Chicago Cubs: Are the Cardinals becoming the new Lovable Losers?
A recent rant from a St. Louis sportswriter points the finger at Chicago Cubs fans, saying they’re obnoxious and unruly in wake of the team’s 2016 championship.
Here we go again. Why is it when the St. Louis Cardinals start under-performing; the fans, writers and the team all attack the Chicago Cubs? Okay, we understand your St. Louis Cardinals’ place in history and that by attendance, you claim to have the ‘most fans’ in baseball but that was maybe five years ago – things have changed.
Seems there is a lot of whining coming from the working-class city of St. Louis these days. The land of the second-most World Championships in Major League Baseball and more than any other team in the National League. The Cardinals have always been kings and Cubs fans know it.
Cubs fans watched the Cardinals because they always had amazing players like Rogers Hornsby, Stan Musial, Dizzy Dean, Bruce Sutter (a Chicago Cub first) and the list goes on and on. When you win 11 World Series championships, you tend to have a solid group of guys over the years.
Since the Cubs weren’t bringing home any World Championships in the 80s, 90s and the first fifteen years of this century, we stood by and watched begrudgingly all the St. Louis fanfare as they won National League pennants and titles. We didn’t whine when the headlines were down on us like they are for you now:
- Reassessing-under 500 before the break
- Minimal All-Stars show just how bad this team really is
- Fans need to hold the team accountable and quit with excuses
See we’ve been there for a long, long, long time sonny – not like your fans and team. So when we speak about our win in 2016, yes our one precious recent win, that light in the dark that Cubs fans were waiting years to achieve, we’re speaking from a place of character due to those many years of endless hope.
You can never imagine or understand what that felt like Mr. Wuerz, unless you were a Cubs fan. We apologize for nothing and would rather leave it on the field, just like all those balls you guys complained about.
But there are more reasons we don’t like the Cardinals and maybe the biggest is because they divided our city.
Chicago Cubs: Cardinals birth the White Sox and the McGwire fantasy
I love Chicago.
Chicago, like any other city, has its issues. One of those issues is being a city divided. Of course, if there were only one baseball team in Chicago – the Chicago White Stockings (later evolved into Colts, Orphans and finally Cubs), then there would be no city divided, two-team town. We’d all be Chicago Cubs fans if it weren’t for Charles Comisky.
A big reason we hate the St. Louis Cardinals is, they gave us Comisky, who played pitcher and first base for the St. Louis Brown Stockings (early 1800’s version of the current Cardinals) and eventually took over as manager of the team.
Later in 1901, years after Comisky stopped playing ball, he used all had learned to found and become the first owner of the Chicago White Sox. He named his team the Chicago White Stockings which was actually the Cubs’ first moniker.
This, of course, caused the first bit of friction between North and South. The Cubs were called the Chicago Orphans and changed their name permanently to the Cubs in 1903. Comisky shortened the name of his team to White Sox. The shorter name used less ink to print and saved the team money with cheaper advertising.
Yes, it’s true the Chicago North-South split is the fault of the Cardinals via Comisky. When you see White Sox fans, just remember, that team came from Comisky and the Cardinals.
A little closer to this day and age, in the 1990s, we had to suffer Cardinals first baseman, Mark McGwire and his 1998 home run single-season chase. Chicago outfielder, Sammy Sosa was battling against McGwire all summer but getting only half the coverage of the Cardinals legend. Kids in Chicago got used to seeing McGwire everywhere in advertising and even more so after he beat out Sosa in the home run race.
St. Louis fans were nearly pompous, throwing McGwire in our face while raking up another win for their franchise. Later we find out, McGwire was taking steroids the whole time. While there is high suspicion that Sosa was as well, he has never admitted to taking steroids during his career and even testified just the opposite in Congress. Sosa may be guilty, but we know McGwire certainly is. Once again St. Louis causes a bunch of noise about nothing.
