Cubs Crossings

Home Plate – Cubs Crossings Defined

 Cubs Crossings got its’ start as a single page from my ‘Groovy blog’ on WordPress where ‘Groovy’ is still ‘groovy’ as The Daveological Society.

The first chosen name for this blog was ‘Cubs Corners’ however, I saw that might be taken so, I settled on ‘Cubs Crossings’ highlighting, Waveland & Sheffield, and Clark & Addison depicting the street crossings all Cubs fans have to use, to get to Wrigley Field.

 Cubs Crossings is all about a Cubs fan stranded in Idaho who, has been without the Cubs on TV/Radio for quite awhile since our cable provider dropped WGN a few years, ago.

 All is once again, good with MLB-tv on my computer, and bandwidth mounting up but, at least I’ve got the Cubbies when I want them.

 The Cubs Crossings Page Count developed and listed on the side-bar  includes, ‘Today’s Cubs Crossings’  which is, the main posting area, featuring my commentary. 

 ‘Cubs Connections On The Internet’ includes more connections to the Cubs, and more baseball information on the web.

 I am not a baseball analyst or, statistician but, I am a Cubs fan with an opinion. You’re welcome to throw me out at 1st if, your opinion differs from mine.

 How I Became A Cubs Fan

 There are a number of ways to become a Cubs fan, and my story begins with a childhood in Southern California, specifically in a Los Angeles suburb, as a Dodgers fan.

My introduction to Major League Baseball was by, my Father before my pre-teen years. The Dodgers were playing in the L.A. Coliseum, and sharing quarters with the L. A. Rams of the NFL.

I was a Dodgers fan, and much of it centered around the Dodgers’ pitching icon, Sandy Koufax.

My early Dodgers roster memories include: Wally Moon in left field.  The LF  boundaries, only 200+’ from home plate. The wall was an amazing structure running upwards about 200+’ (measurement literally 42 feet, and it really wasn’t a wall. It was, a tarp) to compensate for the short distance out.

At the same time it was over 400′ to right.

Brooklyn’s star Center-fielder, Duke Snider played for several years with the Dodgers in L.A., and Gil Hodges was at first base.

Change of locale within the confines of the Los Angeles area came for the Dodgers in the early 1960’s with Dodger Stadium built for Dodger Baseball where they reside, today.

The Dodgers’ biggest star just retired at the end of the 2016 season. That would be their ‘ace of the mic,’ Vin Scully who is by far without a doubt, the most polished, accomplished, professional spokesman any major league baseball team would be happy to have as their media captain.

Scully has a distinct voice, and the ability to paint moving pictures on the radio during non-televised games.

Scully recently returned to the Dodgers for the 2016 season but, it would be his last year of continuous employment with the Dodgers beginning in 1950 with the Brooklyn Dodgers franchise, concluding in Los Angeles.

Times changed, and the Dodger metrics of course, changed with the times. It just wasn’t the same team I could associate with my childhood.

Long removed from Southern California, Major League Baseball became a tv watchable item for me but, no favorites.  Major League Baseball  for me was whatever might be shown on the major TV networks.  

Then, an unexpected experience with a newly acquired cable service (ca. late 80’s, early 90’s) featuring WGN, Chicago.

That is when I saw Harry Caray for the first time.  When you saw Harry call a game for the 1st time, it was an event.  I really thought I was suppose to talk with him.

Okay, I know.  I wasn’t suppose to really talk with him but, you might understand why someone might have felt that way.

He was far different from Vin Scully who,  paints movies on the radio with his voice.  Scully called an immaculate game, and that’s really the point.  

Although he has been a magnet for Dodger fans, Vin Scully makes the game of baseball an exciting experience.  He speaks directly to the fans.

As he said in an interview, he had worked alone because he wasn’t carrying on a commentary with/for anybody but, the listening audience.  

Every game changer is a moment of excitement whether it was to the benefit of the Dodgers or the opposing team.  A homerun is a homerun, and that is exciting when you’re listening to Vin Scully.   

I know that had I stayed in the Southern California area with access to Vin Scully’s incredible descriptions of every game, with what seemed to be his knowledge of every blade of grass in every stadium, and his talent to masterfully paint a moving picture of how the ball moved across the field, there would have been no reason to listen to any other baseball game.

I do recall as far back as about age 10 , lying in bed at night, listening to Vin Scully’s artistic presentation of every game on KFI radio.  It really did seem like I was watching the TV version of the game with my eyes closed.  

Back then, local Dodger TV  broadcasts were on KTTV-11 but, only when the Dodgers were on the road, and only at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

As I told you, the scenario changed.  I moved from Southern California years ago.

The Cubs announcer at the time I was able to watch baseball again with any regularity was, Harry Caray.

He immediately gave me the impression that he just wanted to visit in the bleachers to converse about baseball, and particularly the Cubs.

It was as as if he had trouble understanding why, we weren’t conversing down a two way street. Let me put it, another way. Caray made me feel like he bought the first round, and he was perfectly willing to get the next as long as, we could be ‘baseball buddies.’

Something was taken from the game with Caray’s death. By that time, he reeled me in, and it didn’t seem to matter who would be the next Cubs announcer.  They were the only games I could watch with any regularity.

 There was only one of a kind. Harry Caray was that one, and Vin Scully is the other one.