During the ultimate homestand of the season in early October, the Chicago Cubs left a particular message within the outfield for a few of their followers.
“Chicago Cubs Season Ticket Holders” was etched into the grass in heart area, surrounding a Cubs brand. “THANK YOU” learn the message beneath.
Thanking followers for being followers shouldn’t be that onerous. But the Cubs’ ill-advised determination to particularly thank season ticket holders as a substitute of all followers who comply with the group was a sign they don’t totally perceive how good they’ve it in Chicago.
On this Thanksgiving Day, the Cubs and the remainder of our skilled groups ought to be grateful they get as a lot assist as they do — as a result of little or no of it’s on advantage. When they sit down and slice their turkeys, they’ll depend their blessings Chicago followers are as passionate as they’re, whether or not it’s shopping for tickets or calling them out on sports activities speak radio.
The Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks and Bears weren’t playoff worthy in 2022, and every group put its followers by means of the grinder in varied methods.
The Blackhawks began one other rebuild, whereas the Cubs had been in a rebuild they refused to confess was a rebuild.
The Sox spent the season pretending their sub-.500 report was a mere blip that may be rectified come October, then fell aside in September after a short surge beneath interim supervisor Miguel Cairo.
The Bears are effectively on their option to 12 or extra losses, with the way forward for the franchise depending on the progress — and now the well being — of quarterback Justin Fields. It’s as near a one-man present we’ve seen since Walter Payton’s early years.
The sole shiny spot was the Bulls, however they went 19-25 from Jan. 12 to the tip of the 2021-22 common season, then misplaced in 5 video games to the Milwaukee Bucks within the first spherical of the playoffs. The Bulls had been 7-10 getting into Wednesday night time’s sport at Fiserv Forum, and that fresh-car scent of the primary few months of final season has worn off.
All in all, not a very memorable 12 months in Chicago and motive sufficient for followers to desert their favourite groups in droves.
Some have, significantly Blackhawks followers. The Hawks are averaging 15,666 on the United Center within the first 10 residence video games, rating second to final within the NHL with solely 76.4% of capability, in response to hockey-reference.com.
It’s a tragic flip of occasions for a franchise that had its 535-game sellout streak finish solely a 12 months in the past. But Sunday night time’s crowd of 21,182 for Marián Hossa Night confirmed the Hawks nonetheless can refill the United Center for a special day.
Now it’s as much as the Hawks advertising and marketing division to seek out new methods of attracting followers till the rebuild turns the nook, which could not be for a few seasons. Despite their oft-aired industrial through which an actor proclaims, “This is Chicago, we love ourselves a good rebuild,” nobody really likes going by means of a rebuild. The greatest an proprietor can hope for is having a robust sufficient fan base that loves the group sufficient to stay by means of one, as Cubs and Sox followers did within the final decade.
I’m undecided which Chicago proprietor ought to be extra grateful, or if any is well-liked sufficient to even say “thanks” for the assist.
Jerry Reinsdorf noticed followers convey a banner to Sox Park final summer time that merely stated: “Sell the Team.” Many blamed him for the failed experiment to show over a gifted, free-spirited group to his outdated pal, Tony La Russa, after which for conserving La Russa when it grew to become apparent the plan wasn’t working. Canceling SoxFest was simply one other blow for die-hard followers.
Rocky Wirtz left such a nasty impression on Hawks followers in February together with his weird “none of your business” solutions to reporters’ questions throughout a city corridor assembly that he has been positioned beneath a digital Cone of Silence for the final a number of months. His son Danny has taken over as next-Wirtz-standing and appears to at the least have a clue about what followers wish to hear from the highest executives.
Cubs attendance in 2022 was at its lowest since 1997 — excluding the 2 pandemic seasons of 2020-21 — because of a sell-off of stars similar to Yu Darvish, Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Javier Báez, a shedding group and lots of followers’ refusal to present the Ricketts household their hard-earned cash due to the right-wing politics of some members of the family. Chairman Tom Ricketts has added many new income streams whereas paring payroll, taking Cubs followers as a right. His vow to spend “intelligently” is an insult to their intelligence.
Virginia McCaskey is spared the venom of hard-bitten Bears followers, however Chairman George McCaskey is seen as a part of the issue for failing to construct a constant winner in 11 years on the helm whereas specializing in making thousands and thousands with a proposed new stadium in Arlington Heights. Getting out and in of Soldier Field on sport day is a nightmare the Bears haven’t any intention of fixing.
If our homeowners ran eating places as a substitute of our favourite groups, there’s an excellent probability they’d exit of enterprise in a 12 months. Instead, they’re the fortunate ones, working skilled franchises in a city through which rooting on your groups is as a lot part of life as consuming and sleeping.
Maybe some day they’ll lastly perceive that timeless loyalty has an expiration date.
()
Source: www.bostonherald.com