Fickle Cubs Fans

One thing that I can never understand about some Cubs fans is how their moods swing from year to year. If your a rookie or young player they need to play good now, or else your a worthless bum. Yet if your veteran and have always been a lousy player you get a free pass. Hell if you just show up once a month and hit a game winning hit you end up being their favorite player.

I think I said it last year. If Kerry Wood continues to only win 14 games a year while making 10+ million a year eventually he will be booed by Cubs fans also. 1) Because he is a product of our farm system. 2) because he never lived up to his billing of being a 20 game winner. A guy like Sosa will never be booed. 1)Because he isnt a product of our farm system. 2)He has already exceeded his expecations of a ball player to Cubs fans.

Patterson had a nice season last year and was endeared by the fans. What those fans also fail to realize is that without Pattersons 1st half contribution we wouldnt have the players we have right now. We wouldnt have Am-ram or Derek Lee or Latroy Hawkins. Because we wouldnt of been close enough in the standings to warrant making any big trades, much less even make the playoffs if Patterson wasnt hitting. But because of the injury he never lived up to the hype Cubs fans put around him, so he gets no free pass. In fact he probably doomed himself from remaining a Cubs player because of that season. He hit .300 with 55 RBI in half a season. So anything less than .300 BA and 100 RBI means he is worthless and deserves to be sent to the minors or traded.

Prospects have such a difficult time living up to the hype that Cubs fans put around them sometimes. And 99% of the time it is unrealistic expectations. You need to hit now, you need to pitch well now. If your struggling in the majors you need to be traded or sent back to the minors, RIGHT NOW! They want it all right this minute, no waiting for the player to develop into a star. It is now now now! Gimme Gimme Gimme!

I have always believed in the philosophy that good things come to those that wait. And that philosophy works perfectly for baseball. Those teams that are willing to ride out the bad times of highly talented players end up getting rewarded down the road. The Florida Marlins would of never won the World Series if they gave up on Derek Lee and Luis Castillo after they were batting a combine .220 in their first couple seasons.

If we are not going to get Carlos Beltran then we dont need to trade or send Patterson to the minors. In the end you have to have a cut off point where you notice the player isnt improving and it is time to give up on him. And I have not seen one instance where Patterson is not improving.