Indians' Kipnis 'teared up' when Cubs won pennant
There will be no conflict for Jason Kipnis once he steps on the field for Game 1 of the World Series Tuesday night. He's a member of the Cleveland Indians, and he wants to bring a ring to "The Land" for the first time in 68 years.
But at some point in the next week, the second baseman - who grew up a Cubs fan in the Chicago suburbs - might stop for just a moment and wonder if he's doing the right thing.
All that excitement from winning the AL pennant with the Indians was momentarily put on hold Saturday night when Kipnis watched his childhood team do the unthinkable, advancing to the World Series for the first time since 1945 - where, naturally, they'll face Kipnis and his Indians.
"I even teared up because I didn't know how to handle it," Kipnis told reporters, according to Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com. "I didn't know what to think.
"The 10-year-old boy in me is saying, 'Why does it have to be the Cubs?'"
When he was growing up in Northbrook, Ill., Kipnis truly bled Cubbie blue. A regular visitor to Wrigley Field, he was in the stands for Game 3 of the 2003 NLDS to watch Mark Prior beat Greg Maddux 3-1.
He also lived just down the street from another notable Cubs supporter named Steve Bartman, and watched the aftermath in front of his neighbor's house from his own window.
"I remember seeing cops lined outside of his house for the next month or two, just blocking it," Kipnis said. "Totally undeserving. Even as a sophomore in high school, I could see that everyone else was going for the ball, and everyone still does that. They needed a scapegoat, and they found one."
Kipnis' friends and family members back home remain Cubs fans who danced with joy when the Indians clinched, and again Saturday when the Cubs won. Fortunately for the 29-year-old, his Cubs-loving Chicago crew have decided to root for Cleveland this year, without any prompting.
"My brothers and sister are really big Cubs fans. With that being said, even unprovoked, I've had all of them and a bunch of my friends text me saying, 'It's not even an option. We're Tribe all the way,'" he said. "It's meant a lot.
"Without me having to say anything, they reaffirmed that, 'Hey, we're on the Indians' side. The curse can wait one more year.'"
Another part of the story that's getting Kipnis excited for Friday - when the series shifts to his sweet home of Chicago - is the chance to live out a moment he undoubtedly acted out thousands of times in his backyard - never thinking it could become a reality.
"I always dreamed of playing in the World Series at Wrigley Field, full count, two outs. I always thought it was going to be the bottom of the ninth, but it's the top of the ninth now."