a NCAA title for both Pitt football and basketball.

Now with the NFL back at work, the normal script is back in action. Perhaps Christopher Nolan got his "Dark Knight Rises" script notes mixed with the normal script we have been used to for almost 20 years.

I hate talking like this, but this losing stream of 10 games is like getting punched in the face on regular daily basis. Especially when you get swept by the Cubs and Padres at home. With the implosion of the pitching staff and bullpen, it shows the harsh consquenses when you rely on your puffing to bail you out when your offense is struggling. At least Neil Huntington didn't give away the future when getting Ludwig and Lee.

SIDE NOTE: I wrote this article on my iPhone while in the car going to Chicago. Currently passing Cleveland.

Pittsburgh is Experiencing a Baseball Revival.

July 20, 2010. I think the city of Pittsburgh was counting down the days until the Pittsburgh Steelers hit training camp at St. Vincent College. One year later, the city sees its long-time lowly baseball team, the Pirates in first place with a game on Milwaukee in the NL Central. That’s right! The Pirates are in first place and Pittsburgh sports fans, regardless of the Pirates record, are not counting the days down to Steelers camp. Instead they are being drawn to the Bucco bandwagon that is filling up faster than the Titanic filled up with water and sank. Of course the NFL is still in a lockout that may come to an end within days, but the Pirates could have fans watching games through September and possibly into October.

OK, some are thinking that most Pirates fans and I are looking too far into the future, like we are running the Steelers and Penguins championship parade route in our heads already. Yes, we may be in over our heads with the Pirates right now. But come on, can you blame us? Especially fans like myself who were not old enough or alive to see the 1992 season. Then again, maybe we didn’t want to be there to see Sid Bream send the Braves to the World Series that year. Think about all the things that have happened since then. We’ve had three different Presidents, gas was a lot cheaper, and Bill Cowher was just starting out as the new Steelers head coach. So the steel city has suffered with America’s pastime for more than a while. A team that used to be the dominate sport of Pittsburgh, long before the Steelers turned the corner in the 1970’s and the Penguins drafted a young French-Canadian named Mario.

While critics may see this as a phase in the Pirates season that could soon disappear as quickly as it began, it has made those who believed that the Pirates would someday turn the corner feeling like prophets and reeling those fans who were getting away back to PNC Park this summer. In mid-June, the Pirates began to show signs of a .500 team, even after being swept by Cleveland. Pittsburgher’s believed that this team may have something going for them. It’s almost like in the film Major League when an Indian’s fan thinks, “Maybe they aren’t so f*#king bad.” Pirate merchandise has been flying off the shelves. McCutchen jerseys, “hammer time” shirts for Joel Hanrahan and Neil “the Pittsburgh Kid” Walker shirts are seen all over town along with caps and other t-shirts. Then there is attendance. The Pirates have shattered attendance records (with a little help from Phillies and Red Sox fans) in June and July. 26,000 + fans came to PNC Park tonight against the Cincinnati Reds on a hot, humid Tuesday night, and there were no bobblehead or t-shirt giveaways. There were no fireworks or .38 Special after the game. People came to see and support a young group of players who are making this town remember why they love baseball. The close division race, the scoreboard watching, the tight late-inning games, and the feeling that every game matters. Pittsburgh can only hope that the Pirates continue their success as the hot days of summer soon become the early days of fall. For now, baseball is back in the steel city and it has those old enough to remember a good Pirate team thinking back to those gold old days. For those who have never seen a winning Pirate team, this may be the year, and hopefully, a new chapter in a 125 year-old story.