Juan Pierre felt ‘a little bit a part' of last year's World Series team

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Among the many making their first Wrigley Field pilgrimage on Saturday was Juan Pierre. 

The former MLB outfielder donned a Cubs jersey for 162 games in 2006, but he had never been to the Friendly Confines as a fan. 

"I had to ask my wife how you even get into the stadium. I didn't even know what entrance to take or any of that," Pierre joked with Kelly Crull during the Cubs' 3-2 win over the Cardinals. "But it's a great experience." 

Pierre was a fan favorite on the North Side, swiping 58 bases in his lone season with the club. He finished his career 18th on the all-time steals list, tallying 614 with six clubs.

His 2006 Cubs squad was short on success, though. Despite having the seventh highest payroll in baseball, the team lost 96 games, ultimately leading to the firing of Dusty Baker. 

Even so, Pierre, like so many other former Cubs, felt connected to the 2016 team. 

"When they won it last year, I felt a little bit a part of it," Pierre said. "I didn't have much to do with it, but I always tell everybody, 'anybody who ever put that uniform on, they wanted to be the one who did it.'"

Pierre was excited to see Anthony Rizzo, who has a home near the former outfielder in Parkland, Florida, and other members of the team that broke the curse in his return to Chicago. But Wrigleyville isn't the only side of town he's familiar with.

Pierre played two seasons with the White Sox, giving him a unique perspective on the upcoming Crosstown series. 

"You throw the records out. You throw everything out," he said. "The fans really got into it. As players we're like, 'OK this is another game we gotta win,' but the fans were crazy. What I realized was the Cubs don't like the White Sox. The White Sox fans hate the Cubs fans."  

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