By Marty Gangler
After another week of baseball magic, it’s pretty certain the Cubs will make the playoffs. With this as a fact, the next issue is not who the Cubs will be playing. Nope. That is irrelevant to what we will be discussing here. The issue here is where do you watch the playoffs. Because this isn’t a “We’ll see how the series goes” type deal. This is a one-game, team-defining, possibly season-ending game. The Cubs haven’t played a game of this type in like forever. It’s like Instant Cup-O-Game Seven. So where do you watch the game? What are the pros and cons of each location?
Watch at home with friends/family.
Pros: Easy bathroom access, your own food and drink; access to your own DVR to replay anything you want; the ability to drink heavily without having to drive home, having to explain way too many things to people you know.
Cons: Listening to that family member who thinks he/she knows everything and thinks the sky is always falling and the Cubs will never win.
Go out to a bar.
Pros: More food and/or drink options than at home; high-fiving strangers if the Cubs do something good.
Cons: It’s expensive; listening to that random Cubs fan who thinks he/she knows everything and thinks the sky is always falling and the Cubs will never win; listening to that random Sox fan who thinks he/she knows everything and thinks the sky is always falling and the Cubs will never win; having to explain way too many things to random people; no access to your own DVR to do your own replays; the Uber ride/drunken stumble home.
Go to the game.
Pros: You are there.
Cons: Crowds and all that crap and it’ll probably be in Pittsburgh and be super expensive anyway and really not going to happen.
Stay home by yourself.
Pros: Pretty much everything.
Cons: None that I can think of.
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The Week In Review: The Cubs went 5-2 for the week, winning three of four from the Pirates and two of three from the Cardinals. And the two games they lost could have gone the other way. Like Cottonelle, these guys are on a roll.
The Week In Preview: The Cubs are home for three each against the Brewers and Pirates. The Pirates have four against the Rockies before coming to town. Instant Cup-A-Game Seven hangs in the balance.
The Second Basemen Report: Starlin Castro started five games this week with Tommy La Stella getting the other two. And like the Springfield tire dump, they are both on fire.
In former Cubs second basemen news, Dandy Little Gloveman Mickey Morandini last played second base for the Cubs in 1996. These days he is the hitting coach for the Reading Fightin Phils, the AA affiliate of the Phillies. Twenty-three years ago this week, he made the first unassisted triple play in the NL in 65 years, and the ninth in major league history. Here it is:
He is missed.
Mad(don) Scientist Big Poppa Joe got pissed at the Cardinals last week. He also gave Pedro Strop a day off at the beach. I’m not sure which one is better. I’m just really glad he is the manager of the team I hope wins.
Wishing Upon A Starlin: Everyone’s favorite Castro (sorry, Fidel) is still ripping it up in September, batting .419 for the month. Not only has he got a bunch of hits lately, but he just looks so much better out there at the plate since getting benched. The walks will never come like from the rest of this lineup, but as he is batting .261 now it kinda seems like the season wasn’t really lost for him. So, somehow, Big Poppa Joe got him out of the regular shortstop role and is still making this a feel-good season for Starlin.
Kubs Kalender: Saturday is Kris Bryant Debut Bobblehead Day. But it seems like this promotion should have been done like 10 days prior to this Saturday, AMIRITE?
Ameritrade Stock Pick Of The Week:
Shares of World Series Fever traded higher this week on heavy speculation.
Over/Under: The number of games the Cubs lose when they get blown out and are never in it: +/- not many.
Beachwood Sabermetrics: A complex algorithm performed by The Cub Factor staff using all historical data made available by Major League Baseball has determined that someone is going to hang some plastic in the locker room this week.
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* Touch ’em all: The Cub Factor archives.
* Know thy enemy: The White Sox Reports.
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Marty Gangler is our man on the Cub. He welcomes your comments.
Posted on September 21, 2015