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The Curse: Cubs Win! Cubs Win! Or Do They?
Could this finally be the Cubs' season? The team is in first place and playing well as the All-Star break approaches.
As every die-hard Cubs fan knows, however, the team's success cannot come easily. Never, however, could they imagine the hurdles this club would face in its attempt to reach the World Series for the first time since 1945. No club in baseball history has ever had to overcome the challenges that suddenly are thrust upon these Cubs.
The Cubs Win! Cubs Win! ... Or Do They? by former major league player Andy Van Slyke and veteran baseball author Rob Rains takes readers along for this thrilling fictional journey that involves much more drama and action than just winning and losing games on the field.
Written with the inside baseball knowledge that only someone who has spent a lifetime working in the sport can provide, the book uses a fictional backdrop to revisit many of the Cubs' failed pennant pursuits of the past - the Curse of the Billy Goat; the late season collapse in 1969; watching the ball squirt through Leon Durham's legs in the 1984 playoffs, and how Steve Bartman got in the way of the 2003 pennant-clinching moment.
More than just a baseball novel, this is a story about the bond that exists between fathers and sons, the bond that exists between a team and its fans, and the dangers of the lust for power, glory, and money.
As every die-hard Cubs fan knows, however, the team's success cannot come easily. Never, however, could they imagine the hurdles this club would face in its attempt to reach the World Series for the first time since 1945. No club in baseball history has ever had to overcome the challenges that suddenly are thrust upon these Cubs.
The Cubs Win! Cubs Win! ... Or Do They? by former major league player Andy Van Slyke and veteran baseball author Rob Rains takes readers along for this thrilling fictional journey that involves much more drama and action than just winning and losing games on the field.
Written with the inside baseball knowledge that only someone who has spent a lifetime working in the sport can provide, the book uses a fictional backdrop to revisit many of the Cubs' failed pennant pursuits of the past - the Curse of the Billy Goat; the late season collapse in 1969; watching the ball squirt through Leon Durham's legs in the 1984 playoffs, and how Steve Bartman got in the way of the 2003 pennant-clinching moment.
More than just a baseball novel, this is a story about the bond that exists between fathers and sons, the bond that exists between a team and its fans, and the dangers of the lust for power, glory, and money.
320 pages, Paperback
First published July 15, 2010
About the author
Andy Van Slyke
2 books1 followerAndrew James Van Slyke is an American retired Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Va...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Va...
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 6, 2010
The Curse by Andy Van Slyke and Rob Rains.
You don't need to be a Cubs fan or even a baseball fan to enjoy this mystery.
You get a sense early on that Cubs owner Tony Vitello might have something to hide. Apparently his first wife went for a late night swim off of their yacht and drowned. The husband was questioned and investigated but never indited.
But unanswered questions or no, this might be the Cubs season, they were flying high and leading their division by five games, next stop Los Angeles and a series with the Dodgers.
The players had boarded the plane at O'Hare and were about to settle into their seats when a black limousine pulled up to the plane. Owner Tony Vitello got out of the limo and boarded the plane. Almost immediately the doors were closed and the 737 was secured to leave the ramp.
The plane took off and climbed to a crusing altitude of 35,000 feet. About an hour into the flight a boost pump warning light flashed on the panel in front of the copilot. The pilots quickly went through their check list as the trouble went from bad to worse. The engines were apparently starving for fuel. The copilot called Denver when it was determined that they had to get the plane on the ground. Cheyenne was nearest and they turned toward the airport with Denver's blessings.
The crew was as good as they come but when both engines quit all thy could do was try and manhandle the heavy glider and direct it to a Cheyenne runway. They set a glide path that would take them straight to the long runway. Ground crews prepared emergency equipment and foamed the landing surface.
The plane struck the ground about a hundred and fifty yards short of the runway, the landing gear collapsed and try as they may the pilots could not maintain control. The plane broke apart and caught on fire.
There were only eight survivors, Cubs owner Tony Vitello was among the living, but died the following day.
