August 15, 2022: Almost History

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The Cubs faced off against one of the few teams worse than them on Monday night in Washington DC. My son said it looked like a nice park, which reminded me of our cancelled trip that would have had us see both Nationals and Orioles park in one fell swoop; thanks COVID. Yeah, it does look like a nice park; definitely still on the list! The Cubs lost to the Nationals 5-4.

The winning pitcher in this game was a familiar face; do you remember Carl Edwards Jr? How could you forget him? Of course, he was the guy that came in to pitch the bottom of the 10th inning against the Indians in Game 7 of the World Series; he was tasked with closing out the game, getting the save, and making the 2 run lead hold up. The first two batters were not a problem if I recall correctly; man that was an emotional time. Then a guy got on, stole a base I think, and was singled in by that guy, Rajai Davis; he was so close to being the most hated person in Chicago Cubs history. So Carl didn’t do the job completely, but instead only got us 2/3 of the way there; he was almost history!

Joe brought in Mike Montgomery to get the final out, and potentially the first save of his career; what a time to get it! Yeah, he was a midseason acquisition who had a rough debut, giving up a big HR in Milwaukee as his introduction to Cubs fans. He didn’t fail us this time though, getting Martinez to roll over on the famous groundball to KB. Crazy that Francona didn’t have any other options to pinch hit at that point. The throw went into Rizzo’s glove and history was made. Do you know it’s been almost 6 years since that day? Talk about crazy…

Yes, I remember Carl Edwards Jr after the game, with a huge W flag draped over his shoulders, as he joyfully ran around the field. What a time to be alive. I lean on those moments, especially during a season like this. Honestly, I thought Carl would become the future closer for our squad. He was built like a string bean, but man, he had some electric stuff. He was a bit wild at times, but isn’t that something all closers have in common? Wade Davis became the closer the following year; he was really good as the Cubs made their way back to the NLCS. Edwards pitched OK for the Cubs over the next couple years, before running into some injuries, and then eventually getting traded for famous ex-Cub Brad Wieck in 2019. What could have been never was, a familiar story for the Cubs.

But Carl will forever be remembered, as will each of the Cubs from that 2016 roster. I guess we should cherish Willson, Kyle, and even Jason for as long as they continue to wear a Cubs uni; they are the last guys standing, unless you count David Ross of course… we’ll always remember him fondly as well, regardless of how good or bad a manager he is. Guess the same could be said for Ricketts and Hoyer? I guess…

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