With a lowly 26-39 record this season, the Chicago Cubs are now doing all they can to block out any distractions surrounding this team outside of the clubhouse.
On Tuesday, such measures included rallying around the infamous curse of the Billy Goat, a curse that has plagued the Cubs for almost 70 years.
Cubs players took the field for pregame practice sporting blue t-shirts with a crossed-out billy goat on the front and a "F**k the Goat!!!" catchphrase on the back.
Although humorous club t-shirts aren’t a new phenomenon at Wrigley Field, the subject of the billy goat curse has been taboo for some of the teams of past years and certainly not a laughing matter for many fans.
"I think it means, 'Let’s just do our thing everyday,'" said Koyie Hill. "I don’t know why we need to concern ourselves with everything that goes on outside of this room."
"I’m not Doctor Phil, but do you want to embrace it? Do you want to laugh at it? Do you want to hide from it? Everybody has their own way," said Cubs manager Mike Quade.
The curse of the Billy Goat dates back to the 1945 World Series, when the Cubs faced the Detroit Tigers.
Legend has it that Billy Goat Tavern owner Billy Sianis cursed the Cubs when asked to leave the stadium because of complaints received about the smell of the pet goat that he had brought to the stadium.
There have been repeated attempts to reverse the curse, but as World Series appearances will show, none have been successful so far.
