Suburban Cubs fans flock to the Friendly Confines

In the beginning, the Ricketts family declares the Cubs are starting over with "Year One."

And it is good - a feel-good, sunshine-soaked 9-5 Opening Day victory at Wrigley Field for the Chicago Cubs and their long-suffering fans.

Basking in the left-centerfield bleachers for this victory, the Hruby family has too many memories of Opening Days past to think of this as Year One.

"No. I'm happy for the Ricketts family and excited for them, but this isn't Year One," says Sean Hruby, 37, a Geneva contract painter who hasn't missed spending an Opening Day at Wrigley with his mom, Debra Hruby of Wheaton, since he was in grade school.

"This is our 26th year," says Debra Hruby, who managed to play along with the "Year One" theme of the new Cubs owners by making this the first year that three generations of Hrubys could enjoy Opening Day together. In addition to Hruby, her husband, Mike, and their son Sean, 5-year-old grandson Cal Hruby (Sean's son) completes the generational triple play.

Cal even gets his first Opening Day ball, compliments of Cubs pitcher John Grabow during batting practice.

"He threw it to someone else, and (that person) gave it to me," Cal says.

Kevin Riemer, 14, a family friend of the Hrubys, has outgrown the "this ball is for the little kid" stage of his bleacher life. But he has his memories of days when he was that kid.

"Soriano (Cubs left-fielder Alfonso Soriano) threw a ball to me," Kevin recalls. "Well, he tried, but he missed, and the guy who caught it gave it to me."

Obviously an experienced Cubs fan, Kevin, just three fans away from catching an Aramis Ramirez homer during the game, is playing hooky from Edison Middle School in Wheaton.

"I didn't tell anyone," Kevin says.

"But you did post it on Facebook," warns Debra Hruby, Kevin's former sitter, who has brought the boy with her to Opening Day since long before he was a teen. The Hrubys rehash memorable Opening Days, from Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams loading the bases in the ninth inning before striking out the side in 1989 to Kosuke Fukudome's clutch ninth-inning homer in 2008.

Opening Day 2001 was a memorable one for Chris Denker, 41, of Naperville and his buddy Randy Coakley, 40, of Chicago, who have shared season tickets for 13 years. The Cubs lost that opener, but Denker and Coakley made a friend with the Montreal Expos' young left-fielder that day.

"It was Milton Bradley," Denker says. Bradley went 0-4 at the plate that day, but he had worse days in Wrigley last year as the disappointing Cubs free agent who antagonized fans, teammates and management with his bad play and caustic comments. While Coakley calls Bradley a "nice guy" and Denker calls him "misguided," did they boo their old drinking pal?

"I'm sure I did," says Denker with a shrug that says, "How could a Cubs fan not boo Milton Bradley last year?"

But there are no boos Monday. It is a very productive day for Cubs hitters, winning pitcher Ryan Dempster, new chairman Tom Ricketts and all Cubs fans.

"I bought bonds this morning from Tom Ricketts' firm," says Denker, a bond trader whose work day ended early enough for him to get to Wrigley in plenty of time to see a fan throw out the first pitch. Buying from Ricketts is simply a business decision, not a goodwill gesture, Denker adds.

Seeing the four Ricketts siblings greeting fans at the entrance is a good sign, Debra Hruby says.

"I like the family. They are so diverse," Debra Hruby says, noting the Ricketts siblings run the gamut from liberal to conservative, Democrat to Republican and gay to straight, reflecting the diversity of Cubs fans. Tom, Pete, Laura and Todd Ricketts sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh-inning stretch to rousing cheers.

"I like that," says Hruby, who sports an ivy tattoo on one ankle. She says she's glad that fans can walk up to Tom Ricketts and offer suggestions.

"Who did you walk up to in the past?" she says, aptly summarizing the years when a corporate owner left the Cubs without a true face of the franchise. The Hrubys are happy that the Rickettses' talk about preserving Wrigley and winning a World Series.

"If you could guarantee me a World Series, you could tear Wrigley Field down," Sean Hruby says. "I'm a Cubs fan first and a Wrigley Field lover a close second."

On this glorious Opening Day, it's easy for Cubs fans to think all their wishes could come true.

"I love Wrigley Field, and I want it (a World Series championship) done here," Debra Hruby says, pausing a second or two before adding, "But I would like it done now."

<p class="factboxheadblack">Memorable Cubs Openers</p>

<p class="News"><b>2008:</b> Kosuke Fukudome makes his Cubs debut with a perfect 3-3 day at the plate, culminating in his clutch 3-run homer to tie the game in the bottom of the 9th inning. The Cubs end up losing 4-3 to the Milwaukee Brewers, and Fukudome officially becomes a Cub. </p>

<p class="News"><b>1994:</b> Facing perhaps the best pitcher in baseball, the Cubs new center fielder Carl "Tuffy" Rhodes crushed three home runs off the New York Mets Dwight Gooden. While Rhodes' heroics fueled fan excitement, his three solo shots couldn't prevent the Cubs from losing 8-12. After a hot April, Rhodes went into hibernation and finished the season with 8 homers and a .234 batting average. </p>

<p class="News"><b>1989: </b>Saying he pitched "like a man with his hair on fire," new Cubs reliever Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams walked to the Wrigley Field mound in the 9th inning with a narrow 5-4 lead against the Philladelphia Phillies. Nervous fans held their breath as Williams loaded the bases with no outs and then whiffed the next three hitters to earn the save. </p>

<p class="News"><b>1969:</b> "Mr. Cub" Ernie Banks smacked two homers, but the hero of the 7-6 extra-inning victory was pinch-hitter Willie Smith who cracked a 2-run homer to kick off one of the most thrilling Cubs seasons in history.</p>

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