MLB Announced the 2016 Postseason schedule will start Oct. 4, something Chicago Cubs fans can’t wait to begin.  600 ESPN will carry lots of post-season Baseball.  Thanks to Southern migration and Ft. Bliss, El Paso has plenty of transplanted Chicagoans, many of which stake the claim of die-hard Cubs fan.

No surprise, the Cubs are one of the most beloved franchises in all sports, with Cubs fans nationw…no, WORLDWIDE.  It’s not uncommon to hear someone say, “I’m the BIGGEST Cubs fan.”  For those who wish to accurately boast such, here are some truths you must unquestionably agree with as the definitive criteria that separates the diehard from the poser.

You can’t call yourself the biggest Cubs fan if…you think the curse of the Billy Goat is the reason they haven’t been to the World Series since 1945.  Sure there have been some close calls where divine intervention seemed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.  Truth is most years between 1946 and today is that the team just wasn’t that good.  As for those few moments of fleeting glory, well…they just weren’t good enough (Exhibit A: the collapse of 1969).

You can’t call yourself the biggest Cubs fan if…you think Bartman is the reason the Cubs didn’t go to the World Series in 2003.  Sure on Oct. 14, 2003 Steve screwed up and most likely blew Moises Alou’s chance of wrangling in the second out of the 8th inning leaving only 4 more for their first National League pennant since 1945.  Truth is Mark Prior and Kyle Farnsworth just didn’t get the job done giving up 8 runs to the Florida Marlins, with a key error by shortstop Alex Gonzalez.   From 5 outs to go to 5 runs down, that’s some dark cosmic forces…or a big crumble under big pressure.

You can’t call yourself the biggest Cubs fan if…you can’t tell the world the reason they are the most beloved team today is because of Harry Caray, aided by cable television superstation WGN.

You can’t call yourself the biggest Cubs fan if…you don’t know the origin of the Cubs name, or the 3 most frequently used nicknames prior.

You can’t call yourself the biggest Cubs fan if…you don’t believe THIS is the year, but you’ll be ok if it’s not.  If Championships were what being a Cubs fan was all about there would be no fans.  No one was even alive the last time they won one (1908).  Will 2016 be the year?  Does it really matter, for the diehard they’ll still be your Cubs.

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