It was 11 years ago that the Chicago White Sox went wire-to-wire, rolled through the postseason, and brought Chicago its first World Series championship since 1917. White Sox fans have taken great pride in the fact that we were the ones who broke their curse first.
Fast forward to now. The young and fun Chicago Cubs have captivated the city, and the nation, as a team that seems destined to end their 108-year championship drought. The Cubs defeated their rival Cardinals 6-4 on Tuesday to advance to their first NLCS since 2003. On a current 12-1 run, the Cubs are the hottest team in baseball, and by my eye test, head and shoulders above everyone else in the playoffs. Now awaiting the winner of Dodgers-Mets, Cubs fans are as confident as ever that this is “the year.”
I have been a White Sox fan my entire life. 2005 was one of the most thrilling sports journeys I have ever been on. That team was special. Outside of 2005, there have not been many years worth celebrating on the South Side, same goes for Cubs fans to an even greater extent.
I also have no problem admitting that I am a Cubs hater. I don’t think there is anything wrong with that. I think the rivalry is healthiest when the two sides cannot stand each other, and when are both winning (which rarely happens). I doubt Cubs fans care how Sox fans feel right now, I know for a fact Sox fans didn’t care how Cubs fans felt in 2005. But with that being said, here are some of my feelings while watching the Cubs march towards a World Series… (Disclaimer: These are just my general observations and feelings. In no way am I trying to make blanket statements. You can believe what you want.)
-Despite winning the World Series in 2005, White Sox fans always have an inferiority complex when it comes to the Cubs. No matter how bad the Cubs are, no matter the curse, no matter the World Series, and no matter how good the Sox are, Chicago is always seen as a Cubs town first. The White Sox feel like an afterthought residing down on the South Side. That irks a lot, if not all, White Sox fans.
-This year was deemed the year where the Sox and the Cubs might both compete for a title. Young stars and talent on each team gave both fanbases calls for hope. Then the season started and they went in completely different directions. The Cubs started winning and playing with a loose, reckless abandon instilled by manager Joe Maddon. The Sox… didn’t do any of that winning stuff. It was a tough year on the South Side, and to make matters worse, those noisy North Side neighbors have kept on winning, all the way to the NLCS.
-I already tweeted this, but my personal policy as a Sox fan going into this Cubs postseason is this: I am NOT going to root for the Cubs. In fact, I’ll probably be rooting against them at every step. And I think there’s nothing wrong with that. But when (if) the moment happens… the moment the Cubs win it all… I’ll be happy for all of my family and friends who have waited so long. You have my word on that. You can’t deny history, no matter how badly it tastes…
-I am not ignorant to history. The Cubs winning the World Series would result in the biggest celebration in sports history. Period. More than Boston, and more than the White Sox in ’05. It’s just different with the Cubs, even though the Sox waited almost just as long. It is just different, and I realize that.
-As much as I hate to say it, a Cubs championship could be exactly what the White Sox need to move on from 2005 being “good enough.” Honestly, I can’t think of a better fire to light under the ass of the White Sox front office than a Cubs championship. What a wake-up call that would be on the South Side. No more resting on “well we had 2005, so we’re good for awhile.” No, start working to win NOW. Chicago baseball has had a culture of complacency for a century. A Cubs title could end that for both franchises. Honestly what would be better than the Cubs AND the Sox both being competitive and fighting for championships for an era? It would captivate the city.
-Cubs fans had to endure Sox hysteria in 2005, so it is only fair they we have to go through this. It’s just a weird feeling. I don’t know any Cubs fans who cheered FOR the Sox in 2005. So I don’t think Sox fans reaction here should be to switch their allegiance for a month. But if you choose to do that, okay…? You can choose to do whatever you want, I guess. The Cubs bandwagon is already huge (not a bad thing, I’ve never been anti-bandwagon).
-I love Chicago. When Chicago is happy, it is hard for me not to be happy. Being completely honest, it is hard sometimes to not get caught up in all the Cubs hysteria and happiness. I think it’s human nature to want to be happy, and when you see so many friends and family happy you want to be a part of it. Seeing the impact of this Cubs team on my friends and family makes me feel a certain way. I don’t know, maybe I’m crazy. I just want to feel that way for the White Sox again.
-Living in a split sports city is sometimes fun, yet most often it sucks. It’s easy to feel great when we can all unite and be happy when the Blackhawks win, and win again, and again… But when it comes to the rare times of success for Chicago baseball, it creates division, which is weird for a normally united and proud city when it comes to sports.
-Sox fans must realize that we are witnessing history, as bitter a pill as that is to swallow. (It’s extremely bitter)
In closing, I guess I am happy for you, Cubs fans. You have waited a long time. I have my issues with elements and characteristics of your fanbase from time to time (all of the time). But I recognize the history at hand. This Cubs team is special, and will be loaded for a decade. We are basically watching the 2009 Blackhawks in baseball form. It’s a dream for you, and a near nightmare for us.
