A birthday treat

With B-day No. 40 coming up next week, I was thinking about what I'd want for a present. It's pretty simple, really, and it wouldn't cost anyone any money. Of course, though, I'm probably one of millions who want the same thing.

These people are young and old, some maybe even 100 years old, to be exact. In case you haven't figured it out by now (and I don't want to talk too much about it because of being so superstitious) is that I am a huge Chicago Cubs fan. Have been for about three-quarters of my life.

I have had the emotional highs and lows like all others who bleed blue and red, and in fact, my Cubs high and Cubs low happened within 10 days of the other.

The high came Oct. 5, 2003, in Atlanta when I was with my biggest, bestest Cubs buddy, Mickey D. The Cubs beat the Braves 5-1 to clinch their first postseason Series since 1908, when they won the World Series. Kerry Wood sprayed champagne on us. Somewhere on one of Eric Karros' old video tapes is me with my boys. I hugged some dude I never met -- and never saw again -- for what would have been a inordinately awkward amount of time any other day. I chanted the Braves rally cry for about 10 minutes in front of an Atlanta deli before some Braves fan shouted, "Enough already. We get it. We lost."

The low came Oct. 14, 2003. I remember the exact spot I was standing when that bastard Bartman touched the ball. It hurts too much to go into the details, but all I can say is within seconds of him ruining what would have been the 23rd out with just four to go, I said, "It's over; we lost the series." I didn't need the next 25 hours to prove I was right. Nuff said.

Anyway, I decided with my birthday coming up and with my wish and all, I'd give myself and the one or two of you Cubs fans who might be reading this a treat. It's the top 10 Cubs games played on my birthday, followed by some worthless trivia. (But go ahead. Impress your friends next Friday and give them some "back on this date" BS. They'll probably call you sick, like da wife did when I told her I was going to spend about three hours doing this research. And actually, it was more like five. Even sicker.)

Here we go ...

10. August 29, 1986: Cubs 7, Braves 3 (at Atlanta)
--> Mainly because this is was just one day before the first major-league regular-season game I ever attended. The Cubs won on my birthday, but lost when I was there the next day. In this one, the Cubbies scored two runs in the fourth and five in the fifth to take it. Bobby Dernier hit a three-run homer, Manny Trillo was 3-for-3 with two RBIs, and Scott Sanderson pitched seven innings, allowing three runs and striking out eight.

9. August 29, 1984: Cubs 7, Reds 2 (at Wrigley Field)
--> In the season in which they made the postseason for the first time since losing to Detroit in the 1945 World Series, this was win No. 79, including their fourth in a row. Rick Sutcliffe (who lost that first major-league game I ever attended Aug. 30, 1986) was dominating, pitching eight innings, allowing two earned runs. Sutcliffe, who was traded from Cleveland earlier in the season, was 16-1 with the Cubs on the way to an NL Cy Young Award. Leon Durham, whom I have forgiven for allowing a ball to go through his legs which might have cost us the 1984 NLCS, hit a three-run homer in the third to give the Cubs a 5-1 lead. Ryne Sandberg was 3-for-5.

8. August 29, 2000: Cubs 7, Padres 6, 13 innings (at Wrigley Field)
--> The longest game played on my birthday since I was born. In fact, there have only been four extra-inning games on Aug. 29 since 1968, and the Cubs are 3-1. In this one, Ricky Gutierrez's sacrifice fly in the 13th scored Eric Young to win it. This came after Rick Aguilera blew his eighth save of the season in the ninth, giving up an RBI single to some guy named Mike Darr. Roosevelt Brown, Joe Girardi and Willie Green each had two RBIs. It was a rare bright spot for a team that upped its record to 57-74. They only won eight more games the rest of the season, finishing 65-97 in Don Baylor's first season.

7. August 29, 1991: Cubs 5, Giants 4 (at San Francisco)
--> Greg Maddux pitched a complete game -- one of seven he had that season -- allowing three runs in the first three innings, before settling down. 1991 was the season before Maddux began a string of winning four consecutive Cy Young Awards. Also in this game, George Bell was 3-for-3 with three RBIs. He also hit a two-run homer in the fifth to give the Cubs a 4-3 lead. Dwight Smith won it in the eighth with a game-winning RBI single. Andre Dawson was 2-for-4 with an RBI.

6. August 29, 1969: Cubs 2, Braves 1 (at Atlanta)
--> Boy, I remember it well sitting in that playpen with my dad raising those rabbit ears 200 feet in the air up the ham radio tower so he could get WGN for me. OK, maybe not. But because the Cubbies didn't play on the day I was born, this is the first Aug. 29 game for me. And they won! Don Kessinger was 3-for-4, Ron Santo batted cleanup and was 2-for-4, and Jim Hickman hit a game-winning solo home run in the seventh. Bill Hands pitched a complete game, allowing six hits, one walk, while striking out four to go 16-11. In the most odd play I have ever heard of, Cubs great Billy Williams hit into a 3-6-2-5-1-4-7 triple play!

