WGN gives good promo and they did a nice job this year with some “testimonial” ads. Here’s a preview of them, and one of these guys is going to change his mind before his real promo airs.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sg1mKSKgqfs]
Let’s look at all of them:
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lV8nyr4ZAxY&feature=relmfu]
Not bad, but I’m worried about what Steve meant by his father “unleashing” a bottle of champagne. Did he hit Steve’s mom with it?
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewXjASwIqCA&feature=relmfu]
What Steph left out was that we used to watch the Cubs together without pants. And her dad hated Irish guys. And the Cubs. And paying for her ProActiv.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZjOICLXv64&feature=relmfu]
OK, Mark. Two things. I would have liked to have watched this, except thanks to archaic blackout rules the rescheduled hurricane game was only shown locally on WGN. I listened to Pat and Ron do the game until the ninth, when ESPN picked up Len and Bob for the final three outs. Second, you took a picture of the line score, not the boxscore. And if it’s cold enough for a sweatshirt and a coat, zip at least one of those up, you layer wearing posing douche.
Oh, and in the teaser you said the Kerry Wood game was your favorite. Maybe the Zambrano game was your dog’s favorite since you felt the need to tell us that he watched it with you and your life partner…I meant friend, what did I say?
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0MvsUkZhZA&feature=related]
This one’s my favorite. He picks the kind of game that a real fan would pick, and he does a passable Brickhouse impersonation. And who knew there would be a black Cubs fan in Harvey?
And I’m pretty sure Ron Leflore used to hire this guy to babysit his kid, too.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRSJKvl7EMY]
Thank you Kathy for depressing the shit out of us.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYUPal7GsOw]
Of course, somebody had to pick a loss. Too bad the Bartman game was on Fox, or one of you sadists could have picked that one. And how many TVs did your family have in the 70s that you were stacking them to watch sporting events on the four channels you got? Maybe you could have saved money and painted your house?
So if they’d picked me for a promo, what moment would I have picked?
It involves a Cubs legend who recently lost an eye to a Brian McCann foul ball.
September 9, 1989, Cardinals at Cubs. The Cubs had lost on Friday and their lead was down to a half game, and trailed 2-1 in the eighth, when Whitey Herzog brought Dan Quisenberry in to get out of a jam, and Luis Salazar’s two out single scored Dwight Smith.
Fast forward to the bottom of the tenth, and Salazar is up again with Andre Dawson on first and one out. Salazar rifled one to right field and Dawson did a half sprint, half limp, around second, around third and home, as Harry went crazy, Wrigley went crazy and the lead went back to a game and a half. The Cubs went 14-6 the rest of the way and left the Cardinals and the rest of the NL East in the dust. What I remember was watching it in the living room with my dad (sorry, Mark, I’m not sure where the dog was) and we both stood up and spontaneously waved Dawson home. Good times. And the 1989 Cubs are maybe my favorite of all time. They came from nowhere, entertained the hell out of us, and then, unfortunately went right back to nowhere.
How come when they have a black guy have his own commercial, they pick a guy named Ron with a tooth missing?? Are they trying to remind us of Ronnie Woo Woo? (Ronnie couldn’t have a commercial because he doesn’t own a television set.) Although since he is from Harvey, it’s possible that Tom Driessen recommended Ron.
Damn. I wish that I could remember something important about a game that I watched on WGN. In 1949, on their way to losing 93 games out of 154 and a last place finish, the Cubs had an outfielder by the name of Hank Edwards. In April and early May this guy was a hitting machine. In the game that I saw on WGN he drew a walk in his first plate appearance. He started trotting down to first and stopped two thirds of the way there. Then he slowly walked the rest of the way. After a second or two standing on the bag, he was taken out of the game. He didn’t play for a couple of games and when they put him in the lineup he was mediocre. He was injured. His injury? He swallowed his tobacco chew while running to first and it made him sick to his stomach. He was the perfect Cub.
Glad to hear someone else has the ’89 Cubs atop their all-time favorite squadrons list.
When ever I think of the ’89 Cubs, I think about Les Lancaster hitting a game winning double that year. That pretty much sums up the awesomeness of that team.
Thursday, August 2nd, 1984. Runners on first and third, 1 out, 9th inning, Cubs up 3-2.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN198408020.shtml
Pete Rose, in his brief stint as Montreal Expos pinch-hitter, lines a shot off of Lee Arthur Smith’s right shoulder. The ball pops into the air, from where shortstop Dave Owens plucks it for the putout, then fires to Durham at first to double up the runner and end the game, an ending so bizarre and seemingly fortuitous that Harry declared, “The Good Lord wants the Cubs to win!”
Also, the Lancatser game was not on WGN…it was Monday Night Baseball on ABC (WLS). I actually confess to being at that game, but leaving it early.
*Owen
The brawl with the Mets in 1984. Good times.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN198408072.shtml