So enjoy this postseason Cubs fans, all of Chicago and the world will be watching. So are White Sox fans, and I hope this gives a little glimpse into how we feel this October.
Chicago Blackhawks History and Memories 
Good job not giving into the temptation to pull for them. I agree with what you’re saying about the inferiority complex, but for me, it’s more about my intense dislike for many Cub fans.
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HATE SUCKS!
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I absolutely hate haters!
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I grew up in the southwest side suburbs of Chicago. My mother cheered for Luis Aparicio (?sp) when she was a young girl growing up in the South Shore area of Chicago. I attended my first ballgame at Comiskey Park in 4th grade; ticket given to students with perfect attendance. I should have grown up to be a White Sox fan, right? Well, I didn’t. Why? All I can say is I spent many summer days with my grandpa in his south side Chicago Bungalow watching WGN with Jack Brickhouse calling the Cubs games during my grade school years. Through WGN (and I couldn’t watch White Sox games because it was on ‘pay TV’ which our family couldn’t afford), I got hooked on Ron Santo, Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Glenn Beckert, Randy Hundley and the rest. I kept a Ron Santo scrapbook of all newspaper clippings written about him and any photos. I went to my first game at Wrigley after 8th grade graduation and the atmosphere in that ballpark felt like heaven. I got Ron Santo’s autograph. I was smitten with the Cubs after having been at Comiskey Park first … which felt big and barren. It all seems so “natural” for this born and raised Southwest Suburban girl! And my love affair with my team, the Cubs, continues. But I did cheer for the White Sox in 2005 because they had an awesome team, bottom line. No hate within me. I’m proud of that!
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Well said. I have lived in Chicago for 19 years, and outside of a brief stint in Hyde Park, within blocks of Wrigley the entire time. I am an avid Cubs fans, partly because Wrigley Field feels …special. But I absolutely rooted for the White Sox in 2005…in Wrigley…with many other Cubs fans. Those who rooted against the Sox were booed by the rest of us. Many of us, including myself, understood that in the end it was a win for Chicago. And I am proud of that!
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Pay television for baseball didn’t start until the 80’s. The White Sox were on Channel 44 (WSNS), which got crappy reception even with the most perfectly adjusted rabbit ears throughout the 70’s. I respect the Cubs fans who rooted AGAINST the Sox in 2005. No self-respecting White Sox fan would ever root for the Cubs–even if they would be happy for their Cubs fans brothers who constitute the 10% of them who know anything about baseball.
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Hate just for hate’s sake is so immature and unjustified. I think many Sox fans really don’t care, but if they DON’T hate the Cubs, they’re not on the “Hate The Cubs for No Reason” BANDWAGON. (Here’s an idea… loving your city’s teams is actually much cooler than hating them)
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Didn’t say I hated them, and I was kidding about detesting cub fans, but Cubs fans have as much hate as Sox fans do. Evidence: The discussion below.
Why do people try to portray themselves as morally superior online? It’s a joke.
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It’s not “hate for hate’s sake.” There are numerous legitimate reasons to hate Cubs fans who constitute the 90% who know nothing about baseball. As a Sox fan, I can tell you that Rick Sutcliff was traded to the Cubs for Joe Carter from the Indians in 1984, and that Ron Cey’s nickname was “the Penguin.” 90% of Cubs fans couldn’t tell Jake Arietta from Jon Lester.
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I couldn’t have said it better myself. 10% of Cubs fans know baseball. The rest couldn’t explain the infield fly rule if their lives depended on it.
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I’m a die hard Cubs fan, always have been. I DID root against the Sox in ’05, but I’d be an idiot to say that they weren’t a great team.
There is nothing wrong with being a Cubs hater, I don’t expect you or anyone to root for us that is a Sox fan, and if some do, that’s great too! I really appreciate you NOT being a troll, and not publicly bashing them and rooting against them on social media. I can’t stand that, or the people who can’t admit to the obvious talent of this team.
Your best point, in my opinion, is how people should be happy for the fans who have waited this long. My biggest problem with people who go out of their way to bash the Cubs aren’t necessarily rooting for the Cubs to lose, but they WANT us to be sad and miserable. No one should want that for anyone.
Nice blog, and best of luck next year.
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I didn’t grow up a baseball fan, but started watching when I was in high school, so I don’t have this, “You must only like one Chicago team” prejudice. I enjoyed the heck out of 2005, but the Cubs are the one team I like more than the Sox, so this season has been amazing. I’d love to see both teams regularly competing for a championship. I had such high hopes when both teams made the playoffs in ’08, but we all know how that went.
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What the fuck do you know about what REAL southside people feel about the Cubs. By reading this article, I can guarantee you don’t live within the city limits of Chicago. South suburbs don’t count you douchebag so don’t act like you have a fucking clue how we feel about some pussy northsiders.
