2064.13 - The Cartwright Cup

[R.Umali]

What did Will say? "Would you be mad if I go to Game 1 of the Cartwright? Yael's invited me to sit behind the dugout." Decorah, who was seeing signs everywhere these days, responded in what little retro-tech speak she knew: "Dock it." To this, Will gave her an appreciable grin and disappeared into his room.

The night of Game 1, October 27, she put on her Rocky Wattson jersey - the same one she wore years ago when Wattson was hitting home runs for the team - and went a few blocks down to The Polish Falcon Bowl, a quintessential dive bar with 4 lanes in the basement, salt and vinegar chips for a buck, and McAdams on tap.

She came in before the ceremony and damn if she didn't spot Will and his friend Yael when the broadcast went to wide. Yup, there they were behind the home team dugout. 42 degrees outside and the kids are wearing tee-shirts. But it was a day game and the day was bright. She took a blurry shot of the TV and sent it to her nephew. "Nice seats."

A second later, he replied: "It checks."

The bartender slid a McAdams to her without asking. She would've appreciated the ask but she nodded to herself. "Nothing like day drinking."

The bar became crowded: not with the usual old men around the old bar, but with a rather diverse mix of people that more reflected Ravenswood, and perhaps, she thought, Black Sox fandom. Nurses with badge lanyards, a dad in paint-splattered jeans, two chess guys hunched over a travel board, a trio of young women sharing nachos like they’re rare metal. There were a couple of agnostics who left, peeved that the Black Sox success should result in their sanctuary being overcome by, gasp, sports fans.

Hines looked ready and she prayed that the regular season Hines would show up. In 2 starts against the Sluggers, Hines only managed 7.1 IP, giving up 10 hits and 8 ER. Regular season Hines sported a 2.97 ERA and a league-leading 1.02 WHIP over 34 starts.

Hines opened clean: Chrissy Tingle struck out swinging, Alfonso Gonzales popped up, Carter Cramer whiffed. This was the real Nasty, and Hines strode off the mound stone-faced.

And while he would wobble, walking 2 in the 6th, he would leave the game having shut out the Bluebirds. Carlos Moya, pushed out of the rotation for the playoffs, preserved the shutout and Hines' first ever playoff win. Hines was 31 years old.

The hero for the offense? Who else but Timofei Gadomsky. He doubled off David Molina in the 2nd, scoring Dave Matthes, himself having doubled to lead off the inning. Full Pack doubled again in the 4th, scoring Angel De La Cruz to make it 4-0.

It was a great day, one that Chicago had not seen in over a decade, since 2048 when Rocky Wattson almost had that 30/30 season. My goodness, Decorah thought, Will was a toddler then living in Tinley Park with his mom and that asshole of a dad. She smiled and shook her head. In the loud bar, Brooks Eliot just grounded out to end the game, Decorah raised her near empty glass and thought of her sister. The person sitting next to her clinked her glass and drunkenly said, "Here's to the Black Sox! We're going to win it this year!!!"
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The Black Sox would not win it this year.

They would lose the next two games, shut out in G2 by Eric Stevens and in G3 Bin-ying Yen. The Hines / Molina rematch was the complete opposite, and then some. This time the Bluebirds would shut out the Black Sox. The Sox would manage a win, the Tony Radtke start in G4 in Nashville, but would lose it in G6, when Brooks Eliot went 2-for-2 with 2 BB, 3 RBI, and 2 runs.

The Beef said. "Let's keep knocking. The door's thin. Tip your cap to Nashville but keep the receipt for the parade. It hurts because it's close."