CHICAGO, MY KIND OF TOWN (CONGRATULATIONS CUBBIES!!!)

Before I begin writing about the NYY, which will soon be in my next article, I’d like to take the time to congratulate the Chicago Cubs on their very long-awaited World Series Championship!!  I had visited the city of Chicago and both MLB ballparks six years ago and learned something that I didn’t think existed – the Chicago Cubs & White Sox fans are more competitive with (against) each other than the Yankees’ and Mets’ fans are!   I also experienced the nicest people in Wrigley Field – genuinely nice people.

Right before the 2012 season began, I was very happy when the Cubs hired Theo Epstein as their President of Baseball Operations, shortly after Theo had resigned from the Red Sox organization.   I had previously admired Theo during his very first season in 2004 as the General Manager of the Red Sox.  That is when I saw him execute some major and seemingly smart transactions for the Red Sox.  The following season is when the Red Sox finally achieved their first championship in 86 years, thanks to the major assistance of Theo and his swift architectural abilities.  For the Cubs, who hadn’t won in over 100 years, it seemed inevitable that Theo would once again be the executive to build a team that would eventually become strong enough to win it all.  It took him just 5 seasons to accomplish such a miraculous feat…again!   Additionally, Theo not only helped construct a team and hire the perfect manager (Joe Maddon) who would bring them this season’s championship, but a team that I believe will compete for years to follow this season.

Many executives tried to find ways for both the Red Sox and the Cubs to win it all year-after-year, but only Theo configured the perfect ingredients.  Building teams to win the World Series is hard enough, but building teams to win it after an 86-year drought and after a 108-year drought is so sensational!  It’s something that we will never see again!  As a result, in my opinion, Theo is currently the greatest current executive in baseball and can also be considered the greatest baseball executive of all time.

So, once again, congratulations Cubs’ fans, Theo, and all who were involved in this year’s World Series Championship; you deserved the championship like no other team ever has!