Every Cubs home playoff game, the Tribune will introduce you to fans sitting in Aisle 240, Row 23 of Wrigley Field during what fans hope will be a historic run.
Justin Garrett, 42, Idabel, Okla.
Kristi Zike, 42, Algonquin
How did you get your tickets? Garrett won the NLCS ticket lottery.
How much did it cost? $135.
Do you believe in the curse?
“No, even though I was at Game 6 and 7 in 2003,” Zike said, referencing the notorious series against the Florida Marlins. The Cubs were up 3-0 and just five outs away from the World Series when fan Steve Bartman reached for a foul ball preventing the outfielder from catching it. The Marlins went on to win Game 7 and advance to the World Series.
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Garrett: No.
What is your favorite ballpark tradition? Seventh inning stretch.
Who has been your favorite celebrity to sing during the seventh inning stretch?
Zike said it’s a tie between the “epic (Mike) Ditka fail” in 1998 and former Bear and WWE wrestler Steve McMichael who called out an umpire for a controversial call after leading the crowd in 2001.
Garrett chose Warren G, who sang at a game this season but was booed for not remembering the words.
“He failed miserably,” Garrett said.
“He did not regulate,” Zike joked, referring to his popular song title.
Video board or old scoreboard? Both: Old scoreboard.
Two outs, top of the ninth, Game 7 of the World Series, Cubs down by one with the bases loaded, whom do you want at the plate?
Zike: Javier Baez.
Garrett: Addison Russell.
How did you become a Cubs fan?
Garrett: “Back in Oklahoma watching WGN.”
Zike: “Back in 1997, I moved here from Michigan, and I lived right down the road (from Wrigley). We actually used to sneak into games before there were the ticket scanners. I lived in the neighborhood a really long time and I just love it.”
What is your favorite Cubs memory?
Zike: “I remember walking in through the bleachers, and up and out and just seeing the field and it was early before the game started. … It was amazing. It was nostalgic.”
What would a World Series mean to you?
Garrett: “Hope. With all the stuff going on in the world, it would be a little hope, something people can be happy about.”
Who is your favorite Cub player of all time?
Zike: Pitcher Kerry Wood
Garrett: Second baseman Ryne Sandberg
If you had two free tickets to a Cubs World Series but you had to take a goat or Steve Bartman, which would you choose?
Both say they’d take Bartman.
Zike: “That poor guy. I’d choose him, and I’d apologize every single inning.”
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Garrett: “He did what any fan would do.”