My Interview with Ben Zobrist

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    After the Chicago Cubs won the world series in 2016, I was lucky enough to be invited with my dad to Wrigley Field from my godfather. My godfather won VIP tickets to a Cubs game the following year, so in 2017, I went to Wrigley Field. These VIP tickets didn't just have great seating, they also granted our little group access to be on the actual field before the game started. On top of that, we even had a Cubs player assigned to our group. The Cubs player that I got to meet was Ben Zobrist. In case your unfamiliar with Zobrist, he was on the Cubs team in 2016 when they won the world series, and he played left field. He was even on the field playing left field when the final play was made that solidified the Cubs as world series champions. Zobrist was the player to hit the RBI double in the 10th inning, giving the Cubs the lead, and ultimately leading to their win. 

    Once I had taken pictures with Zobrist and gotten his autograph, I asked him some baseball related questions as a sort of informal interview. Thankfully, I still remember what I asked him, and what his responses were. 

    The first question I asked Zobrist, was what it felt like to be a part of the Cubs team to win their first world series in 108 years. Zobrist gave an answer that made you be able to tell that he was so proud of the team and the victory. Zobrist said that he couldn't have ever imagined he would've been a part of such an important team that achieved what no other Cubs team accomplished since 1908. He said the group of guys that were on that team deserved that win more than any other, and that they put in an indescribable amount of work to achieve that world series win. 

    I expected him to have an answer similar to this, but I definitely didn't predict him to mention how much that win meant to himself as a professional baseball player, and to be a part of such an amazing team. Afterall, that Cubs team will forever be remembered as the team that broke the 108-year curse. 

    The second question I got the chance to ask Zobrist was if him and the rest of the team had any doubts of winning that game, especially with the rain delay and timeouts. "Without a doubt," Zobrist said, "if we found ourselves having those kinds of thoughts, we made sure to refocus ourselves and stay focused on the game." That particular game went on for longer than anyone, including myself could've imagined. On top of the game going into extra innings from being tied, the game got hit with a rain delay which took a long time. The game went on until after 1am. I definitely predicted that either Zobrist or some of his team members started to have doubts since the game kept getting longer and longer. 

    The last question I asked Ben Zobrist, was what he thinks is the most important about playing in the outfield. His response for this question was much shorter than the previous two, only being one word. "Tacking," Zobrist said. Tracking a baseball that is hit into the air can be very difficult, especially at night like when the Cubs won the world series. Tacking a baseball during the day is much easier since you can visually get an idea for where the ball is going to land. At night however, it is much more difficult, especially with the stadium lights. I even know this from previous experiences. 

    After I got a chance to ask Zobrist my few questions, he went on to the next person in our group and answered a few of their questions. To this day I'm still grateful I got the chance to meet a professional baseball player, get photos and autographs, and for it to be one of the players that won my favorite team their first world series in 108 years.

 

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