Even after decades in North Andover, local Cubs fan still passionate as ever

Jul. 1—If there is anyone who can appreciate this weekend's Red Sox vs. Cubs series at Wrigley Field, it's Ernie Panos.

A Chicago native who has called North Andover home for the past two-plus decades, Panos is a lifelong Cubs fan who has remained a passionate supporter even while living in the heart of Red Sox nation.

"When people ask me why I'm not a Red Sox fan even though I've been here for 20 years, I always ask them if they moved to Chicago now would they give up their team and they emphatically say no," Panos said. "I love that they're as passionate about their teams as I am about mine."

Red Sox and Cubs fans are in many ways two sides of the same coin. Both are huge, passionate fanbases whose clubs play in historic venues and who endured decades-long championship droughts, helping foster a shared culture rooted in hopeful pessimism.

When Panos first came to Boston as a Babson College student in the early 1990s, his first impression was "man these two fanbases are exactly alike." The connection had only grown stronger by the time he moved to North Andover, especially after the two clubs endured traumatic endings to their 2003 playoff runs.

"You had the Pedro moment and the Cubs had the guy I won't mention his name who had the ball in left field, it felt eerily similar," said Panos, referring to the Steve Bartman incident that helped cost the Cubs a trip to the 2003 World Series. "But then the Red Sox went on the next year to win it and have had tremendous success since then."

In recent times Panos has observed a subtle shift in the dynamic between the Red Sox and Cubs. Where Red Sox fans once expected the worst, they now project much more confidence, and some act as if the Red Sox have always been a championship franchise. The Cubs have gone through a similar transition since winning it all in 2016, but some habits die hard, especially now that the Cubs have fallen back into a rebuilding phase.

While Panos couldn't make it back to Chicago for this weekend's series, he's attended most of the past games between the two franchises. When the Red Sox played at Wrigley Field for the first time ever back in 2005, Panos was there on a rooftop along with hundreds of other fans.

"We had 50 guys from Boston and another 75 from Chicago on the rooftop for the Sunday Night Baseball game," Panos said. "Nomar was on the Cubs then but he was injured, so there was a little bit of that rivalry."

He's also taken advantage of Chicago's recent trips to Boston over the past decade, during one of which he says he ran into Cubs owner Tom Ricketts in the aisle. Panos' wife and daughters are also big Cubs fans even though they don't share his Windy City roots, and when the Cubs last visited Boston in 2017 fresh off their historic World Series title they got to enjoy Chicago's complete takeover of the ballpark.

"It's fun for them to go to places they've been a lot like Fenway but not be completely in the minority," he said. "If the Cubs hit a home run they could turn around and high-five a random person just the same way people at Fenway would normally do for their home games, but now there are a bunch of Cubs fans."

Panos expects Red Sox fans will travel similarly well to Chicago this weekend, and those who do can expect a similar experience as Fenway but with a unique flair. His main advice? Get there early and be sure to take in the whole scene.

And definitely make sure to pick up some Chicago deep dish pizza, he's quick to add. Lou Malnati's is his favorite.

Email: mcerullo@northofboston.com.

Twitter: @MacCerullo.