Oh, thank God. Here we were thinking that the Cubs’ collapse in the playoffs in three straight games against the Dodgers earlier this month was a result of an inability to execute on offense and field ground balls. Turns out it has more to do with a tattoo parlor in Tennessee and a mildly humorous joke.
It all started when Jimmy Burroughs made the decision to get a tattoo of an adolescent blue bear walking in front of a giant red letter ‘C’ — some may call it the “Cubs logo.” But Jimmy got more than he bargained for. Jimmy got way more than he bargained for. In fact, Jimmy was so displeased with what he bargained for that Jimmy got a refund of the $190 he dropped on the tattoo in the first place.Turns out while Gatlinburg, Tenn. tattoo artist Deke Rivers was making Jimmy’s tattoo, he thought it would be funny to etch the words “Go Cards” into the logo before filling it in. As a joke. Because, as we all know, tattoos are not something permanent that go on the body, but rather a venue — a medium, if you will — by which to bring the world a bit of joy through the gift of humor.Rivers eventually filled in the logo and covered up the hilarious “Go Cards” joke. But the “Go Cards” lettering can still be seen.Stltoday.com has the entire story along with a photo of the joke that ended the Cubs’ World Series hopes and dreams.Jimmy told Stltoday.com, “I pretty much blame the tattoo for the Cubs losing.”So right, Jimmy. So right.And again — the Cubs’ collapse had nothing to do with their inability to produce runs on offense or their inability to effectively catch ground balls with their gloves.Cubdom can breathe that collective sigh of relief now.