Watching the Cubs while on the Road

The Cubs are about to start a road trip against the Rangers and the red-hot Braves, but I will not be watching any of the games. That’s because I will also be on the road, on a trip to Europe with my wife.

I typically like to avoid travel – especially international travel – during the playoffs, but I have taken a few trips during the regular season. And I’ve missed lots of games over that time…sometimes catching a few innings on the Gameday app.

My most memorable game that I wasn’t able to see was in September of 2023, while I was in Greece. I couldn’t sleep, and it was about 3 am as the Cubs played the Arizona Diamondbacks on the road. At one point that season, the playoff seemed assured, as on September 6th, they had a 4 game lead for the last Wild Card spot. But by the 16th, the lead was down to a game, and things were getting bad fast. The had lost 3 of 4 to the Diamondbacks at home, 2 of 3 at the Rockies, and the first of a 3-game series at Arizona. The Arizona games were so critical, as they would lose the tiebreaker if the tied for the last spot.

I woke up at about 4 am, and stupidly decided to check the score. The Cubs had a 3-2 lead going to the 6th. I kept trying to go back to sleep, but curiosity got the better of me, and I kept “watching” the game on Gameday.

I have to admit, there are some time nerves get the better of me, and I find myself following a game on Gameday instead of watching it, as if it can somehow change the outcome. Or I’ll sneak a peek at Gameday, which is sometime a few seconds ahead, to see what is going to happen before I actually watch it.

But during this particular game, not being able to see or hear the action was not enjoyable.

I decided to lookup the highlights of that game…and this is actually the first time I’ve seen those highlights:

I had forgotten it was ex-Cub, Zach Davies, who started for the DBacks. Just so many plays that could have gone in the opposite direction, with so many chances to add on runs in extra innings. In the deciding inning, it seemed like Dansby Swanson might have been able to catch the ball that deflected off Hayden Wesneski. And then in the winning run scored because Yan Gomes tagged the runner on the shoulder instead of on the hand. The Cubs ultimately lost by a full game, so it wasn’t the deciding game, but it made a big difference in that season.

The other game I remember distinctly was last May when the Cubs were playing the Giants.

I was in Peru, so the time zone was the same as back home, and after a day of walking around high altitude in the city of Cusco, I was exhausted. So, I checked on the score of the game at the end of the night. I don’t remember what inning it was, but the Cubs were trailing 5-3.

And then, somehow they scored 2 in the bottom of the 9th, including a 2-out single by Kyle Tucker to tie the game.

The Cubs had the winning run on 3rd with 1 out in the 10th, but PCA struck out, and then Swanson lined out.

And then the 11th inning happened. Ryan Pressly was still the Cubs closer at that point, and had a 2.08 ERA. But he had one of the worst nights of his career, giving up 5 hits, a walk, hitting a man, and allowing a runner on a fielder’s choice on a sacrifice bunt. All of them, plus the designated runner scored, all without an out being recorded. Caleb Thielbar came in and gave up a double and a sac fly, putting the score at 14-5.

At very times that inning I put my phone down, but I kept checking just to see how bad things had gotten. And then I watched gameday, as the Cubs went quietly in the bottom of the 11th to end the game.

I don’t think Pressly had many high-leverage innings the rest of his Cubs tenure, and he was released just before the Trade Deadline.

I’m sure there were plenty of good games that happened for the Cubs while I was travelling, but unfortunately, those are the two that stick out.

And in a season where, excluding pitcher injuries, things have gone so well, I’m almost afraid to head out of the country. Because, as Kevin Costner says in Bull Durham, “You have to respect the streak.”

My wife is not sympathetic to this sentiment.