The Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox proved on Friday that some things are more important than baseball with a touching gesture for Sox pitcher Danny Farquhar.
It’s no secret that Chicago’s two major league clubs, the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox, are typically persona non grata as far as the other is concerned.
But on Friday, the Cubs proved that as much as these two teams may rag on each other and vie for the overall affections of the greater Chicago area, when it comes to what’s important, they’ve got each other’s backs.
White Sox pitcher Danny Farquhar left the mound clearly in pain during a White Sox game in mid-April and, after he was admitted to the hospital, it was revealed he had suffered a brain aneurysm, leading to a brain bleed.
Farquhar has been recovering since the incident and has received an outpouring of support from the White Sox fan base and community. On Friday, his cross-town rivals, the Cubs, added their voice of support with a message on the Jumbotron as the two teams kicked off the first of their three-game City Series:
Some things transcend baseball, as the Cubs so classily showed on Friday.
Of course, the Cubs also proved that you can be kind to your opponent while still being ruthless — when we last checked, at the top of the eighth, they were beating the White Sox 11-2.
It was Willson Contreras bobblehead day at Wrigley Field on Friday, and clearly, that was an auspicious choice. Contreras had two home runs, including a first-inning grand slam, in addition to driving in a career-high seven runs to help the Cubs secure their extremely, uh, secure lead.
In so doing, Contrares became the first catcher with at least four extra-base hits in a game since Victor Martinez on June 1, 2010, per Ryan Spaeder.
Never change, Chicago sports.