Nice try, Mr. A
The St. Louis Cardinals have a great deal to answer for- and not the least is having turned an orthodox Lutheran anteater to a blatant theology of glory.
Leaving aside the patent theological error of equating divine favor with success, the Aardvark's anti- Cub argument falls short even in the realm of earthly logic. Even if the two were equivalent, rarely does "the team with the best artillery" win the World Series. Since the invention of that abomination, the Wild Card, we have frequently seen World Series won by teams whose artillery wasn't even good enough to win the most valid test of such things, their own regular season divisional championship. Rarely, indeed, do the teams with the best regular season records meet in the Fall Classic, and the power of one's artillery rarely determines success or failure. What counts is getting hot at the right moment-as his Cardinals discovered to their dismay last Fall.
Were I seeking sympathy, as the Aardvark suggests, I would surely cite the ultimate refutation of his hypothesis: 1969. But I won't. No "hairshirt of humility" here, false or otherwise. A team with "popguns" like Mark Prior, Kerry Wood, Carlos Zambrano, Nomar Garciaparra, Aramis Ramirez, and Derrek Lee has no need to be humble, especially with what is generally recognized as one of the better farm systems in the game- and a budget sufficient not only to re-sign their stars (unlike some teams), but to go shopping in the off-season. Fresh guns are being brought forward!
Nor does excessive humility become fans of the team of Hack Wilson and Gabby Hartnett and Joe Tinker and Frank Chance and Johnny Evers and Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown and Kiki Cuyler and Billy Williams and Ernie Banks and Ryne Sandberg and Fergie Jenkins and Ron Santo and... well, you get the idea.
No, we need merely bide our time, knowing that cash-strapped and farm-depleted rivals cannot turn bargain- basement utility infielders into instant All-Stars forever- and that as we have seen with Scott Rolen, despite the evidence of the past two seasons, it is not only Cub stars who get injured. The day when we will once again have the biggest guns is not far off.
It would be tempting to say, "Enjoy your success while you can, Mr. A. We're coming for you next year." But of course, that would be presumptuous- as presumptuous as those who presently have the biggest guns expecting that state of affairs to last forever, or even to translate into success come October.
And as to which really is God's favorite team... well, I still think the Lutheran test is a better one.
Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders tun.
Leaving aside the patent theological error of equating divine favor with success, the Aardvark's anti- Cub argument falls short even in the realm of earthly logic. Even if the two were equivalent, rarely does "the team with the best artillery" win the World Series. Since the invention of that abomination, the Wild Card, we have frequently seen World Series won by teams whose artillery wasn't even good enough to win the most valid test of such things, their own regular season divisional championship. Rarely, indeed, do the teams with the best regular season records meet in the Fall Classic, and the power of one's artillery rarely determines success or failure. What counts is getting hot at the right moment-as his Cardinals discovered to their dismay last Fall.
Were I seeking sympathy, as the Aardvark suggests, I would surely cite the ultimate refutation of his hypothesis: 1969. But I won't. No "hairshirt of humility" here, false or otherwise. A team with "popguns" like Mark Prior, Kerry Wood, Carlos Zambrano, Nomar Garciaparra, Aramis Ramirez, and Derrek Lee has no need to be humble, especially with what is generally recognized as one of the better farm systems in the game- and a budget sufficient not only to re-sign their stars (unlike some teams), but to go shopping in the off-season. Fresh guns are being brought forward!
Nor does excessive humility become fans of the team of Hack Wilson and Gabby Hartnett and Joe Tinker and Frank Chance and Johnny Evers and Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown and Kiki Cuyler and Billy Williams and Ernie Banks and Ryne Sandberg and Fergie Jenkins and Ron Santo and... well, you get the idea.
No, we need merely bide our time, knowing that cash-strapped and farm-depleted rivals cannot turn bargain- basement utility infielders into instant All-Stars forever- and that as we have seen with Scott Rolen, despite the evidence of the past two seasons, it is not only Cub stars who get injured. The day when we will once again have the biggest guns is not far off.
It would be tempting to say, "Enjoy your success while you can, Mr. A. We're coming for you next year." But of course, that would be presumptuous- as presumptuous as those who presently have the biggest guns expecting that state of affairs to last forever, or even to translate into success come October.
And as to which really is God's favorite team... well, I still think the Lutheran test is a better one.
Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders tun.
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