Column: A dismal opening day for the Chicago Cubs is eased by the return of fans to Wrigley Field

We certainly have seen Wrigley Field on colder days with smaller crowds and far less optimism in the air than the one that reopened to 10,343 fans Thursday for the Chicago Cubs season opener.

Except for the signage and video boards, the ballpark looked much the same as it did on a typical mid-April day in 1976, when Rick Monday and Jose Cardenal roamed the outfield and crowds of 7,000-10,000 were the norm for a team everyone knew was headed nowhere.

Whether this edition of the Cubs bears any resemblance to those lovable losers of the ’70s is debatable, even after a 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates, a team Las Vegas considers the worst in baseball.

But after a season without fans at Wrigley, the mere sight of human beings dispersed around the 107-year-old ballpark made a dismal day a little easier to digest.

“I don’t want to ever go back to those eerie days watching games with seven people in the stands,” Cubs President Jed Hoyer said on the eve of the opener. “That’s not what Wrigley Field is all about. Hopefully we see those numbers grow and grow. I think that’s everyone’s hope.

“We’ll start small, but as the vaccine takes off and we get more comfortable with it and know we can stay safe, I certainly hope those numbers grow and soon enough we’re looking at a packed house. But we have to put one foot in front of the other.”

That also goes for the 2021 Cubs, who hit a cringeworthy .210 at Wrigley Field last season and started off the new year ensuring expectations would be even lower.

After a first-inning double by Anthony Rizzo, the Cubs went 0-for-18 before Eric Sogard doubled into the right-field corner to lead off the eighth.

And that was it.

The Cubs struck out 13 times and scored all three runs on sacrifice flies.

“I don’t put a lot of stock in this one,” manager David Ross said. “But they count.”

Kyle Hendricks, who threw a complete-game shutout in last year’s opener on a beautiful, 80-degree midsummer night, failed to get to the fourth inning on a frigid, 36-degree, spring afternoon. A boatload of Cubs relievers whose bubble gum cards probably would’ve ended up in your bicycle spokes if they pitched when you were growing up, walked eight and hit a batter over the next five innings before Alec Mills tossed a perfect ninth.

Despite the game’s outcome and dreary four-hour length — and snafus such as some upper deck concessions being unable to sell Italian beef and sausages because of a computer malfunction on the first day of the touchless payment era — the Cubs felt good about the return of fans to their iconic ballpark.

“It was a moment where I personally just took an extra moment when I took the field to appreciate their cheers, being able to play in front of them,” Rizzo said. “It was definitely something I’ll never forget, taking the field today.”

Cubs management had artificial crowd noise on call in case of emergency, ready to foist it upon fans if they forgot how to cheer or boo since the final day of the 2019 season 18 months ago.

Fortunately they didn’t have to break the glass. The fans were sufficiently loud from the get-go, starting with the pregame introduction of Jake Arrieta, who received a rousing welcome home, to the traditional booing of whichever mayor is currently in charge — Lori Lightfoot, in this instance.

Those lucky enough to acquire a ticket got a chance to see a little bit of everything, including an actual sacrifice bunt from Hendricks in the second inning. During the shortened 2020 season, when the National League adopted the designated hitter rule, the Cubs had only one sacrifice all year, that coming from Ian Happ. Ross even had a double switch in the fifth inning, a familiar National League move rendered meaningless last year by the DH.

These were irrelevant in the total scheme of things. But for those who enjoy the NL style of play and know it’s doomed once the universal DH becomes part of the next collective bargaining agreement, you still can appreciate the small things in life.

And without any offense, the Cubs still had a shot in the ninth inning, trailing 5-3 after outfielder Joc Pederson walked with one out and took second on a wild pitch.

“We had two hits, Joc getting on there at the end, we get the tying run to the plate …” Rizzo said. “We just didn’t hit well.”

Javier Baez was called out on strikes after complaining to plate umpire Mark Wegner on the previous pitch, and Jason Heyward struck out for the third straight at-bat to end it.

Ross, who has spent more time running spring training camps (2) and summer camps (1) than actually managing big-league games, gave his players an inspirational speech Wednesday, the day before the opener. He didn’t want to discuss it Thursday, but after hearing Heyward leaked the gist of the speech to Chicago media, Ross laughed and let loose.

“I just think everybody is on a different mission,” Ross said. “Everybody is out to prove something.”

That would include Ross, of course, and Hoyer as well. Their guru, Theo Epstein, is gone, and now they’re on their own.

What’s their mission? Without naming names, Ross pointed to players “trying to prove they are established big-leaguers” (such as most of the bullpen), role players “trying to establish that they are everyday players” (such as David Bote), players “that have been labeled they can’t do this, they can’t do that” (such as Pederson) and players “on one-year deals and on the back end of contracts (such as Rizzo, Baez and Kris Bryant).

“That’s kind of how I addressed the group,” Ross said. “Talking about respecting the journey each individual guy is on, and what they’re trying to accomplish.”

It’s a long journey, and Thursday was but one small step for the Cubs. It may have been a backward step, but it’s a start.

Long after the game’s end, Ross went out on the field to play fetch with his dog, Maya, with no one in the stands and only the rush of the “L” train breaking the silence.

All in all, it was good to be home.

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