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Good article – I AM from the Southside of Chicago (Ashburn) and this sums up most of my Sox friends’ attitudes. Lots of Cub fans on this side of town, too, who are my friends and you’re right – seeing them enjoy October baseball is fun….and this is EXACTLY what Sox management needs to see!
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Hey Ashburn. What parish? St. Bede here. Anyway, yes, this is exactly what the Sox brass needs to see!!! I hope they get the message.
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Spoken like a true south sider, ignorant and narrow minded.
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You are the piece of shit! And you are the type of fan that gives Sox fans a bad name. No one wants to hear your bullshit about living on the south side. Who gives a shit!
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Thanks for reading! Appreciate the defense
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And this right here is why other teams do not like White Sox fans, an unneeded comment on a great blog.
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and there you have it…..wow….just wow. Such hatred….. this comment encapsulates how many Cubs fans feel about the Sox / fans. we rest our case. (lighten up…it’s a GAME)
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What a terrible attitude and way to live life. REAL? Come on… what a joke. If by TRUE southsider you mean you’ve never left the southside, never traveled to another city or country, then it’s completely understandable why you feel so inferior to everyone who didn’t live your impoverished, spiteful ridden life. You’re ignorant to say the least, but worse you’re a cancer to society. Stay on the southside.. you’d give Chicagoans a bad name anywhere else.
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Wow… something to be really proud of… a real tough guy south-sider.
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Do you always talk like that or was that the way you were brought up. Grow up Talk like a real person with intelligence. Probably a troller too. No need to share your negativity White Sox fans are normally good Haters of the Cubs not someone like you who more than likely is the one fighting in the stands and spilling your beer all over everyone. ‘nough said.
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typical southside trash. when did you get parole child molester?
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Haha, so if you live in the suburbs, you can’t be a Sox fan? I have been a Sox fan my entire life and I have lived in the burbs… you people and your “I live in the CITY!” pride.. enjoy high taxes and getting tickets for parking your car. Hope you enjoy looking like a complete moron, because that’s what you just did not only for yourself, but for all sox fans who live in the city. No wonder Sox can’t pull a crowd over 8k people… you have “fans” fighting with others telling them they aren’t a good enough fan. go kick rocks you miserable and sorry excuse for a REAL southsider… do you live in Englewood? Well… then I am sorry sir, you are not “southside” enough. haha.
By the way, I am a Sox fan and I am rooting for the cubs because I would rather Chicago look good to the world than any other team. Just a thought and even MORE fuel for the fire! hahahahahahhaah
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Typical sox fan^^^^^^
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You’re just a thug so just get over yourself. I’m a Sox fan that loves the game of baseball but if the Cubs have a chance to win the title I will be there cheering them on.. show some class!!
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Stay classy.
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You kiss yo momma with that mouth?
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Why all the hate? My father was born in 1930 on the South Side, like his father before him, and lived there for over 40 years before moving to the North Side. My grandfather and father were die-hard Sox fans and my father was friends with Jerry Reinsdorf. Despite going to countless Sox games as a kid, my allegiance went to the Cubs as I grew up on the North Side. When this happened, my father who had Sox season tickets responded by taking me to Cubs games and never once uttered a negative comment about the Cubs. So going back to 1900 of my family’s South Side tradition, I know exactly how my father felt about the Cubs. He was a gentleman.
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Personally, I am a “benign” Cubs fan. By that, I mean, I don’t really give a flying flip about baseball. But my mother was a die hard Cubs fan, and I know how much this win would mean for our city. I will be sad, but won’t lose any sleep, if the Cubs don’t take the series. And I will be thrilled, but not partying in the streets, when (if) the Cubs take it all. But, for what it’s worth, I DID root for the White Sox in 2005, and I was pleased when they did so well. Again, it was good for the city. We do need to pull together, folks. We are Chicago. And baseball is just a game. Rooting for a time is like gaining success vicariously. It’s all kind of silly, when you think about it. But if it gives us as Chicagoans a good feeling, and a chance to be united, isn’t that kind of what it’s all about?
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I grew up on the Southside but somehow became a CUBS fan. With Ernie Banks, Rob Santo, Billy Williams, Don Kessinger, Ken Furgenson, Randy Huntly……how could one, especially me not be a Cubs fan.
There is a city “rule”, not in writing, that states that… you cannot like both teams. It’s one or the other but not both…DAMMIT!
Well Chicago there is a small band of us who do like both teams.
YES I DID!!! Root for the White Sox in 2005 and I was Estatic…..when they won. Slightly disappointed…..not much though…..when the Sox did not win the following year, or the next, or the next, or the next…..etc.
But that’s what Chicago teams do they win then sit on thier laurels. Chicago Bears for example.