5. August 29. 1988: Cubs 2, Astros 1, 11 innings (at Houston)
--> Just 21 days after the first night game at Wrigley, Greg Maddux pitched well in the Astrodome but couldn't get a win. He went nine innings (he did that twice on my B-day), but got a no-decision, as he allowed six walks and struck out five. The game-winning hit came from Mitch Webster in the top of the 11th on a single that drove home pinch-runner Darrin Jackson. Scott Sanderson earned his first win of the season in relief.

4. August 29, 1999: Cubs 6, Dodgers 0 (at Los Angeles)
--> Despite improving their record to a paltry 54-75, it was a good night on the West Coast for the Lovable Losers. Sammy Sosa hit his 54th homer of the season and 117th in two seasons (he finished with 63 in 1999) off Darren Dreifort in the seventh. Mark Grace was 1-for-3 with an RBI. But the interesting stat here is that Kyle Farnsworth pitched the only complete game in his career, a two-hit shutout. He walked three and struck out two, and he was never the same again. ;)

3. August 29, 2003: Cubs 4, Brewers 2 (at Wrigley Field)
--> Oddly enough, this is the last time the Cubs have won on my birthday, and this was the fifth season in a row that they won on Aug. 29. Catcher Damian Miller's solo homer in the eighth put the seal on a win the boys in blue desperately needed on the way to a playoff berth. Kenny Lofton, Sammy Sosa, Eric Karros, Aramis Ramirez and Miller all had multi-hit games. Another interesting stat in this one: It was the third consecutive season Matt Clement got a decision in a Cubs win on my B-day. In 2001, he lost 5-1 to Chicago when pitching for Florida, and in 2002, he defeated Milwaukee.

2. August 29, 2002: Cubs 13, Brewers 10 (at Milwaukee)
--> By far, the highest scoring game on Aug. 29 in Cubs history. Most of the pop came from a 10-run fourth for Chicago, which used homers in the inning from Bill Mueller and Mark Bellhorn. Eight Cubs knocked in runs in a game between teams with a combined record of 102-163. Matt Clement earned the win, and despite the score, he didn't pitch all that poorly. He allowed four earned runs in seven innings, and he struck out 10. Bellhorn, though, was the star in this wild one, going 2-for-5 with two homers and five RBIs.

1. August 29, 1989: Cubs 10, Astros 9, 10 innings (at Wrigley Field)
--> This one is tops on the list by a wide margin. I remember this one pretty well, and even remember watching it from the bedroom of my girlfriend's parents' house. (Pretty sad that's how I spent my 21st birthday, I know.) If I remember correctly, it was a late afternoon game, like starting at 3:20 or something, because I think it ended under the lights. Houston took a 9-0 lead in the fifth on a grand slam by Rafael Ramirez, who went 3-for-5 with seven RBIs. But the Cubs came back little by little. They scored two in the sixth, and Lloyd McClendon's two-run homer in the seventh cut the lead to 9-4. Dwight Smith later singled in Mark Grace to make it 9-5 at the end of seven. Joe Girardi started the bottom of the eighth with a single between short and third, and he advanced to second on a passed ball. Vance Law flied out to center, and NL Rookie of the Year Jerome Walton reached first on an error, with Girardi going to third. Ryne Sandberg, Grace and McClendon followed with RBI singles, and Smith's sacrifice fly tied the score at 9. In the 10th, Smith did it again, this time with an RBI single with the bases loaded and one out off Houston closer Dave Smith. Cubs win! Cubs win!

OTHER ODD CUBS' STATS FOR AUG. 29 SINCE 1968
--> The Cubs have been off just three times on this date in the past 40 years: 1968, 1970 and 1994 (strike year). This year, they host the Phillies -- (the first time in my lifetime they will play the Phillies on Aug. 29).
--> Their overall record is 20-17. Currently they're on a four-game losing streak, which followed a five-game winning streak on Aug. 29.
--> Their home record is 9-6, road 11-11.
--> The team they've played the most on my birthday: Atlanta, by far. They're 5-5 against them. Second is Los Angeles (4-2) and third is Houston (3-3).
--> The Cubs, strangely enough, have played one interleague game, on Aug. 29, 1997, losing at Cleveland 7-6 (Orel Hershiser picked up the win).
--> Pete LaCock hit his only career homer Aug. 29, 1974, and it was the only run the Cubs scored that day in a 3-1 loss at Los Angeles.
--> There have been 11 complete games pitched in Cubs games on my birthday -- eight for Chicago (Bill Hands in '69, Milt Pappas in '72, Ray Burris in '75 and '76, Greg Maddux in '91, Kyle Farnsworth in '99, Jason Bere in '01 and Matt Clement in '03) and three for an opponent (Bill Singer a loss for the Dodgers in '72, Gaylord Perry for the Padres in '79 and Tom Browning for the Reds in '87).
--> Ryne Sandberg has the most at-bats for the Cubs on my birthday and was 20-for-54 (.370 BA) with one home run in 1992.