‘Prosecards from Cubs Nation’ – First Installment of 2011!

This season could be described as exciting, frustrating, fun, miserable, promising and hope crushing…just depends on when you ask a Cubs fan “How is the season going?”.

One of the best parts of being a Cubs fan is that Cubs fans enjoy talking Cubs with other Cubs fans whether it’s here or Twitter, a bar or the bleachers. Cubs fans are some of the most knowledgable baseball fans out there and because the passion is so great across the board, it’s always a fun conversation no matter where it’s taking place.

A couple years ago, I decided to start a feature here on Prose and Ivy that would make the site more interactive and open up opportunities for fans to get to know each other. Or, at the very least, I’d get a chance to meet some more Cubs fans. The feature is called Prosecards from Cubs Nation and it’s just a chance to throw some fun interview questions at a Cubs fan and learn more about them. I’ve even had a chance to get to know a couple in person when we were all at a Cubs game at Citi Field in New York sometime last year. Very cool.

Today’s Prosecard is from Steve Isaacson, a Cubs fan since the ’60s. He may not have seen it all, but he sure has been through a lot as a Cubs fan, even a stint as a ‘Cub’ playing in a Cubs Fantasy Camp in 2007.

Cool guy, fun interview. Check out his answers here in my first installment of ‘Prosecards from Cubs Nation’ for 2011! If you are interested in being interviewed for an upcoming Prosecard, email me at proseandivy@cubsmvp.com and I’ll send you some questions! Go Cubs Go!

Name: Steve Isaacson

Why are  the Chicago Cubs your favorite baseball team?  Anybody who remembers “why” isn’t old enough! I’ve been a Cub fan since the mid-60’s, when I was 8, and moved not far from Wrigley Field.  Back then, I used to write to the Cubs traveling secretary ER “Salty” Saltwell about becoming a batboy and I would always receive a nice rejection letter on Cubs stationary with a schedule and Cubs stickers in return.  As a teenager I went to 100’s of games in the bleachers (including Kenny Holtzman’s first no-hitter) and then became a vendor for 5 years. I’ve now had season tickets for more than 25 years that I share with friends. I’ve been to spring training a bunch of times (including this year), the 1989 playoffs in SF (10 days before the earthquake) and went to Cubs Fantasy Camp in Mesa in 2007. Being a Cub fan is just who I am and have always been.

Who is your all-time favorite Cub?  It’s always been Ron Santo. In little league I played 3rd base and wore #10. At Cubs Fantasy Camp, 40 years later, I played 3rd base and wore #10. Even though as a player he had a reputation as a hothead, in reality you could never meet a nicer guy.  He also had a reputation for not being a clutch hitter.  I didn’t realize until after he died that it must have been harder for him to hit in late innings because of his diabetes wearing him down.  Realizing that, my respect for him has increased even more.  It’s a shame he wasn’t elected to the Hall of Fame while he was living.  Now, I don’t really care. He is in all Cub fans’ HOF.Who is your favorite Cub on the current roster?  Kerry Wood.  When he came back this year for far less than he could have earned elsewhere, that told me that the players know that being a Cub is special just like being a Cub fan is special.

Nearly 103 years is a very long time to go without a title. What do you say to
fans of other teams who can’t understand why you are a Cubs fan?  I tell them when we finally win, ours will be sweeter and better than anything they experienced when their team won.  Especially Sox fans (White and Boston).

You attended Cubs Fantasy Camp in 2007. What was that like? The more details the
better!  Cubs Fantasy Camp was the best baseball experience I ever had! I have so many stories. My coaches were Ed Lynch and Bobby Denier. The daily clubhouse meetings were led by Joe Pepitone and you could not repeat his stories in mixed company or to children.  It was unbelievable when Rick Sutcliffe came up to me to introduce himself like I didn’t know who he was or when Camen Fanzone would ask if he could please sit down at my table at breakfast (a nicer person I have never met). Phil Donahue played on my team and Eddie Vedder played too and sang at the last night’s banquet.  The best was the last day when the campers played the former players at Ho Ho Kam. It was my daugher’s 20th birthday that day and she was in school in NY. We exchanged voice mail messages and she called me back again as I was walking down the main aisle. Ernie Banks was walking down the aisle by himself the other way towards me. I stopped him to ask him if he could take my cell phone and wish my daughter a happy birthday which he graciously did.  What a great birthday present for her!

What is your favorite part of seeing a Cubs game at Wrigley?  How little it has changed and brings back all the great memories I have from my youth. Still some of the same vendors from 35 years ago!

What is a Cubs/Wrigley Field/MLB pet peeve of yours?  My pet peave at Wrigley is how celebrities get the royal treatment and as a lifetime fan and long time season ticket holder I don’t seem to get favors or much respect. My pet peeve with MLB is how it has refused to seriously deal with steroids and cheaters.

Better having a family own team, or a giant corporation and why?  Makes little difference to me.  We need an owner who is committed to winning whatever the cost like Steinbrenner.  The jury is still out on the Ricketts.

You can play a pick up game against nine of your all-time favorite Cubs plus one
manager. Who would you most like to play against? If I pick a player for each position, then Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg, Starlin Castro, Ron Santo, Billy Williams, Hack Wilson, Andy Pafko, Gabby Hartnett, Fergie Jenkins, Leo Durocher, Something old, something new, something HOF, something my youth, Yeah, lots of others I could include, include  Mark Grace and Greg Maddux. I know I left off Sosa and Dawson. Sorry, I hold grudges.

What is the strangest/coolest piece of Cubs gear/memorabilia you own?  Coolest:  my LE replica of the Ernie Banks statue (a friend’s daughter worked for the artists) and a 1935 flag that flew above Wrigley (the Cubs won 21 straight games in September that year to win the NL pennantand the last time they won 100 games in a season).  The strangest, if I had one, would be a Soriano bobblehands doll.

Do you believe the Cubs are cursed? Why?  I don’t believe they are cursed.  Alou couldn’t have caught that ball. I was there and I saw it happen. It wasn’t Bartman’s fault.

Team that let you down the most (which year)? 1969, 1984, 2003. They all broke my heart.

What are your expectations for the 2011 Cubs?  Win some, lose some. Wrigley will be cold and empty come mid-October.  Hope I’m wrong! What a story that would be!

Carlos Marmol strikes out the side to deliver a Cubs World Series title at
Wrigley. You are the play by play announcer. Write out your call of the final
strike. “STRIKE 3. CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN THE WORLD SERIES!!! IT’S A MIRACLE IN OUR TIME!!! FOR RONNIE AND HARRY AND ALL US LONG SUFFERING CUB FANS, THE MONKEY IS FINALLY OFF OUR BACKS!!! LET’S CELEBRATE!!!”

How would you celebrate a Cubs World Series victory?  Party hard for a long time and then, I joke, not renew my season tickets.  What else would I need to go to games for?