Thank God for the 1990s Bulls. They sure broke that pattern. Now it’s the Blackhawks breaking that mold again. Go HAWKS!!!!
So yes….I did root for the 2005 White Sox with Pride and Abandon….it was a GREAT year for Chicago baseball fans PERIOD!!
Now IT IS TIME FOR US CUB FANS TO JUMP FOR JOY AND SPIT ON OTHER TEAMS AND THEIR FANS FACES!!!
And if we loose……then dejected we will be but looking forward to next year. Because if the Cubbies loose they would have done so in Grace. Not like they did a few years ago when they were the best team in baseball period, then lost in the first round.
GO CUBBIES!!!! And the Cub fans are use to saying, White Sox…..there is Always next year and I would be sooo excited for a Southside Northside World Series……and before I die….lol.
And I am serious….good luck next year White Sox….looking forward to a good season.
Notice I said good season not great season…
I have to be somewhat faithful to my CUBS……
Can’t we all be friends????
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Oiling both again….I noticed a typo
It should be Ron Santo not Rob….and it should be Randy Hundley not Huntley.
And it should read….And as Cub fans are use to saying…….not and Cub fans ….
Sorry for the typos folks
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Dumb ass can’t spell lose.
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I’m a lifelong Cubs fan (and not one of THOSE Cubs fans) and I did root for the White Sox in 2005. In fact, I even attended two of the post-season games in person and celebrated when they won it all. Like someone else said above about Cubs’ fans, it’s not the White Sox I have a problem with; it’s a good portion of their fan base that irritates me to no end. In closing, #LetsGo!
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This is truly spot on. I remember back in ’05, I was in 5th grade and watching the White Sox do what they did was truly any kids dream. I remember sneaking out of bed during Game 3, to watch the Sox win in 14 innings. It was an amazing experience.
I now live on the northside of Chicago, just a couple blocks from Wrigley, and seeing this place the way it is when the Cubs play is truly incredible. I was outside of Wrigley for the last out of the Cardinals series, and feeling the excitement in the air was something really special. That being said, as much as I would like to get excited for the Cubs, my heart lies a little farther south on 35th and Shields. I will never partake any singing of “Go Cubs Go” or a chanting of “Lets Go Cubbies”. But it would be great for the for the city to see a Cubs championship. It’s just literally impossible for me to feel excited or root for them. That being said, I wish them all the best in their championship endeavor.
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I’m a lifelong Cubs fan b/c my family basically raised me up to become one. As I got older I made the decision for myself to stick with the Cubbies and say “Baseball is my sport and the Cubs are my team!” In my house there has never been hatred towards the Sox or any bad mouthing. No lie, as a fan of this sport I was sooooo excited for the 2015 season. I actually had the Sox with a better record than the Cubs, but thought “Wow, they are both gonna have a pretty good year.” I was disapointed in the Sox this year and hope they make some good moves in the offseason to bounce back for 2016.
Anyway, down to my point. If you are a fan of baseball, how could you not enjoy all the hype that’s going on right now. I loved the ALDS series and NLDS. (Can’t wait for today’s game). The Cubs are good for baseball which seems to be a sport kids are not as interested in playing as they once were. Let’s think about how much everybody wanted to play hockey after the Hawks won or how everybody was watching the Jackie Robinson West LLWS team (although helped a little bit for baseball, not on the scale the Cubs would). With the crazy fanbase of the Cubs they can help bring back a lot of youth back to the sport of baseball.
There are always going to be those a**hole fans who will try to do whatever to bring you down or get under your skin. My brother and I watched the Cubs NLDS game 4 with our best friend (HUGE SOX FAN) and anytime the Cards scored he’d cheer and laugh at us. I just shook it off and thought we’ll see how this game ends. After the Game our friend said “Wow, what a helluva game!” He seemed similar to the dude who wrote this article and said that he would cheer for the Cubs. But he wishes nothing but the best and that they are playing great baseball.
As tough as it is for me to say this, I absolutley love the Cubs and I like the and root for the White Sox but above both teams my real passion and love is for the Game. There are teams that I hate with a passion and cant stand to see be successful (The Boston Red Sox) but when they won it all I bit my lip (murmed some French words) and tipped my cap to the Champs and thought “Thank you for such a fun post-season of baseball.”
Wish more fans can be a little more hesitant before saying derogatory remarks against both teams and just sit back relax and watch some baseball.
GoCubsGo
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I’m as big of a Cubs fan as you’ll find, but I was rooting hard for the Sox to go all the way in 2005. Why not? I love Chicago teams, period. I’ve never disliked the Sox and I’ve never had a reason to.
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As a TRUE Southsider (Bridgeport and West Lawn), I can say that I am glad to see that the Cubs may finally get their year. Go ahead and get it over with, boys… and then let’s start the real work of having 2 great teams so we can get Chicago the Crosstown World Series that it deserves! No other 2 team town deserves this more than Chicago. It would be freaking amazing… and then the Sox can show everyone who the real winners are.