Back in Chicago everyone was in shock. Tony's son T.J. Vitello had not been groomed to take over the team, but there was no choice, and he took over by default. The tragedy hovered over the whole game of baseball, but it was decided that in the best interest of baseball the Cubs should not forfeit the season. They would recruit a team from the other franchises. And in spite of adversity, a memorial was held, a new manager, Mike Callan and coaches were hired. Mike Callan kept his new recruits busy and gradually the players grabbed onto his work ethics and began to work as a team.
While the NTSB investigators tried to put the aircraft pieces together the Chicago police were investigating the murder of the man that refueled the jet at O'Hare.
At that same time the new Cubs owner T.J. Vitello was receiving strange phone calls and information about his father's large cash withdrawals from his bank, and rumors that his father had planned to sell the team. But Why?
This fast paced novel takes us through problems of an unheard of move in mid-season with all new players expected to work as a team. It was an uphill battle, partly because of the tragic accident and another with folklore coming into the locker room regarding a Chicago Cubs curse that some took as real and others imagined.
The team finally hit it's stride as did authors Van Slyke and Rains as they take us through legend, lore, a billy goat curse and investigations into a three pronged mystery. There are enough twists and turns to keep you mystery buffs guessing right through to the last page.
It's a good fast paced read and I recommend it.
Tom Barnes author of Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone.
You don't need to be a Cubs fan or even a baseball fan to enjoy this mystery.
You get a sense early on that Cubs owner Tony Vitello might have something to hide. Apparently his first wife went for a late night swim off of their yacht and drowned. The husband was questioned and investigated but never indited.
But unanswered questions or no, this might be the Cubs season, they were flying high and leading their division by five games, next stop Los Angeles and a series with the Dodgers.
The players had boarded the plane at O'Hare and were about to settle into their seats when a black limousine pulled up to the plane. Owner Tony Vitello got out of the limo and boarded the plane. Almost immediately the doors were closed and the 737 was secured to leave the ramp.
The plane took off and climbed to a crusing altitude of 35,000 feet. About an hour into the flight a boost pump warning light flashed on the panel in front of the copilot. The pilots quickly went through their check list as the trouble went from bad to worse. The engines were apparently starving for fuel. The copilot called Denver when it was determined that they had to get the plane on the ground. Cheyenne was nearest and they turned toward the airport with Denver's blessings.
The crew was as good as they come but when both engines quit all thy could do was try and manhandle the heavy glider and direct it to a Cheyenne runway. They set a glide path that would take them straight to the long runway. Ground crews prepared emergency equipment and foamed the landing surface.
The plane struck the ground about a hundred and fifty yards short of the runway, the landing gear collapsed and try as they may the pilots could not maintain control. The plane broke apart and caught on fire.
There were only eight survivors, Cubs owner Tony Vitello was among the living, but died the following day.
Back in Chicago everyone was in shock. Tony's son T.J. Vitello had not been groomed to take over the team, but there was no choice, and he took over by default. The tragedy hovered over the whole game of baseball, but it was decided that in the best interest of baseball the Cubs should not forfeit the season. They would recruit a team from the other franchises. And in spite of adversity, a memorial was held, a new manager, Mike Callan and coaches were hired. Mike Callan kept his new recruits busy and gradually the players grabbed onto his work ethics and began to work as a team.
While the NTSB investigators tried to put the aircraft pieces together the Chicago police were investigating the murder of the man that refueled the jet at O'Hare.
At that same time the new Cubs owner T.J. Vitello was receiving strange phone calls and information about his father's large cash withdrawals from his bank, and rumors that his father had planned to sell the team. But Why?
This fast paced novel takes us through problems of an unheard of move in mid-season with all new players expected to work as a team. It was an uphill battle, partly because of the tragic accident and another with folklore coming into the locker room regarding a Chicago Cubs curse that some took as real and others imagined.
The team finally hit it's stride as did authors Van Slyke and Rains as they take us through legend, lore, a billy goat curse and investigations into a three pronged mystery. There are enough twists and turns to keep you mystery buffs guessing right through to the last page.
It's a good fast paced read and I recommend it.
Tom Barnes author of Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone.
Displaying 1 of 1 review