Chicago Cubs: ‘Boast’ Fans in Baseball
Do me a favor Cardinals fans. Please don’t start picking on us, our fans, our stadium, our players, our weather and whatever other bug crawls north in your hind-side just because you are losing.
We are not your problem. We are not the reason your team is not performing. Sure, we may be responsible for some of your losses but it really is unbecoming of your town, your club and your fans that are supposed to be the great leaders of baseball to whine and pick on Chicago when you guys are losing.
It just isn’t regal.
More from Chicago Cubs News
- Cubs starting pitching has been thriving on the North Side
- Make no mistake: the Cubs are very much about power hitters
- Cubs: It’s time to start thinking about potential September call-ups
- Cubs: P.J. Higgins deserves to be in the lineup on a daily basis
- Cubs might start to limit Justin Steele’s workload soon
Because our fan base is so wide-reaching, we have a lot of fans that are unruly. Just by the numbers you’re going to have drunk, wild fans because we’ve got at least 10 million fans, probably more.
Oh and that reminds me, just because you have the most loyal fan base doesn’t mean you have the most fans. There is a reason blue dominates many road contests in the stands, leading all the way back to WGN being broadcast around the nation.
It’s true. Since 2016 the Cubs picked up some “new” fans that are hanging around in the stands waiting for the next party because the World Series in 2016 was off the chart. They most likely do not know a lot about the Cubs or baseball, I’ll admit. They may not even know there is a rivalry with the Cardinals!
Obviously, these are not the core of the Cubs fan base, like the ones who know and love Ernie Banks, Ron Santo and all the great players of yesterday and today. If ‘your broadcasters and fans’ decide they want to film these ‘fans’ instead of true fans that have lived the history then don’t be surprised when they sound like drunk morons online or on television.
Why are Cardinals fans called the ‘best fans in baseball’? Just because they showed up? It’s like the kids that get an award for no absences all year in school; it’s not really an award – all they did was show up. Maybe they were whining St. Louis Cardinals fans all day in school and drove everyone nuts. They still got credit for showing up.
Well good for you guys! Glad you showed up for your team and saw them win a bunch of times in your second stadium. I mean, we have a ‘field’ in the middle of the city, but we’re the ones that are supposed to be obnoxious.
Actually, the 2019 numbers put the Cardinals behind the Cubs in baseball fandom, but that’s okay, you just keep calling yourselves the best fans in baseball.
Chicago Cubs: The new Lovable Losers of St. Louis
I have news for you, we don’t really consider St. Louis competition any longer. I mean, when we’re looking in our review or checking scores, we’re always checking the Milwaukee Brewers before your score. You have fallen off the wagon in a big way and are upset, we understand.
The Cardinals – and their fans – are in a place to which they are not accustomed. Chicago fans, on the other hand, understand losing and the pain. You guys are just beginning to understand it. You have many good players on your current team. They are loved by your fans but are not performing. Let’s face it, the St. Louis Cardinals have become the ‘Lovable Losers’.
Even I feel sorry for how far you guys have fallen.
Yes, it’s been three years since we won the championship but what’s the time limit on celebrating when you’ve been waiting 108 years? Yes, we are still celebrating that victory because we earned it. We won it. You can never take that away from us, no matter how many championships you win in the future.
We bit our tongues for many years, Cardinals fans. Now we are champions again too. Among the teams in the NL Central Division, we want it again and all signs are pointing to us taking it. So we’re going to get LOUD and cheer our team to another division title and maybe more. Everybody in!
Now it’s your turn to bite your tongue, St. Louis. It’s only been a few years you’ve missed the postseason; most might say you are spoiled. You don’t even know half of what Chicago has gone through, waiting to win. My advice to Cardinals fans is to be strong while you get your house in order. Your team will be great again, as history always repeats itself. We look forward to the competition.
But folks, it’s not our fault your team has recently become the “Lovable Losers” of baseball. If it makes you feel any better; all this excitement has made your city less ‘boring’.