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Love this post
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Can you believe how shitty both our teams have been? Our grandkids won’t believe it…..
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I grew up SouthSide Cubs fan, all my friends are Sox fans and they wishing Cubs well as I wished them well in 2005. The vocal idiot minority makes it bad and they are on both sides of town. Watch the games and have fun, don’t get the Hawk Harrelson complex of you against the world. It’s a miserable existence.
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Amen Captain…
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Nice piece. I am a lifelong Sox fan and have never disliked the team or Weigley Field. Many of my closest friends bleed Cub blue… but it’s the band wagon and transplant “fans”who really irk me.
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Thanks, David. A logical statement, indeed! I applaud y
our openness to admit that in the face of so many angry (and even combative) replies on this post.
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This probably ties into the inferiority complex idea, but the other thing that is annoying about Cub fandom in this city is that i’d say 99% of transplants, people who grew up somewhere else and have a #1 team from some different city, choose to root for the cubs over the sox. While I know there are plenty of born and bred Chicagoland Cub fans, pretty much all Sox fans are local. It has to do with their neighborhood and their stadium and all of that, but tansplants rarely give the Sox the time of day, even though we have just as much history. I always wonder if it would be different if the Dan Ryan didn’t plow through bridgeport and if the sox had attempted to cultivate a neighborhood appeal around the stadium in lieu of a sea of parking. I guess we will never know…
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On transplant fandom…there is guy in my office who is from NY and grew up a Mets fan who actully said he might root for the Cubs over the Mets, if it comes to that in the NLCS. Stupid Cubs and their damn appeal…
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…and there’s the issue. Its not the Cubs that are “stupid”,,, You admittedly said it’s the guy in your office you’re upset with, yet you call the Cubs stupid. Misplaced anger? (by the way, I grew up along the lakefront on the north side in the 50’s, and have been a Cubs fan for close to 60 years, so I’m not a transplant)
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I agree with this completely. Great observation!
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I am a die-hard Cubs fan, have been since 5th grade when I went to my first game at Wrigley. Unlike your description above, I did root for the Sox in 2005. Why? Because it’s Chicago and what is better for a City’s sports fan base but a championship? However, I will never root for them again mainly because of your and Sox fan’s alike attitude like you state above. There is absolutely no reason for you all to put down and root against a team from your hometown. It’s not like you guys built a dynasty off of the 2005 team. yes, they were a great team but you haven’t done anything since. Get over it. Root for your hometown and move on!
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There are many Sox fans who are rooting for the Cubs…. More than you think… Don’t change!
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Only slightly contradictory….
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All you so called chicago white-sox so called baseball fans that hate the cubs are total douchebags. I am both a cubs fan and white sox fan and hating the cubs shows your ignorance for baseball and disrespect to the city. Ive been a White Sox / Cubs fan my whole life and have been with them the whole way supporting the every year and spent big money all the way through the world series. Maybe if you were not such cub haters the sox would be accepted more nationally and put along side the cubs on the chicago basball mantle? Grow up and learn that the hatred that stems mostly from your parents so called loyalty to the white sox is nothing different then racism and why it still exists today. I believe if you lose the cub hatred in your hearts you will be out of denial and your days will become much brighter and the smell of ass that your cub hatred stinks up us cellular and is the reason it smells like shit you dumb asses thinking not respecting the cubs but continuing to hate at this point make you simply a douchebag. Your hatred to the cubs will not make your team any better no matter what brainwashing you have ecountered. This guys petty article is a bunch of bullshit surrounding two words. Hate and Cubs. two words that do not belong together in respect the basic physcology of why you are simply being a cubs hater. You have no empathy. You probably enjoy seeing little helpless animals get tortured. You have no respect for anyone. You became a sox fan similar to the reason why pedofiles join preisthood since priesthood is enabler for priests to molest children. You became a sox fan because you have so much hate in your heart that the sox fan base is enabler for you to spread your hate. this is not about baseball to you it is about your lost soul. This by no means is directed at the non cub hating sox fans but only the cub hating sox fans you are cancer to the white sox and the city of chicago. Peace out Go Cubs show em how its done the right way without hate!
