The guy played 13 seasons for the Cubs and was either “a” face or “the” face of the franchise depending on the season (splitting the distinction with Sandberg and Sosa). He was treated like a God in a baseball town for many years so obviously most of his best memories and sentiments are with that team in that city. The only reason he played for the D-backs is because the Cubs FO kicked him to the curb when he insisted on being an every day player.

I point that out because the guy wasn’t a free agent mercenary locating the biggest check he could get. He started a Cub and would have happily ended his career there if the team hadn’t made it clear he was to be a part-timer. It’s very telling that the first thing he did after winning the WS was take a shot at the Cubs FO in the postgame interview. I’m sure Grace has a lot of love for the D-Backs because they gave him his playing time, his ring and the opportunity to retire on his own terms (not to mention they actually let him pitch an inning).

But his heart is always going to be with the Cubbies. Hell, when they asked him last year who he was routing for in the NLDS, he said the D-Backs but made sure to note that you can’t root against your employer and that the D-Backs winning gave him the opportunity to call a NLCS and possibly a WS. Not exactly the words of a guy truly supporting the home team.

But that’s fine in my opinion. I don’t care if Grace’s heart pumps Cubbie blue instead of Sedona red. He still supports us against the other 28 teams in the Majors. The D-Backs are 10 years old and we are only now getting to the point where homegrown heroes have emerged. And 15 years from now, we will have Brandon Webb in the Broadcast booth retelling, for the millionth time, how it felt receiving all 7 of his Cy Young awards in a D-Back uniform.