The Century Mark

The Chicago Cubs, World Series contenders? The Cubbies are 36-21, the best record in baseball. They bitch slapped my Dodgers this week, they are in a vastly improved and increasingly tough division, and they are wacking the ball around the yard with reckless abandon. When is the last time the Cubs were 36-21? Yeah, you saw this one coming . . . 1908. Their pitching, past Big Z, is worrisome. The rest of the rotation is questionable, Carlos Marmol is looking mortal lately, and Kerry Wood is an adventure. But it looks like they can outscore everyone anyway, so hopefully they keep Steve Bartman, Steve Garvey, and various forms of livestock out of Chicago for the remainder of the summer . . . How monumental is the Cubs' futility? 100 years without a title is the longest drought among all 4 major professional sports leagues. The other 3 sports leagues were not even in existence in 1908. In fact, the NBA was created in 1947, 2 years after the Cubs' last Fall Classic appearance. Despite all this, the Cubs have a national fanbase (perhaps due to WGN) - a fanbase that is also fiercely loyal despite their teams woes. It's early yet, but maybe "this is the year."