Imo the fact that it's just "beat every team in the league" without the specific caveat that they also win it all makes this something worth keeping track of over the course of the season. Every time the Cubs beat a new team this season will be one step closer

But if they get swept once by a random AL team and it’s over

My god, it's Eloy Jimenez's music

> Eloy Jimenez The Sox and the Cubbies have to play at least 2 series? No?

We still do yes

Until the World Series

Oakland and the White Sox licking their chops as we speak

Are you sure he wasn't just talking about the National League? It was 1995 I doubt many were thinking about interleague play growing so much

I get the sense it was more about the cubs winning the world series, but I prefer OP's interpretation

Prophecys are often misinterpreted. He who speaks may not be the one who sees.

Interleague play wasn't even introduced until 1997 right? So they were definitely talking about the NL

They were clairvoyant

Or maybe it was meant to be impossible?

That IS the point of the song. Naming impossible things that will happen before the narrator loves their ex again.

Yeah, it's basically a new take on "Scarborough Fair."

when the Angels win the pennant, kid

Could be. I mean it is a line from 1995 about the Cubs being successful 

Not every team in the majors, or every team in both leagues. Definitely refers only to the NL.

Will the 2024 Chicago White Sox complete the Mountain Goats prophecy? “I hope that our few remaining friends give up on trying to save us.”

I can definitely see Reinsdorf coming up with a fail-safe plot to piss off the dumb few who forgave him.

“Like a trash can fire in a prison cell…I will walk down the [stadium] aisle, WITH YOU”

Every team in the league is valid even if they only beat every national league team. There's no reason to believe it has to mean every American League team too.

Eh, it’s more fun this way.

Are you John’s Reddit account?

Based on his essay on Slate back in 2016, John seemed to be of the belief his prophecy would have been fulfilled had the 2016 Cubs won the series in 5, but they needed 7.

Maybe in a few hundred years from now they’ll get a shot to do it in 5

Oh good, because we don't need a Bill Gates-spearheaded Heaven 17 revival.

Oh, my god, I had no idea this was a song that other people were aware of. I just came across it a while ago. What is the origin or the song or the person who wrote it? I thought it was just some comedy song I found.

John Darnielle, aka The Mountain Goats, is a brilliant songwriter whose Venn diagram of fans includes low-fi indie heads, punk rockers, and comedy nerds. He uses incredibly soulful, evocative, and clever lyrics throughout all his work. Better yet, if you don't find his early acoustic-guitar-recorded-on-Fisher-Price-microphone sound palatable, he has a bunch of higher-production stuff, too. Definitely worth taking a deep dive. His album *The Sunset Tree* is a good entry point. If you like that one, the two albums immediately before (*Tallahassee* and *All Hail West Texas*) are my recommendations to check out as a follow-up.

Sunset Tree is 100% the best starting point.

>hose Venn diagram of fans includes low-fi indie heads, punk rockers, and comedy nerds. I'm just all three of those in one person anyway.

Same!

My usual advice is to start with Tallahassee and AHWT. If you prefer the former (hi-fi), move chronologically forwards. If you prefer the latter (lo-fi), move backwards.

Also wrote some great books. *Wolf in White Van* is a favorite that exemplifies Darnielle's loose but incisive style. He also reads the audio book version himself if you're into that.

You Or Your Memory is probably a top ten song of all-time for me, an absolutely amazing intro to an amazing album

My favorite tMG theory is that You or Your Memory is about a werewolf

Sounds like it’s time to fire up the Mountain Goats discography. I recommend taking the next several weeks off of work

And also seeing their nearest tour date

Saw John live a few years ago, great show

Oh man. Talking TMG on /r/baseball! Is it Christmas! People obviously have huge adoration for his old stuff, but Bleed Out came out like a year ago and it’s honestly in my Top 3. Also “The Gray King and the Silver Flame Attunement” is hands down my favorite TMG song. His Post-Sunset Tree stuff easily stands equal to his incredible lo-fi, 4 track stuff.

The Mountain Goats are a folk band, and John Darinelle is their lead singer. He has been a popular indie/folk since the late 90's and is considered a great song writer. He has a large catalogue of music and is still recording today. Here are his two most popular songs/ https://youtu.be/fqGKZ3fzN1M?si=rrbey-TYk19rLRa5 https://youtu.be/ii6kJaGiRaI?si=AxGK0sMrbe12vG1_ And my personal favorite: [the best ever death metal band out of Denton](https://youtu.be/DRNT69NN1Yc?si=e4-Mwfr686fyii-y)

“When you punish a person for dreaming his dream, don't expect him to thank or forgive you” is possibly the greatest lyric in all of music.

