Happy Labor Day all. Besides the real meaning of Labor Day, it typically signifies the end of summer; that’s it… party’s over… back to school for all the kids, and welcome to colder temps from here on out. They say you’re not supposed to wear white after Labor Day too right? Well, the party is never over, my son has already been back to school, and those colder temps… must be coming later. 2023 Labor Day was a blazing hot day in Chicago, and a perfect day to get back to Wrigley Field to watch the Cubs play. I didn’t wear my white Cubs jersey though…
Yeah, it was a hot one; thankfully our seats were in the shade. Prices were a little more than I typically like to spend, but for the money I did spend, great value… seats were awesome; the game was better. This time it wouldn’t be my son and I with our routine of playing catch, walking around the park, changing seats, etc. This time it was the big 3 at the game: my wife, son, and I; it’s still a lot of fun, especially when the Cubs are playing good ball. Yes, Monday afternoon continued the unexpected ride, which if it ended today, would find the Cubs in the postseason; how about that?!?! I’m enjoying the heck out of this ride… Yes, I know it may very well end when we take on the Braves and/or Dodgers, but a return to the postseason would equal a successful season in my mind. Get back in, give it your best, add in the offseason, come back for it all! But hey, that’s why they play the games… you just never know…
What I do know is that Justin Steele is a damn good pitcher, especially at home in front of the faithful. He has turned into a true #1 pitcher, an NL Cy Young candidate this year to boot. Talk about another nice surprise… Yes, I just loved his last outing against the Brewers in what I had called maybe the biggest game of the year. He shut them down with stuff that wasn’t his best AFTER he took a line drive off his leg; 6 shutout frames and an eventual 1-0 Cubs W. On Monday afternoon, Justin had his best stuff. He absolutely shut down the Giants for 8 strong, in the process, setting a career high with 12 Ks. As the game went on, you just saw he was on his game. In the later innings, we rose to our feet, cheering him on, to finish off the inning. We rose to our feet in the top of the 7th as Steele K’d another Giants hitter to get to 11Ks, leading us into the stretch. In the 8th, not sure if he’d be back out there with his pitch count and the heat, he was, and with 2 outs, we were on our feet again; he ended the inning with his 12th K, and we went absolutely wild. It was nice that the Cubs had just added on 2 insurance runs in the bottom of the 7th to give us a 3-0 lead; before that, it was only Seiya’s blast that got us a run. Normally, I’d be nervous with Cuas coming in, but he shut the door, and the music played… this is fun!
OK, back at it again on Tuesday night vs the Giants when Hendricks will take the bump; last time out against this team, back in Frisco in June, Kyle flirted with a no-no. Can he follow up Justin’s magnificent performance with one of his own? I’m telling you, this 1-2 punch gives us a shot come October; let’s get there first. I’m already planning on taking my son to his first playoff game if they do get there; we may be back before then too. Yes, the Bears are on the horizon, and I can’t wait for them, but… this Cubs team… the fun is back at Wrigley, the fun is back. Go Cubs!!!
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