Wrigleyworld

A talk with Kevin Kaduk, the young author of a new book that explores a summer’s worth of bleachers, beer and living in the moment

While most 20-something Chicagoans were working actual jobs last summer and looking for any excuse to head toward Wrigley Field, Kevin Kaduk already had it figured out.

Armed with a new book contract and a desire to hit every bar in Wrigleyville early and often, Kaduk attended a lion’s share of the Cubs’ home games in an attempt to chronicle the life of a young baseball fan in Chicago.

Painting a picture of hope-filled days and beer-tinged nights, Kaduk’s Wrigleyworld portrays the neighborhood in ways that an outsider might not. Personal experiences combined with short profiles of Wrigley Field regulars make Wrigleyworld a quick but enjoyable read. And for many Northsiders, the recollections of waking up after a night of baseball, booze, beanbag and Burrito House may hit particularly close to home.

We recently sat down with Kaduk for a discussion that hit on everything from the book business, scalping tickets on Waveland and the Cubs’ hopes for the 2006 season.

I’ve been a Cubs fan ... since I was five years old. I can still remember my disappointment when I turned on Channel 9 to watch my cartoons, only to find a Cubs game being televised. That changed pretty quickly as I became more familiar with Harry Caray and players like Ryne Sandberg, Gary Matthews and Bobby Dernier.

A lot of people my age … probably found the Cubs the same way. One minute you’re looking for The Jetsons, the next you’re a lifelong fan of a team that hasn’t won a championship in almost 100 years. I still haven’t figured out if that was a fair deal or not.

The idea for this book … came on a dreary winter day in Kansas City. I was living down there and had a good job with a nationally respected newspaper sports section. Still, I felt like I was missing out on the fun back home in Chicago. Getting a job with the Tribune or Sun-Times seemed like an impossibility, so I just decided to hang out in Wrigleyville for a season and see what happened.

There were a lot of baseball books out there … but none of them really touched on the Wrigley Field fan experience. There’s a whole subculture of Northside 20-somethings that make up an integral part of the Wrigley atmosphere, for better or worse. I thought I’d be a good person to document that scene.

I had some initial reservations ... about the Cubs’ bullpen.

Unfortunately … I was right.

The one thing I wanted to do … was remain a fan as much as possible through the writing of the book. That meant buying my tickets on the street every day, packing a bag lunch and my own transistor radio. I didn’t want to go to games with a press pass. I didn’t want to go in the locker room. I didn’t want to talk with the players. The fans at Wrigley usually have more interesting things to say than Dusty Baker anyway.

Opening Day in Wrigleyville ... sometimes has nothing to do with the Cubs. One of Wrigleyworld’s main ideas is that a lot of the people in Wrigleyville don’t even care about the baseball being played. That point was confirmed the moment I stepped into Hi-Tops at 7:00 in the morning, only to see (local radio personality) Mancow instructing a man to light his bits and pieces on fire. You’re not going to read a scene like that in a baseball book by Bill James.

The process I had for writing … was simple. Observe and take notes during the home stands. Write when the Cubs were on the road.

There were times when … I didn’t feel like going to the games. Sh--ty baseball is sh--ty baseball. You can only watch Corey Patterson strike out so many times. Yet somehow, those days usually turned out to be the best days because I’d end up meeting someone who used to be in the Latin Eagles gang or worked as an Andy Frain usher in 1969.

I met plenty of Cub fans who … don’t think that losing is very lovable. That’s one of the things that the national media gets wrong about Northsiders. True Cub fans hate the notion that they don’t care who wins or loses, so long as the beer is cold.

The whole Wrigleyville scene can be … intimidating to non-Chicagoans. I can’t tell you how many Iowans or Michiganders I met at the Cubs’ Convention who said they’ve never been to Wrigley Field. They’re under the impression that tickets are impossible to find. The truth is that there are literally hundreds — maybe thousands — of tickets floating around the street before the games.

I’d never ... pay above face value unless the ’27 Yankees were in town.

I hope people will find Wrigleyworld … entertaining. As I said before, it’s not your typical baseball book. There isn’t a lot of inaccessible writing or long odes to days gone by. As Chris Jones from Esquire wrote, Wrigleyworld “explores the real reasons we love the game — beers, broads and a scalped seat in the bleachers.” That’s my book in a one-line description.

I think the Cubs will win … 86 games this season. And that’s if everything comes together just right. I hate to be a pessimist, but the last two seasons have re-taught us all to expect the worst.

The person who comes off looking the worst in the book was … the guy who threw me out of a rooftop party because a friend snuck me on the list even though I wasn’t actually a client of his company. I was just looking to have some fun and drink some free beer.

You’d think people … would be more laid back in Wrigleyville.

The one thing the Tribune Company must fix is ... making sure the Cubs and Wrigley Field remain accessible to families. I was shocked at how relatively few kids there were in the stands. But when a terrace-reserved seat costs more than $25, you can’t expect a lot of family outings.

The best day I had in Wrigleyville last season was … definitely the first game of the Boston series. You could just tell it was a big series by the feeling in the air. The weather was perfect, the Cubs won in a blowout and we ate at the Giordano’s after the game. That night, we went and saw Koko Taylor at Blues Fest. Days like that made me glad I decided to move back home.

For my next book, I think I want to … write a sequel to Wrigleyworld. I’m not kidding. I could get used to this.

Kaduk’s book Wrigleyworld: A season in baseball’s best neighborhood, published by New American Library, is available at bookstores everywhere on March 28. You can learn more about the book at wrigleyworld.com. The book’s official release party is scheduled for 7 p.m. on April 21st at Murphy’s Bleachers on Sheffield.

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