100 years is a long time to wait. For Cubs fans, the wait will be longer. After posting 97 wins and the best record in the National League, the Cubs were swept by the Dodgers last night. Many fans believe that the curse began in 1945 and is related to a billy goat. They’re wrong. I believe they’ve been cursed since the 1918 World Series. Many baseball historians believe the Cubs threw the 1918 Series a year before the south siders did it in the famous Black Sox scandal. Some scholars even believe that some Cubs players may have given the Sox the idea.

Regardless of which version you believe, I can tell you for certain the origin of the 20 year Dodger curse: Me. Yes, I cursed the Dodgers right after the final out of the 1988 World Series. I couldn’t stand the sight of the ball leaving Kirk Gibson’s bat and Dennis Eckersley watching it sail over the wall at Chavez Ravine. Over and over and over again I’ve had to watch that highlight. It was a deep wound.

Three years ago, I made peace with the Dodgers. I even went through the cathartic process of writing a novel about them. So, the curse has been lifted. And the Dodgers just might win the World Series this year. As for the Cubs, there’s no telling when that one will end.

Carry on, Citizens!

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 5th, 2008 at 2:39 pm and is filed under Baseball- MLB. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.