Chicago Cubs fans understand the value of patience. You don’t go through the longest championship drought in North American sports history—108 seasons from 1908 to 2016—without knowing how to deal with disappointment.
Despite another disappointing season in which the Cubs went 83-79 and missed the playoffs for the fourth time in a row, Chicago had the sixth-highest average home attendance in the MLB this season, at 35,949.
To express his gratitude to Cubs fans, left fielder Ian Happ tossed a ball wrapped in $100 bills into the left seats on Sunday. The gesture came during the Cincinnati Reds’ final game of the season, a 3-0 whitewash over Chicago.
Happ’s note on the ball read: “Thanks for your support during the season! “Beers on me for the left field crew!”
The moment was uploaded on the Bleacher Bums Instagram page, which describes itself as a fan page for the left-field bleachers at Wrigley Field, with the caption, “(Ian Happ) just tossed this ball to us with some $$ to buy our section some drinks for the last game of the year! What a dude! Cheers, Ian!”
Happ has been with the Cubs since 2017 and has been eager to communicate his enthusiasm for the fans during his time in the Windy City. Last year, the two-time Gold Glove winner tossed a ball wrapped in cash to Cubs fan “Bleacher Jeff.”
The left fielder was 0-4 with a walk in Sunday’s game against Cincinnati. Caleb Kilian and Hunter Greene’s dominant starts on the mound forced extra innings at Wrigley Field, where the score remained locked at zero.
Elly De La Cruz’s two-run triple in the top of the tenth gave the Reds their first run, and Tyler Stephenson singled him home for a 3-0 advantage.
De La Cruz also stole two bases in the game, giving him an MLB-high 67 for the season.
“The seasons are sacrosanct. “You don’t take them for granted,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said later, according to MLB.com. “I told the team, ‘We’re fortunate and blessed to get opportunities, to wear the uniform.'” So, if you don’t achieve all of your goals, it leaves a bad taste in your mouth.
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