If I was in Chicago, I would be still sleeping, trying to get rid of a REALLY bad hangover from celebrating...

"The taste of victory was so sweet Sammy Sosa wanted to share it with his loyal followers in the right-field bleachers.

So, he sprayed them with celebratory champagne. "
- By RICK GANO, AP Sports Writer

"Are they still out there? Are they still on the corner of Clark and Addison, dancing in the streets? Are they still going wild from Oak Lawn to Oak Park to Oak Forest to Lake Forest to Park Forest to Forest Park to Schaumburg to Galesburg to Wheaton to Waukegan to Des Plaines and maybe even Des Moines?

Can it be true that Sept. 27, 2003, was the first time since Sept. 28, 1938 that the Cubs won a championship (division, league or World Series) on their home field? Could the Cubs actually end up playing the New York Yankees again at Wrigley Field, as they did this summer for the first time since 1938?"
- Mike Downey, Chicago Tribune

"It was a day for Chicago to collectively hold its breath for nearly six hours, and when the improbable happened and the Cubs won it, it was a night for a hoot and a holler and more than a few toasts to the champs.

"Hell's about to freeze over," said Shaun Calloway, 24, of Naperville as he steadied himself for the final outs in the Cubs' doubleheader sweep at Wrigley Field, which propelled them into the playoffs."
- By Brett McNeil and Jon Yates, Chicago Tribune

"So here were your tense, huddled masses at Wrigley yearning to breathe freely. Here they were roaring on every pitch from the eighth inning of the first game of a doubleheader against the Pittsburgh Pirates until the last pitch of the second game. This was 95 years of frustration talking, so cut it a little slack if it was hoarse.

More so than any team in baseball, the Cubs are their fans. This is a package deal, for better or worse, till death do them part. And fans have died about 1,000 deaths each with this club. If the Cubs somehow ever find a way to win a World Series, the fans are as much the story as the players. Maybe more of the story. And that's why they came early and stayed late Saturday. They had this coming."
- Rick Morrissey, Chicago Tribune

"Clark Street turned into Bourbon Street Saturday night as years of baseball frustration melted into delirium on the North Side.

Beyond the right field bleachers, a happy change came to a large sign that counts the years since the Cubs' last division title, pennant and World Series crown. The division part of the rooftop sign was switched from "14" to "0.""
- Shamus Toomey and Ana Mandieta, Chicago Sun-Times

"They stood like frozen zombies, not sure whether to believe the moment was real, wondering if another saboteur was lurking as always. But as daylight slid into dusk in the haunted village of Wrigleyville, the most tormented fans in sports finally started to quiver and roar. For once in their lives, they weren't being teased or bamboozled.

Next year is here."
- Jay Mariotti, Chicago Sun-Times

all pics from the Chicago Tribune

Posted by Yano at September 28, 2003 09:50 AM

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