Call Me E.

Call Me E.
all stories and essays by Sean Rein

Fall Ball
September 29, 2003
A funny thing could happen this autumn: The Chicago Cubs could possibly play the Boston Red Sox in the World Series. I personally am rooting against this.

Chicago has not won the title since 1908 and Boston has not won it since 1918. These two teams represent the two longest championship droughts in professional sports, and I want to keep it that way.

I was born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota. For the first 18 years of my life, I had to struggle through life without any of my teams winning championships.

I was not around when George Mikan and the Minneapolis Lakers won five NBA titles. Those banners hang in some arena in Los Angeles now, so I do not count them as Minnesota titles. The current professional team that plays basketball in Minneapolis can't even get out of the first round of the playoffs.

I really don't care anyway; the NBA is a league full of thugs, rapists, and drug users.

I am, however, a huge hockey fan. Our former NHL team made two glorious runs to the Stanley Cup Finals before losing to far superior teams, and our current squad lost in the Western Conference finals to another hot team just this past spring.

Any sports fan reading this does not need me to remind them that my Vikings have lost four Super Bowls and countless NFC title games. The Vikings are my Cubs. I am a Vikings fan 'til the end, even though they break my heart every year. This season they have started out 4-0, but I know in my heart that they won't win the whole thing. They will rip my heart out come January, and I will have to watch two other teams play in Houston this year.

The funny thing is, I have accepted the fact that they will never win the big one in my lifetime. Whether it's Darren Nelson dropping the game-winning touchdown in the NFC title game at Washington or Denny Green taking a knee in the Metrodome with one and a half minutes left and two time outs left to take his chances in overtime, I know that something will prevent my beloved purple warriors from winning it all.

I used to feel that way about the Minnesota Twins, also. For the first 18 years of my life the Twins were hapless wiping boys for the rest of the American League. I was in total acceptance of the fact that they would never win it all.

Then, in 1987, instead of watching some other team celebrate on the field at the end of the World Series, there were my Twins! They had beaten the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games and were World Champions. It was a great feeling, but something was missing. Over the next few months, once the celebration was over, I started expecting another championship in 1988. I went from a being a content fan of a loser to the crazy freak that expected more and more. More winning! More glory!

I don't like the Twins fan that I am now. I miss the old one.

Cubs and Red Sox fans, I'm rooting against you. I miss the way it used to be.

I'll always have my Vikings.

P.S. Hey, Nanny, I hope you're watching the Twins this postseason!