Sitting in a restaurant after Saturday night’s Cubs vs. Brewers game, a friend was berating Chicago fans, mostly referring to their constant griping about how they always lose and how they perennially exclaim this year is going to be “our year.”
While it is common knowledge the North-siders have been held without a championship for over two generations, the term “our year” is not unique to Cubs fans. Sure, they may have coined the phrase and, maybe, it gets more attention from Chicago fans, but the fact of the matter is the belief this year is going to be “our year” is a universal thought, no matter if you’re from Los Angeles, New York City or even Kansas City.
“Our Year” represents the undying hope sports fans have in their teams. The belief this will finally be the year they end their slump, make the playoffs or finally make the jump from perennial postseason contenders to champions. There is no fan out there that believes this year will not be his team’s year. No one goes into the season thinking, “Well, maybe we will go out and get ’em next year.”
Without the feeling of this being “Our Year,” what would sports mean to us? To many, sports represents sports, especially in troubled times. The feeling of “Our Year” was especially prevalent in Detroit this year as Michigan State, whose home, East Lansing, is just over 70 miles from the Motor City, brought the hope this was going to be their year by making a surprising run at the NCAA Championship. However, while they did fall short, the Spartans brought one glimmer of light on a rather dark time in our nation.
Where would we be without the feeling that this is “Our Year”? Who would we root for? Why would we even care? The feeling, the dream that this is going to be our year, even for the most abysmal clubs, still packs the stadiums. It gives even the most diehard fans a reason to get up every Sunday morning or skip work to catch an afternoon game, thinking they will be seeing history in the making. Without the feeling of this being the year a club finally breaks out of a slump, some of the most storied franchises would fold because all hope would be lost.
While most of the hope is focused on fans for their undying belief this will finally be the year a team would break through, the athletes themselves must also have the belief that their team can make their push into history. There is a reason players make requests to be traded to teams like the Red Sox, the Lakers or the Packers. They believe they can play a part in helping the team win.
If the athletes didn’t believe this was their year, where would we be? The sports world would be stuck with a few cohesive teams who believed in themselves while many clubs dwindled, hoping they finally get their time in the spotlight. If the players did believe in their team, they wouldn’t be making as much as they do.
Even while the belief it is going to be a team’s year may be strong, the success may come out of nowhere. There is no better example than last year’s Tampa Bay Rays squad that not only won what is arguably the toughest division in baseball, but also won 31 more games than they did the season before to make it to the World Series. Sure, the Cinderella run may have seen the bell toll a little earlier than many would have liked, but the fact they made it that far baffled even the most ardent baseball fans.
As the Cubs go on year 101 of their championship drought, the feeling that this is going to be “our year” is still going strong on the corner of Addison and Sheffield. But, while television cameras may be focused on the signs inside the Friendly Confines, everyone knows the feeling is universal that this is going to be “Our Year.”
Ben Solochek is a senior majoring in journalism and history. Think this is your team’s year? Let Ben know at [email protected].
