¡Fanáticos! How one Cubs’ superfan became Captain Cubbo
By Captain Cubbo
Born and raised in Chicago, I’m a 53-year-old man, twice-divorced, with four kids, and a fanático for my Cubbies. Growing up across the street from Wrigley Field, in 1971, is where it started.
My parents owned the property until 1986. During that time, I played a lot of baseball, loving the Chicago Cubs. Knowing that WGN would broadcast the games, and that it would be seen on the island, my dad decided to show his pride by displaying a Puerto Rican flag on our three-flat unit.
I’d have to say that it was about 85 percent Puerto Ricans that lived in the neighborhood, so it was easy playing baseball with so many kids. Weather permitting, we always had enough kids to play a game. From the red-top parking lot to the corner of Addison and Sheffield — those were our baseball diamonds. We would either play fast-pitch off the wall of the red-top parking lot, or lob (slow-pitch) baseball.
Lucky for me, I was one of the youngest kids making “good money” at the time, for a 10-year-old. Between April and September, I hustled selling souvenirs and shining shoes. As you know, there were not many victorious seasons, but baseball was still played until the sun went down. During my teen years, I kept rooting for my Cubbies, but I had to trade in my hustle for an education as high school was about to begin.
When I was junior in high school, in the summer of 1981, I was sitting in my living room watching the Cubs game. Billy Buckner was up to bat. At that moment, I had a feeling in my heart that he would hit one out of the park. Low and behold, crack of the bat, I immediately jumped out of my couch, ran out the door, and saw the ball fly over the fence. It took one bounce. I ran down the stairs and caught the ball.
I immediately reacted to run back inside the house to see myself on TV. (The ignorance of a child.) I did see the replay and heard the commentary of Lou Boudreau saying “Did you see the guy? He ran outside of his house, caught the ball, and ran back in.”
The following day, a reporter from ABC News came out to see who had caught the ball. I told him the story, and was interviewed for a segment on the news. The following year, as a senior in high school, I was the most popular kid in school.
At the age of 23, I moved out of my parents’ home and started a new chapter in my life. My first marriage lasted six years; we had two children and I worked three jobs to maintain my home. My second marriage lasted 13 years. We had twins and I worked two jobs to keep up the household.
One of my passions has been drawing and reading comics. I have been going to Wizard World Comic-Con since 2013, and with the Chicago Cubs having a fabulous season, I took my love for them and Comic-Con cosplay and put it to use. I went to Wizard World in 2016 with a mask over my head, a cape on my back and a Chicago Cubs jersey across my chest. I took many pictures with Cubs fans and was also interviewed at the convention.
The fans were excited about my character, but some thought I was a luchador, or wrestler. I had to stop and correct them by saying, “I’m Puerto Rican, not Mexican. I am not a wrestler, but what I am is Captain Cubbo.” This is how the character was born.
In 2014, I reconnected with a grammar and high school classmate, Margie Acevedo. She’s been my rock behind my character. She has been extremely supportive, and allows me to be who I am. Margie’s sister has been my seamstress and her family has been extremely accepting of Captain Cubbo.
2017 has been an awesome year, having attended more Cubs games than I could have ever imagined. I always go in character, and the fans have really embraced me.
Here’s to a repeat for my Chicago Cubs in 2017!! GO, CUBS, GO!
Featured Image: Josh Tallo / La Vida Baseball