I didn’t even know him. I didn’t get the chance to meet this legend, like I did with Walter Payton. I never even saw him play. He played his entire career before I was born. So why is it that when I found out that he died last night, a sadness came over me?
This sadness continued as I read stories and comments, and eventually became tears after reading Michael Wilbon’s article about him. Here was a living legend. The best player EVER to put on a Cub uniform. The guy who you always saw smiling. The guy who seemed like he had an extra pep in his step when the Cubs were actually good. He was always around. His number is flying high above the Friendly Confines. He has a statue outside of Wrigley. He was Mr. Cub. Ernie Banks died last night at the age of 83.
Not only was he the best Cub of all time, but he is in the conversation for best SS of all time. But let’s forget about that for now. Let’s talk about the type of guy he was. From every account, here was a genuinely great guy. The guy who coined the phrase “let’s play 2”. Those words mean so much.
Those words showed me how much he loved the game of baseball, and that’s one of the things that a lot of us have in common with Ernie: the love of the game. He embodied that. He reminded us all of how we wanted to stay out in the park and keep playing baseball all day. He reminded me of when I would tell my parents “a little longer”… when they were calling us in for dinner. He reminds me of how I still am, today with my son… not wanting to stop playing. He was one of us in that way. He loved playing the game above all, and that was something that everybody saw; a reason why everyone loved him.
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The love of baseball, the love of the Cubs… the things that made all of us feel like we knew Ernie Banks, is just the start of his story. Driving around tonight, listening to a tribute to him on the Score, there was caller after caller that made the effort to share their story, their personal story of Ernie Banks. It was unbelievable! He touched so many people’s lives, from old to young, from black to white, from Cubs fan to Sox fan. There were never ending stories about him. The only reason the calls stopped, is because the show ended.
I’ll continue to read and listen to stories about the great Ernie Banks over the next few days. I’ll continue to realize how truly one of a kind he was. I’d like to think that he’s playing that left side of the infield with Santo up in that true field of dreams. I’d like to think my grandmother is in attendance watching them flash that leather. I’d like to think that they WILL see the Cubs actually do it, and will all be smiling with us on that day.
I was planning on buying my son his first Cubs jersey this year, and I had decided on the newest Cub Jon Lester. I think I’ve just changed my mind. The first jersey that my son will have will be the only Cubs jersey he’ll ever need… and on the back it will say, #14 Banks. RIP Ernie.
MK
Mr. Cub!
Ernie Banks was what more professional athletes need to be. Sure, he loved the game, let’s play two, but he was about so much more. The interest he would show regarding each person he came in contact with was amazing. He genuinely cared about each person he met, no matter the race, size, profession, or age. One of the stories I heard was Banks signing only about 15 baseball cards in an hour at a card show because he would talk to each and every person. Mlb lost a true ambassador of the game, but the world lost a genuine, humble, real-spirited man, no matter if you knew him or not. A talented baseball player but an even more talented man in life…he just got what it is all about…people! So we say goodbye to Mr Cub. No world series title, no chance to hit 3 home runs in the last game of the world series in Wrigley, but he now has the best seat in the house, to what will be the best season in Cubs history! Who better to be up in heaven than Mr. Cub…thanks and enjoy!