Cry the beloved Cubbie.

AuthorBarrett, Wayne M.
PositionSports Scene

"Life is a comedy to those who think; a tragedy to those who feel" is one of the clever truisms you'll find listed in Bartlett's Book of Quotations. Sony, Cub and Red Sox fans; we may feel your pain, but the fact that it's been a combined 182 years since either of your teams has won the World Series is pretty funny. Actually, it's mind-boggling. To think, someone born the day the Cubbies last triumphed in the Fall Classic is now 95 years old. Even in this era of prolonged lifespans and octogenarians, that truly is ancient. Yet, not much more so than the individual who came into this world the moment the Bosox last hoisted the championship banner. That per,son will be 86 come September. Yikes!

Don't put down your calculators just yet, however, for there are more frightening figures to come. Besides not having won the World Series since 1908, the Chicago Cubs have not captured the National League pennant since 1945. Adding to the Windy City's woes are the crosstown White Sox, who haven't taken the Series since 1917 and have made only two return trips: 1919 and 1959. The former was marred by the infamous Black Sox scandal, in which eight players were banned from professional baseball for life for taking payoffs from gamblers to throw the Series. Now, that hurts--as does the plight of the Bosox.

Since Babe Ruth helped pitch them to the crown on the eve of the Roaring Twenties, the Red Sox have traveled back to the Fall Classic three times--and each venture produced a heartbreaking seventh-game defeat. In 1946, the St. Louis Cardinals' Enos Slaughter scored the winning run from first base on a single. In 1967, the Sox erased a three-games-to-one deficit, only to be stopped by Cardinal ace Bob Gibson in the deciding contest. In 1986, it was a disaster for the ages. With Boston up by two runs in the 10th inning, the National League champion New York Mets--with nobody on base--were down to their final out in Game 6. The Amazin's promptly lived up to their nickname by putting up a three-spot to win. In Game 7, the Mets fell behind by three, but Red Sox fans could guess what was coming, and it wasn't a world's championship in Beantown.

Of course, the Red Sox have known unfathomable frustration thanks to New York in other venues besides the World Series. In 1978, the Sox blew a 14-game East Division lead to the Yankees, then lost a one-game playoff to the Bronx Bombers at Fenway Park when shortstop Bucky Dent lifted his now-historic homer over the...

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