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Die hard Cubs fan here, since birth. However I have to say that being from Chicago I always root for the white sox to win, unless of course they are playing the Cubs. In 2005 I was extremely happy when the white sox won. I’m a southsider, so most of my friends are sox fans. The biggest thing that irritates me about sox fans is how even with the Cubs having this amazing team, and taking out the Cardinals (the winningest team in the league this year), sox fans are still bringing up 2005. I seen a post on here with a sox player showing off his ring, and the caption was something like, 8 more wins Cubs fans then you can talk. Hate to say it but the ring is ten years old and the sox finished in a tie at 6th from last in the league this year. Why do you have bragging rights from a decade ago? That would be like bears fans using the fact that we won super bowl 20 to justify or camouflage the fact that we suck right now. Ok so that was 3 decades ago not 1 but it’s the same principle. All these sox fans that are talking about the Cubs like we suck, even after we just took out the 2 highest record teams in MLB, I have one thing to say to you,if, and I do say if because anything can happen, but if the Cubs Do take it all and win 8 more games this year, I just hope you feel like complete assholes. I’m not telling you to root root root for the cubbies, but I am sick and tired of sox fans using the 2005 ring as a blanket to hide the piss poor team they have right now… Hate to break it to you all but 2005 has come and gone… Go Cubs Go!!
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I was a cub fan growing up, watched them every afternoon almost. I rooted for them until “STEVE BARTMAN”. I had Cub fans blaming this poor guy left and right for the team losing. Really? The Goat, Black Cat’s, now some poor guy reaching for a foul ball? Everything was a curse, not the team choking! After that I made a promise, I would NEVER root for the Cubs again, on any level, at any time. 12 Years later I stand behind that still. Everyone has a right to root for whatever team they like, it’s a free country still (somewhat). BUT as far as the “They are doing good, so I’m gonna root for them” thing, NEVER!
And by the way, they got this same distance in the playoffs in 2003. So they have not achieved anything further at this point then back then. Once they have the title in hand, THEN they are the champs. 107 years in between championships.
I’m reminded of a saying, something having to do with Monkey’s, Typewriters and Shakespeare?
Not doing any bashing on here, just saying I will never wish the organization, or their largely D-Bag fan base any luck.
GO SOX IN 2016!
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R u bartmans rainbow uncle?
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cubs fans, Steve Bartmann is your judge.
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Sorry… I just don’t get it… I grew up (60’s & 70’s) a Sox fan and had family who favored the Cubs. But we always rooted for both teams cuz they were in opposite leagues and from Chicago. Sure, we’d spar over which team was the better of the two that year…. It’s not like we had to worry about a subway series each year. Enter inter-league play and the front office of both teams see a $ advantage in creating a dislike between the fan bases. I reject that non-sense. I am more emotionally involved in how the Sox perform but, darn right I’m rooting for the Cubs. Except for 6 regular season games each year, rooting AGAINST another Chicago team… just out of spite!!! … is just plain stupid.
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Hey Sux fans….. no way you can be bisoxual.
I only have one thought for you if you jump on the CUB BANDWAGON….. There is a spot…. down on my south side…. between the dual moons and my sunny sphincter. Its called the taint…. which you lick.
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Hey Sox fans, I apologize for this moron’s insults.
Sorry, Eddie.. It’s fans like YOU that give the Sox fans the ammo to trash talk Cubs fans…
Even I, a 60 years die hard Cubs fan, would say it’s Cubs fans like YOU that SUCK…
What’s behind your hostility? Why are you, WHO SHOULD BE BASKING IN THE MOMENT THAT IS THE CUBS MOMENT, so angry when you should be happy as all get out?
If a Sox fan said that about Cubs fans, you’d be pretty upset. You just embarrassed ALL “real” Cubs fans by talking like a drunken jerk.
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I think that when it comes to Chicago . . . so many of us are Chicagoans first, and Americans second. Or maybe Chicago and the US are co-firsts. I think I’ll blog about this….
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“White Sox fans have taken great pride in the fact that we were the ones who broke our curse first.”
Uh…what? I understand my life experiences aren’t universal, but I’ve been a White Sox fan my whole life, and I never heard about any curse in relation to the Sox. We never bought into that. The Cubs did (Billy Goat, later Bartman) and Boston did (Bambino). That’s why everyone thought of those two teams as the longest suffering franchises, even though the White Sox went longer than the Red Sox between World Series wins.
Maybe you were just using “curse” as another way to say “dry spell.” But I never heard White Sox fans romanticize their decades of failure the way some Cubs fans do.
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dry spell is probably a better way to phrase it
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Great writeup. I’m not surprised at the animosity this has sparked. Sports debate in this city seems to bring out the stupidity and anger in people for some reason. If anyone can explain to me how it is they think that there’s something called a “true” south or north sider and where exactly they think that definition comes from I’d love to hear……oh wait. No I wouldn’t. Because you’d be making up some arbitrary meaningless garbage to suit your own inflated opinion of yourself.
Sox fan through and through here. But my character is such that I choose not to dislike people in general based on the surface, simplistic label of their favorite baseball team. I mean seriously, get over it. We are more than who we choose to root for for 9 innings. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. Chicago needs a W, and I could care less who brings it home. So remember kids! These are human beings playing ball, in the stands, and behind these comments. Be nice. It’s the non a-hole thing to do.
