'The Cougars are the constant'
In the 25-year history of the Kane County Cougars, there have been affiliations with six different major league teams, various team owners and a constantly evolving ballpark. But, as James Earl Jones said in the classic baseball movie "Field of Dreams," the one constant through all the years has been baseball.
For at least the past 25 years, baseball has been a constant feature of the friendship among Dave Rohlwing, Larry Nolan and Harvey Miller.
The trio have attended all 25 of the Cougars' opening day games, including Thursday's scheduled contest against the Cedar Rapids Kernels. The three men share ownership of season tickets for two seats that place them in the first row, directly behind the third base dugout, at all 70 home games. They divvy up the tickets, 23 a piece, and soak up the nostalgia of opening day together to share the leftover 70th ticket. Sometimes it's the only game they attend together.
Walking into the stadium, the food vendors know the three friends by face, if not by name.
Their love of baseball began with infatuation of the Chicago Cubs teams of the 1950s. Watching Cubs baseball on WGN with his dad after school was one of the few sources of entertainment for Rohlwing growing up in rural Huntley. Ernie Banks was Rohlwing's hero.
"You didn't expect them to win," Rohlwing said of those Cubs teams. "If they won, it was a great day. If they didn't, there was always tomorrow."
Cubs fandom transformed into riding his bike 2 to 3 miles into town to play Little League. Rohlwing never made it past that level of competitive sports, but he never lost his love for baseball. When he met Nolan in the 1970s, the pair went in on ticket packages for Cubs games for a while. Rohlwing, who now lives in Elgin, even started going to Cubs spring training games in Arizona with his dad.
Nolan, of St. Charles, can relate to that father-son relationship. Like Rohlwing, he lost his father several years ago, but he carries the torch of baseball fandom that his father originally lit.
"All he ever wanted, and I don't think he really even cared if they won, was to see the Cubs get to the World Series," Nolan said. "After he passed, I said to him, 'Don't worry, dad. I'll see them do it for you.' But now I'm a lot older, and I'm not so sure any more," he added with a chuckle.
When news broke that the Kane County Cougars would build a stadium in Geneva, Rohlwing raced down to the team office to inquire about tickets. There were two season tickets available in the first row behind the third base visitors' dugout, right on the aisle. After quick calls to Nolan and Miller, the seats were theirs.
Miller, also of St. Charles, was never a big fan of baseball. He wasn't religious about watching games or following a team. He initially agreed to share the cost of the seats because they were great seats. He's still lukewarm on the Cubs. But he's a die-hard Cougars fan now.
"I've come to appreciate that the game is somewhat more complicated than some guy with a stick trying to hit a ball, and the other guys are trying to catch it," Miller said. "After a quarter century of watching this team, I have a new appreciation. And last year's team. That was special. I'll remember that for a while."
Last year's Cougar team won two thirds of its games on the way to sweeping every series in the playoff and winning the league championship. Even better, the team was a Cubs affiliate. It was a little taste of the glory they've never experienced with the big league version of the franchise.
But that affiliation is gone. The Cougars are now affiliated with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The three fans agree it's disappointing to lose the Cubs, but it hasn't wounded their love for the Cougars.
"The Cougars are the constant," Rohlwing said. "The individual teams and players come and go. But there's the love of God. There's the love of your family. And there's the love of the Cougars. That's it."
All three have their favorite Cougars players of the past. The group that went on to win a championship with the Florida Marlins evokes smiles when remembered. Los Angeles Dodgers First Baseman Adrian Gonzalez is another former hero. And Rohlwing is hoping his Jorge Soler-autographed baseball becomes the prize of his 35-ball collection some day.
As the three men find their seats and look out over the field, they laugh over stories of games past that they've shared with one another numerous times. It never gets old.
Why do they renew their season tickets year after year?
It's seeing the baseball-sized hole in seat 19, right behind them, and remembering the line drive that created it. It's remembering the time Nolan escaped being impaled by a broken bat by ducking behind the cement wall of the dugout as the wooden shards clanked off his seat. It's Rohlwing getting an autograph from a player named Rock Shoulders and treasuring it for the oddity even if he never makes the big leagues.
It's instinctively raising your voice a few decibels during a conversation because there's a guy bellowing "Hey, Crackerjacks, cotton candy!" coming down the aisle.
It's the fellowship of chatting up the strangers and fellow season-ticket holders around you. It's attending an event that's a cousin of the games of catch you played with your dad as a kid. Now you play with your grandkids and take them to Cougars games. It's a quarter century of sharing an experience with two good friends.
It's tradition. It's a constant. It's baseball.