Hope, excitement, anxiety and joy. Throw in a bit of nausea and you’ll get how fans in Cleveland and Chicago are feeling as they wait for the Cubs and Indians to face off Wednesday night in Game 7 of the World Series.
Lifelong Indians fan Randy Johnson says he’ll be at Cleveland’s Progressive Field the minute the gates open. The Denver IT manager flew in just to see the Series’ last two games. He was excited to be sitting behind home plate for Game 6 and even more excited to see actor and Cubs superfan Bill Murray a few seats away.
Now, as you might imagine, Johnson can barely contain himself.
“I’m going to have a heart attack,” he wrote on Instagram. “This is like the biggest game in baseball history. I can’t even.”
Baseball writer Molly Knight had some advice for fans in Johnson’s boat.
“Hello Cleveland and Chicago: stay hydrated today and avoid spicy and fatty foods that can mess up your stomach. Smoothies help w/nerves,” she tweeted, adding, “Game 7s can burn holes through stomachs.”
Another Instagrammer, greenrunsdeep, doesn’t have prime seats — or any seats for that matter — but he will have a great story. The Celtics fan is in Cleveland to watch his team play the NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday and says he brought some extra money for Game 7 tickets.
He ended up spending $20 on a good parking space instead. When he stands on the trunk of his rental car, he said he can peer over the outfield wall and into the ballpark. Luckily, he bought the rental car insurance.
That wasn’t the only bold decision in Cleveland this week. A brave Cubs fan managed to climb a flagpole at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and fly the “W” flag that’s become a Cubs trademark.
MLB Indians writer Jordan Bastian says fans were gathering outside the stadium a full five hours before the first pitch. He shared a picture of a kid there who was apparently playing hooky.
He was hard at work making signs, including one that said “I don’t always skip school, but when I do ‘I’ beat the Cubs.” At least he can tell his teachers he was working on his penmanship.
In Chicago, fans have been lining up at Wrigleyville bars for hours — they clearly got the memo about hydration.
At least they’ll have an excuse. The Cubs tweeted out an official letter excusing fans from work, school and any other responsibilities that may be disrupted by Game 7 festivities.
The note probably won’t be accepted by Cleveland-area schools, unfortunately. So that kid outside the stadium is on his own.
