Yahoo Sports 
Dexter Fowler's wife thanks Cubs fans with heartfelt Instagram post
Baseball is a child’s game that when played as an adult sometimes requires life-altering business decisions.
On Friday, free agent Dexter Fowler made one of those life-altering decisions.
After posting a career season that helped the Chicago Cubs to their first World Series win since 1908, Fowler was in line to earn what would likely be his biggest payday as a professional baseball player. To get that, though, Fowler had to leave the Cubs and sign with the St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago’s biggest rival.
With a series of signatures on a series of documents, the decision became official. Fowler, who took a one-year discounted contract to stay in Chicago last winter, inked a five-year, $82 million deal with St. Louis.
He’s moving on in 2017 and beyond, but it’s clear that leaving Chicago was far from an easy decision for Fowler or his family based on this touching farewell his wife, Aliya Fowler, posted on Instagram.
A photo posted by Darya Aliya Fowler (@daryaaliya) on Dec 9, 2016 at 10:45am PST
The caption reads:
Dear Chicago. Thank you. For welcoming our family with open arms. For always cheering for my husband and Naya’s daddy. For having our backs even after a bad day. You were the highlight of Dexter’s career. We made history and we will always keep Chicago and All Cubs fans close to us. Baseball is baseball for most of you, but for us it’s also our livelihood and our career. We have made a decision for our family and career and we’re ready to make history and embrace our new team and city !!! Thank you for always being classy! Cheers!
Fowler’s tenure in Chicago was relatively short. He spent two seasons there after playing six in Colorado and one in Houston. But it was under Joe Maddon’s watchful eye that he developed from a not-quite-there player with notable upside to an all-around contributor who became a first time All-Star in 2016.
In Chicago, Fowler matured as a baseball player, becoming one of the very best center fielders and leadoff hitters around. He also became a champion after falling short in three previous postseason appearances. Above all else though, he continued growing and providing as a husband and a father.
That his family got as much from the experience as he did is a credit to Chicago. It’s not always easy being a player coming into a major city. Sometimes it’s even more difficult on his family. That could have been especially true in Chicago, where the pressure to win mounted with each passing year, but the end result was a great relationship filled with many memories for all involved.
Don’t sweat it though, Cardinals fans. As much as the Fowler family appreciated Chicago, they’re ready to move on to bigger and better things.
I caught my daughter carrying her car downstairs with my new @cardinals hat saying "I'm going to St Louis"
???? pic.twitter.com/gOSR4A1bTx— Dexter Fowler (@DexterFowler) December 10, 2016
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
The StewPod: A baseball podcast by Yahoo Sports
Subscribe via iTunes or via RSS feed
– – – – – – –
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
