Agony & Ivy

Greatest Moments, No. 4: The Sandberg Game

The Cubs' season was at a crossroads when the St. Louis Cardinals visited Wrigley Field for a three-game series, June 22-24, 1984.

Greatest Moments: No. 9, Scratching a 39-Year Itch

(Editor's Note: Twenty-second in a series recalling the 30 greatest moments in Cubs history.)

When a Jody Davis sacrifice fly in the ninth inning finished off a 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field on Aug. 1, 1984, the Cubs moved into first place to stay. But even by the time the North Siders had fattened their NL East lead to seven games over the second-place New York Mets in early September, I still was waiting for bad things to happen.

13 Moments to Forget

You don't put together a 103-year championship drought without a few infamous and embarrassing moments. Cubs history is full of head-scratching and gut-wrenching moments. I believe these are the 13 worst:

1984: Trout Pushes Padres to Brink

While I was sitting in my freshman year world history class on the morning of Oct. 3, 1984 - while my teacher, Mr. Kelly, discussed the Hammurabi Code - my mind far too easily wandered from the subject matter ("an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth") to how I would be spending my afternoon.

1984: A Memorable Night in Pittsburgh

When a Jody Davis sacrifice fly in the ninth inning finished off a 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field on Aug. 1, 1984, the Cubs moved into first place to stay. But even by the time the North Siders had fattened their NL East lead to seven games over the second-place New York Mets in early September, I still was waiting for bad things to happen.

Aisle 233, Row 9, Seat 10

"Sucker," is not stamped on my forehead, but Tuesday night I attended the first of three games I have tickets for at Wrigley Field this week.

Fly It High For Mr. Cub

I must've heard it a million times. Every time the name of Ernie Banks is mentioned in a conversation or during a broadcast, my grandfather will describe the typical Banks home run.

Memories of 8-8-88

The 1984 Cubs ushered in the "yuppie era" at Wrigley Field. Seemingly overnight, the ballpark transformed from a slowly decaying, outdated, quirky facility to a 40,000-seat singles bar, a tourist attraction, and a baseball shrine. Harry Caray went from being an old, washed-up White Sox announcer to the hip grandfatherly Cub Fan, Bud Man. The bars that surrounded the park changed from quaint family-owned dives with juke boxes to corporate-owned establishments with dee jays. In the old days, the surrounding rooftops were usually empty and only occasionally would someone be seen watching the game from an across-the-street perch. After Ryno, Jody, The Sarge, and The Penguin, the rooftops became Big Business.