I distinctly remember the first time I heard the term “sophomore slump,” one of numerous plagues visited upon Cubs fans throughout time. My dad was worried that neither Jerome Walton nor Dwight Smith could repeat the magic of a season in which they’d finished 1-2 in the NL Rookie of the Year voting, though my 10-year-old optimism knew my old man was wrong. Well, until the 1990 season opened and I quickly saw that his fears were rooted in immutable fact. Or maybe just back luck. Either way, it was peak Cubbishness, not to mention an early entry in an ongoing series of events that forced me to admit my dad was right.
So…About This Sophomore Slump Thing: Is it Real and (How) Will it Affect the Cubs?
