Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Chris Neitzel is a full-time teacher at Oswego High School and clearly a baseball buff. His book Beyond Bartman, Curses & Goats: 104 Reasons why it’s been 104 Years, is fun and interesting catalog on how the Cubs franchise has been a consistent manufacturer of woe. Before giving the club an overview of his book, he gave a little back story on one of the members of Batavia Rotary. When Chris was a student at Oswego High School, his Dean of Students was none other than Dan Hoefler, who he referred to as more of an Ed Rooney from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off… Bueller… Bueller... But on the subject of his book, he explained that it’s not just a story for Cubs fans. In fact, Sox and Cardinals enthusiasts may enjoy reveling in the misery even more. 

It all began when Chris was a regular contributor to the Cubs blog, Bleacher Nation. He started with regular comments and replies, but because of his knack for sports writing, a site administrator began posting his writings to the main page. Almost immediately, his entries were getting over a thousand views, and it was a real big high for him. Chris continued his regular postings when one night it hit him: the Cubs hadn’t won a world series in 104 years, and if he
could come up with 104 reasons why, he would really be onto something. 

Working 3-4 hours a day during his summer break, he wanted to prove that there is no boogeyman (Bartman, the man with the goat, etc.), but logical reasons to explain the championship drought. They were segmented into a few big ideas: near misses (sadly, not a lot of these), poor draft picks, financial blunders, stars they traded away, one hit wonders, and a catchall of “philosophical, historical, and just plain stupid.” Chris gave a very interesting synopsis on when the Cubs lead in walks versus when they lag, the lack of left handed power, and more. His book is truly a prize for any Cubs fan; check it out!