George Will said in a recent column: “Ethicists say losing builds character. Cubs fans, who are mostly scar tissue, say they already have quite enough character, thank you.”

The wait is over! The Chicago Cubs are in the World Series, their first appearance since 1945 – a 71 year stretch. Only 9 percent of Americans are old enough to have experienced a Cubs World Series appearance.

Over the decades, the Cubs had become the lovable losers of Major League Baseball. Media exposure with the advent of cable TV Superstations like WGN and WTBS in the 1980s brought in many new fans on the national level for the Cubs and the Atlanta Braves. The Braves rocked in the 1990’s. Maybe it’s the Cubs’ turn to be a decade-long powerhouse in the National League. George Will won’t mind.

Relive past series and check out our books and DVDs on the long history of the Cubs, including George Will’s A Nice Little Place on the North Side: Wrigley Field at One Hundred:

Chronicling a century of highs and lows at Wrigley Field, George Will explores the home of the hapless Chicago Cubs in relation to his upbringing, the growth of Chicago, the history of baseball, and the nature of sports fandom. 2014

Stop by the library’s Sports Neighborhood in the west wing and browse all things sports.

Matt Pettit

Matt is a Public Service Specialist for the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library. His areas of responsibility include outreach library services to nursing homes, senior, retirement and congregate living centers; service to homebound library users; the Kansas Talking Books service; Book Group in a Bag program and the history and sports neighborhoods of the library’s nonfiction collection.