A combined 174 lost seasons between the Chicago Cubs and the Cleveland Indians have left fans asking, “When will ‘next year’ be this year?” In the 2016 World Series, “next year” became “this year” for one of baseball’s two longest World Series droughts, while the other was left with another “just wait until next year.”
Bringing a World Series title back to their respective cities and fans was the driving force for both the Cubs and Indians, both teams full of young, opportunistic and future greats. Major League Baseball (MLB) features an All-Star break during mid-season. It is a time when the best of the best from the National League and American League play against each other as entertainment for the fans and to determine home-field advantage during the World Series. It allows teams rest and a break to refocus for the second half of the season. It also is what tends to separate the good teams from the great ones.
For the Indians, a slow starting record of 10-11 through April was overshadowed during a 14-game winning streak and a battle that earned them a 52-36 record at the All-Star break. After the break, they came out firing, showing the MLB that their strong first half was no fluke and giving fans hope for Cleveland’s first title since 1948.
The Cubs got out of the gate hot – a 17-5 record through the month of April – and never looked back by finishing 103-58. When they hit a brief slump going 1-5 before the All-Star break, the team came back reenergized and refocused on one goal: to bring Chicago its first World Series win since 1908. Doing so would be no easy task. Even before the first pitch of the 2016 season, they were heavily favored to win the Series and, in sports, winning when you’re expected to is often a difficult feat. Despite the pressure and hiccups, after 108 seasons of ‘next years’ the Chicago Cubs overcame a 3-1 deficit in the best-of-seven series by defeating the Cleveland Indians in three straight games to become the 2016 World Series Champions.
Heading into the series, conversations centered around which team would end their historic drought and how a title for either team would bring immense joy to their loyal fan bases. Prior to Game 6, senior organizational leadership major and Cubs fan Anneliese Darow spoke of how much a championship would mean to her: “I would probably go to Disney World, and then I’d probably cry for all of the old people who never got to see it happen,” she said. Sophomore elementary education major Gariel Pierce, who is also an avid Chicago fan, was grinning from ear-to-ear when she realized how historic a Cubs victory would be and was excited for the older fans’ first opportunity of seeing their team in the World Series.
Throughout the weeks of the MLB postseason, many Blackburn students and faculty could be seen supporting their favorite team and sometimes bantering back and forth with fans of the rival team, making the campus’ love of sports undeniable. From the college’s many athletes to student managers and student assistant coaches, the passion for athletics is often a common ground. Spectators pack the bleachers to cheer for their peers. Players push themselves to their absolute max to keep fighting for the win. Coaches sweat it out in close games and keep their players focused. For anyone who steps into Dawes gymnasium, it is hard to ignore the bright red banners which proudly display Blackburn’s championships and tournament appearances. Upon a closer look at the years neatly stitched on, one can see that prior to 2010, championships and tournament appearances came fairly close together. The most recent banner is currently six years old and it came by a SLIAC conference championship by the men’s golf team. Although not nearly as long as the 108-year drought by the Cubs, Blackburn’s athletics teams have still come up dry, begging the question: Could Blackburn be the Cubs of Division III? Only time will tell, but with the high potential of teams in the upcoming seasons, maybe this year is our “next year.”