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A refreshing article, but I must take issue with the misconception that the majority of Sox fans have any kind of “inferiority complex” whatsoever. We won the World Series. This has been a Sox town since 2005.
This “inferiority complex” you speak of cannot exist, for the simple reason that you are comparing two different fan bases who have polar opposite value systems. Sox fans value, above all, World Series Championships. We achieved this in 2005.
Our less-fortunate brothers to the north, they value, above all, popularity, attendance, celebrities, attention, selfies and sun. Nothing wrong with that, you understand…simply, these are the least important values I could conceive of when cheering on “my” team.
Let me put it this way – no, better yet, let me throw it out there to Sox Nation and let them answer this question:
Would you, as a Sox fan, trade our 2005 World Series Championship for 10 years of sell-out crowds at Comiskey Park and celebrities in the stands? Please answer honestly.
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Our 2005 year of championship achievement was perfect. I wouldn’t compare our experience with the current Cub fan. I think this fan base needs to settle down, they haven’t even won the pennant yet , but are celebrating like victors. We will soon see the outcome of this season. Celebrities don’t impress me, bandwagon fans are self explanatory, Sox fans know the game and claim the memories of the 2005 World Series win.
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No way! I want that championship. There are so many things going against the Sox, though….and people have discussed this ad nauseum elsewhere….but I do wish they had more of a turn-out. Someday it will change. I remember when no one went to Cubs games.
It is funny, though, to see some Cubs fans ripping on Sox fans for being haters and then calling them “thugs” and “trash” and the like. I think some Cub fans spin the yarn about how they don’t really even think about the Sox, and I’m sure some don’t, but (apparently) many do. Trolls aplenty on both sides, and people always need to feel like they’re superior to someone.
Cubs got a good team this year.
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I’m a diehard “Bleed the Blue” Cubs fan and for the most part I don’t care one way or another what the Sox do, but when the Sox were in the WS in ’05 I rooted for them… Not as a bandwagon jumper but more of “It’s a Chicago Team in the WS” thing…
I hope the Sox can pull it together and be competitive soon… it would be great to have both teams making the playoffs…
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If the Cubs win it, my advice is to see some sort of therapist. I mean, the Sox won ten years ago . . . and I still do not believe it. I still do not believe it. Afraid I am going to wake up to find it was a dream!
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Was essentially in your place in 2005. I didn’t care what the Sox did, nor do I still today. You’re right – you’re under no obligation to stop hating the Cubs just because they reside in the same city as your Sox and are having some success now.
I’m not sure if I hate the White Sox, probably indifferent. I do hate the Cards, and the Mets. Frankly I wish the Cubs and Sox would never meet except possibly in the only series that ever counts.
But I do feel sorry that your Sox got stuck holding the Samardzija crap bag.
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WOW. Some angry people on here. He’s just telling his truth. I find it refreshing. If he feels that way let him be. It’s just a crosstown baseball rivalry written from his point of view. Im seeing name calling and lots of homophobic (yikes) references for no reason. Let’s all be cool and get back to living.
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It’s not the Cubs, it’s their fans! So loud, rude and obnoxious. I like the team, they’re fun to watch…But the fans, grrrr
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You NAILED it. Exactly how I feel as a Sox fan. I love how butthurt some Cubs fans are when I’m not quite quietly hating the Cubs right now. I try to tell them: Why do you care what I think? Expend your energy enjoying the moments and feeling sorry for me being a diehard Sox fan.
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Good read. Stay with your team.
As a die-hard Cubs fan from Southern Illinois, I’ll never understand the hatred between the Sox and the Cubs…down here we reserve that hatred for everything Cardinals!
I grew up in an all-Cardinal family, but as a latch-key kid, staying at home by myself in the summer, watching the games on WGN, I fell hard for the Cubs. Sandberg, Dunston, Andre Dawson, Mark Grace, listening to Harry…I loved it.
But I also liked the White Sox. They were in different leagues, so I wanted to like an American League too, and it made sense to me. I never got into them as much as the Cubs, but they were my second team, especially after the cool black & white uniform switch happened. I was never part of a deep rivalry between the two teams, so the thought that I couldn’t like them was foreign to me.
I moved to Chicago in 2003, right as the Cubs were on their playoff run. It was an exciting time to be in the city. Obviously, what we wanted to happen did not, and I was endlessly taunted by my Sox fan friends. In 2005, when the Sox were KILLING IT, my Sox fan friends couldn’t believe I would root for them. No one would believe that I liked both teams.
I’ll say this: Chicago and Northern IL Cubs fans dislike the Cardinals, but they HATE the Sox. It’s the exact opposite for a Southern IL Cubs fan: many dislike the Sox, some like them, some could give two sh!ts, but they all HATE the Cardinals. For us Southerners, the Sox are just another American League team that we’d like to beat when we play each other.
