On our trip out to San Francisco, I started reading Tom Verducci's book on the 2016 Cubs. A couple weeks ago, I saw Dunkirk on vacation. This blog post seeks to combine those two experiences. I promise there will be no spoilers, except that the Cubs won the World Series last year.
Christopher Nolan tells the story of Dunkirk through three different timelines: one week, one day, and one hour. All three timelines are mixed in throughout the movie. It's a very interesting idea and one I'd like the director of the all but guaranteed 2016 Cubs movie to use. Back in November, I polled our audience to see which storyline they'd like to see.
After seeing Dunkirk, I think there's a way to fit three of those four into the same movie.
Game Seven
This is the most obvious of the three and the one I think you start with. I'm imagining an opening scene with the players getting ready in the clubhouse and then taking the field for the National Anthem. And then the flashbacks begin.
Theo's Five Years
The first flashback would be to Theo Epstein's opening press conference with the Cubs in 2011. And then mixed in throughout the game play from Game Seven would be moments and interviews from Theo's five years building the championship team. Verducci writes indepthly about the drafting of Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, and Albert Almora, the trades for Anthony Rizzo and Addison Russell, and the signings of Jon Lester, Ben Zobrist, and Dexter Fowler.
Lifelong Cubs Fan
Lastly, the perfect 2016 Cubs movie would also feature the story of one lifelong Cubs fan. Mixed in throughout the clips from Game Seven and Theo's rebuild should be the story of an older fan's relationship with the Cubs. This would allow the filmmaker to explain the plight of generations of Cubs fans as their longing for a championship went unmet. This gentleman would be a great fit.
Baseball is here! And more importantly, that means the over/under game is back. It seems as though everyone is an expert this time of year. Somehow we convince ourselves that we are better at predicting baseball outcomes than everyone else. Well, AFITB is putting that to the test for the third year in a row. Think you know more about baseball than us? You probably do. But go ahead and prove it anyway.