From the 70's straight thru to the 2000's it was never, ever the intention of the Cubs to put forth a Championship quality team. They intended to be marginally competitive. Dallas Green, Jim Frey, Larry Himes, Ed Lynch, and Andy McPhail knew they were making money regardless of the team success.
Screwed? Only if you were a Cubs fan who expected that the owners/GM's would do their best to create a Champion. Until 2003, I doubt that was ever their intention at all.
2003 might have opened a few eyes. Fans were going to spend a lot more money on Championship gear and tickets if they won something. That team, IMHO, was not a team "designed" to win, it just had happened to win enough to make a run for the playoffs. 2004 was the first time in my lifetime that a GM had attempted to put together a winner, getting Lee, Maddux, Walker, and keeping a budding All-Star in Ramirez.

EDIT.... also picked up Garciaparra then too.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

They have been big spenders for a while now, and they have a boat load of talent. They just havent gotten it done yet.
I totally believe the Cubbies will win it all soon, they gotta do it for my dad (in his 80s)
New ownership will make a difference too

Ownership don't make you bobble a ground ball and ownership ain't responsible for batting under 200 in the playoffs.
Right, NOW they have a canoe load of talent. They also have a lot of guys who out earn their abilities. They're got more than their fair share of Tier II guys making Tier I money.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

By ownership will help I meant Ricketts is a big Cub fan, which will help a lot in his decision making.
As far as that nightmare game that you refered to, that was a total fluke. There is no reason to think something like that will happen again. Those are top quality players.
All they can do is re-load and try again. It will happen

What do you mean it was a fluke...???
1984, The Sandberg error, the durham error, the Alex Gonzalez error, Bartman, the DeRosa and Theriot errors.... man, it happens alomost every playoff appearance some crazy fluke...

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

Are you saying that you believe in the curse? I cant believe you brought Bartman into the discussion. You do make some good points though.

I got thrown in jail after the Garvey homer, and I punched a hole in the wall after the booted double play ball by Gonzalez. ha ha. Ive grown up a little since then
I still never felt like the team hosed me.

I hate Steve Garvey. Man will rot in hell for all eternity.
No, I don't believe in a curse but I believe that it's an easy excuse for a pitiful reaction to pressure.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

This team won't have a winning record. I expect significant (at least 15-day) injuries to Soriano, Bradley, and Ramirez, Ramirez having his bat and position insufficiently replaced by Aaron Miles. Fukudome will continue to decline, Reed Johnson won't match last year's production, and the #5 pitcher will be even worse than Jason Marquis. The bullpen isn't better, and the many miles on Marmol are going to start to show this year. This year feels a lot like 2005 to me: coming off the best team I'd seen in years, I'm told that they'll compete this year, and I want to believe, but no transactions or developments lead me to believe that'll be the case. 77 wins, with St. Louis getting five career years out of shitpiles to take the division.

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[quote="Curious Hairwith St. Louis getting five career years out of shitpiles to take the division.[/quote]

But that's what happens 8 out of 10 years anyway. That's not exactly stepping out on a limb.

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Stupidity irritates the crap outta me... and yes, I irritate myself far too often.

Curious Hair: The Great Predictor
That was pure garbage

Hey, I'd love to be wrong, but I'm feeling another year of Cardinal Magic.

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TOMAHAWK and Elmhurst Steve (championship mountain)will get along famously

just what i was thinking.

it's this kind of empty-headed optomism that makes it easier for the cubs organization to continue to spew banality year after year. hell, when your #1 commodity is "hope", then everything else is gravy.

Hope is having a good year though...Hope got elected president

Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.

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Hope is the new field turf.

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I agree with everything you said in bold. But they'll still win the division despite these things because lower market teams will be looking to move PR all season.

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Ба́бушка гада́ла, да на́двое сказа́ла—то ли до́ждик, то ли снег, то ли бу́дет, то ли нет.

Why are some of you so angry? Hey its just baseball

You should start ending your posts with a childish rhyming line predicting cubs success for the upcoming season. If you're having trouble coming up with something I can direct you to someone that can help.

You want me to go away? I thought this place was for Cub fans.
Im always pumped to start a new season

gettin there

not exactly

congrats


Curb your enthusiasm please

What's this garbage, anyway? It's not like the Cubs have been hamstrung by 101 years of Sox fan ownership, and this is just the shot in the arm we need. Money will help a lot in his decision-making. Bill Wirtz loved the Blackhawks too, you know.

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we need guys like this on the board. Elmhurst Steve needs a friend, for starters. I am in favor of him continuing on here.

But no, this isn't really a Cubs board. It is a Cubs forum. And the Cubs have just as good a chance as anyone else to win a WS. Nobody in the entire earth predicted the Sox would win in '05. So nobody should predict the Cubs can't win it in '09...

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Ба́бушка гада́ла, да на́двое сказа́ла—то ли до́ждик, то ли снег, то ли бу́дет, то ли нет.