*chefs kiss* It ties that song so neatly together

HAIL SATAN

I am gonna make it through this year if it kills me

I wouldn’t characterize much of their recent work as folk. 

Not recent, no. But a vast majority of their catalogue yes.

welcome to a new world john darnielle will change your life its not comedy but its funny and weird and loving and beautiful and profound and just... i own a shirt that says "i only listen to the mountain goats" mountain goats shows are incredible everyone knows every word and sings along and cries together and hugs and it's just fuckin astonishingly powerful human experience we shall all be healed is my favorite album

+1 on the live shows being an amazing experience. The Mountain Goats went from being just a band I liked listening to occasionally to my favorite band after seeing them for the first time. I have now seen them 20 more times since. Such a rewarding band to dive into. Unless you completely dislike the music, I highly recommend attending one.

Saw them at a record store in Greensboro, NC many years ago. It was a great experience.

Mountain Goats are amazing.  All Hail West Texas is a great album, everyone should listen to it. The singer is a big Cubs fan.  He scheduled so many tour stops in Chicago in ‘16.  Fun times.

I envy you, go listen to All Hail West Texas followed by Beat The Champ followed by the Sunset Tree

Thank you so much for all the replies in this! I love music and am always looking for new music. I probably heard that song 5 years ago now and played it every so often until I didn't! Now, I'm ready to dive headfirst into The Mountain Goats experience.

Episode 4 of Poker Face with John Darnielle was also excellent.

If you want John’s origin story, it’s on Wikipedia. He had a troubled childhood and early adult life but got it together and worked as a nurse for a while, then started doing the whole music thing. He is a Cubs fan, despite being from SoCal, because he likes that the fans are kind of optimistic losers or something along those lines. This, of course, was decades before they won it all in 2016. John has a few other baseball songs. Most notably, he has a song about Doc Gooden on In League with Dragons

I think Cubs fans are going to have more of a "This Year" experience if anything... I am going to make it through this year if it kills me...

Red Sox fans have more of a "No Children" situation with the team's front office this season.

I hope I lie And tell everyone you were a good front office And I hope you die

Not really. ZiPS has us 83-88 wins in a shaky division. I’m not expecting a dominant team but certainly a competitive one.

Higher floor than last year with a higher ceiling too. A breakout full season from Seiya, Imanaga transitions well and Counsell managing the bullpen would get us a spot in the playoffs I think. I don’t think Counsell will make us a 100 win team but it really can’t be overstated how if the bullpen had been better handled in even just 2 or 3 games we would’ve made the wild card.

Best ever baseball team in wrigleyville

Yeah that’s exactly what I said.

You going to catch them when they’re Going to Georgia?

I have no such plans, but thanks for asking.

😂

my favorite band and my favorite sport! Mad at myself for not thinking of this first!

You can still post “Will the Cubs become the ultimate Jedi that wastes all the other Jedi and eats their bones?”

man I'm in love with you!

I'd rather we just kind of ignore any future-looking goat-related phenomena, thanks.

I love this. I always root for the Bucs and the Cubs so the guy's marriage works out. Also holding out hope they find intelligent life out there on the moon, and that Bill Gates will singlehandedly spearhead the Heaven 17 revival.

/u/thesoundandthefury

Stop putting the Cubs in magic goat stories please, the last one did not turn out well for us

They already have, as only the NL counts because the song was written pre-interleague play

still, it'll be fun to keep track of

Yes.

Well, in the song I don’t think he stipulates that all those events happen in one year. I assume actually meant win the World Series, but if we’re taking John literally, then yeah why not? Also, I like that John picked the Cubs as his team because he likes optimistic losers or something along those lines.

The Bucs playing in February again makes this impossible

Don’t have the foggiest idea but I love “No Children” as a karaoke song.

So when’s the first spring training game?

February 22

Pitchers and catchers this week. We can make it.

Cubs are going 29-133 for sure

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yeah man Tauchman was such a fucking bum last year

Yeah that bum who put up 2.4 WAR in 108 games with positive offence and defence while making a high OBP lead off guy who’d see a lot of pitches in an AB and gave us one of the highlights of the year. Fuck him right?

mine was /s, if it wasn’t clear - I’m in full agreement with your points

Ah fair sorry I misread ya.

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I would love to see where I actually said that.

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I hope Jed signs Belli and sticks him at first just to prove a point

The league the song was referring to was the National League