I will always root for both teams, without question, and I don’t care what my Cubs fan friends think. I may not deeply follow the Sox and read every blog or news story (like I do with the Cubs), but I will root for them. If you find me ever saying “Well, I guess if the Cubs aren’t in it, the Cardinals should be”, KILL ME.
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I describe it like most sibling relationships. We love/hate each other more intensely than anyone outside of the family. When we compete, we raise our intensity above that of any other opponent. When one succeeds, the other will be the first to congratulate them and the first to tell them why your better, they got lucky and I’ll be coming for you next time.
The Cubs are / have been the City’s and the nations “cute little brother” that got more attention than they deserved some times but were never a real threat to win. As a life long Cubs fan, this equates to the time when the 6′-6″ “little brother” is now driving the lane with success against all the older siblings. They will beat him bloody until the end, give him the high five and let him dance in the driveway when he wins and work harder to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
It’s good for the city and both teams.
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For me the rivalry is more of a CLASS RIVALRY. I was born in the late 80s, so to me the south side has always been more blue collar while the north side has always been more white collar. Thus, it’s hard for me to understand Cubs fans from the south side. But I understand family ties, etc.
A big pain point I’d like to point out with the Cubs, however, is that a chunk of their fan base is transplants that have no familial ties to Chicago whatsoever- north or south. The Cubs are trendy and Wrigley is the place to be- I get it. But Sox fans have REGIONAL PRIDE, and this is why I’m proud to be a Sox fan. It’s the camaraderie of the working class. It’s the history and evolution of our region and ballclub. It’s the ’05 Series.
I wish the Cubs luck this year because as a sports fan, they are pretty awesome. Plus a happy Chicago is great with me.
Go Sox!
Joe (Chicago Heights)
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OK, this is obviously a very passionate debate. Let me please give my final take on it all. And for the record, I am a die hard Cubs fan since i was a chile in the late 50’s.
To say that ALL Cubs fans suck… To say that ALL Sox fans suck… is just ridiculous. It’s as bad as any all- inclusive racism or bigotry toward any race, religion, country, etc…
NO GROUP IS ALL INCLUSIVE. There are good Cubs fans and there are (embarrassingly so) jerk Cubs fans (I refer to Eddie somewhere in this post above).. and there are good Sox fans, and yes, there are also jerk Sox fans.
To say ALL of either are good or bad shows a very myopic and narrow-minded approach by those who spew this hatred from either fan base toward the other, and insults the good fans of either team’s fan base.
That said, I hope real “baseball fans” can truly enjoy how many baseball records this young and aggressive new Cubs team has broken.
If you changed the name from Cubs to (insert ANY name here), and if you are truly a “baseball fan”, you’d be pretty f’ing amazed at this young teams accomplishments and hard=pressed not to applaud what they have accomplished this year.
That said, Go Cubs!.
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Sox fans Shhhhh…
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This is just dumb. Every comment is just a contradiction of the previous statement. Here’s a Cubs’ fan telling you I rooted for the Sox in 2005. The Sox fans that just hate the Cubs are sad and pathetic. Get over urself dude. Go play some golf. Awful article.
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Thanks for reading!
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As a life-long Cubs fan, I have to say you’ve done a great job of explaining the dichotomy between the two teams. And just so you know, I cheered every Sox victory in ’05 because, as you say, it’s good to see Chicago happy for a winning team, regardless of your personal preferences..
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Looking back about Sox fans having an inferiority complex because of the Cubs being seen as more popular alot if it has been a result of poor decisions the Sox have made starting back in 1968 when then owner Arthur Allyn took the games off WGN and on to then new fledgling UHF Indy WFLD 32 and then WSNS 44 which in those days had a poor signal and were often hard to pick up and it allowed channel 9 to become a full time Cubs station and it ultinatley became a super station going into other areas of the country and being able to pull in fans from throughout the mid west and the rest of the country and thenin tthe early 89s when Reinsdorf put the games on pay TV. Also, there has been many things the Sox gave done to alienate fans like threatening to move to Tampa, having new Comiskey be a bland park right before the fancy Camden Yards retro style park craze began, Reinsdorf being a hawk during the 1994 strike, the 1997 white flag trade. These are among many factors that have helped swing the tide against the Sox in terms of their standing among the two teams in town.
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Finally, a well thought-out argument from a Cubs fan. Must be part of the 10% of them who know anything about baseball.
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Great article. I am a sox fan and in 2005 when the sox were heading to the WS, my Cubs friends and family(about 40+) were quiet. Not a sound from them rooting for the sox. Once the white sox won the WS I know of JUST two ppl that are Cubs fan that were happy for the white sox and their fans.
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Make that 4 people, Gail… My wife and I watched every inning if the WS and were both THRILLED that CHICAGO won the series. (…and it was an awesome World Series to watch, simply as baseball fans! Great games!)
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