Detox just to retox: No one wants to hear you sing about tragedy

Here we go again. For the third consecutive game, the Cleveland Indians can win the World Series. Trouble at this point is that so can the Chicago Cubs.

The winner is World Champion; the loser is a footnote to the story of the team that ended either a 68-year or 108-year World Series drought. Sure, both are pennant winners, but both (and their fans) want more.

It’s not dissimilar to Songbird and the Breeders’ Cup Distaff. She will be the champion three-year-old filly regardless of what happens on Friday at Santa Anita Park, but a win will draw her closer to all-time great Rachel Alexandra while a loss makes her “just another Silverbulletday” —the brilliant two- and three-year-old filly champion and eventual Racing Hall of Fame member who did not fare as well against older horses.

Songbird’s legacy as the best filly of her generation to date is cemented. A loss won’t change that. She is running for a place among the all-time greats.

I’m cheering for the Indians and Songbird. Maybe a little harder for the Indians because I can still win money if Songbird loses (Curalina and Forever Unbridled as the fifth and sixth choices, respectively, interest me more than the second, third, and fourth choices—more on that later this week), and I’ve cheered for the Indians for 30+ years versus just a year for Songbird, but I’m a fan of both, and I haven’t felt this way about a horse since the aforementioned Rachel Alexandra in 2009-2010. I want Songbird to join her company.

But it’s like Fall Out Boy sings (and the title says), “No one wants to hear you sing about tragedy.” A loss and the stories live for another 24 hours before fizzling and dying. Wins would be forever.