We drank beers with Bill Murray at Game 7 of the World Series

I need to set the record straight: Bill Murray was not buying beer for the Cleveland fans sitting behind him at Game 7 of the World Series on Wednesday.

He was simply passing back the beers his fellow Cubs fans were buying him, following that rule we’re taught as youngsters: never accept food from strangers.

I was one of the Cleveland fans sitting behind him, and we graciously accepted and drank up. Bill Murray didn’t seem like a stranger.

The last thing I expected when I woke up in New Jersey on Wednesday morning was to be in Cleveland for Game 7 that night. I planned to pick up a free taco at Taco Bell thanks to Francisco Lindor’s stolen base, but I figured that was as far as my World Series spirit would take me.

Then my phone buzzed. Kent, a friend who I ran track with in college, had an extra ticket to the game thanks to his work. He grew up in Ohio as a die-hard Cleveland sports fan and was already on his way with a group of Cleveland fans. He had one more seat, if I wanted it.

I got the text at noon. I packed a bag and was in the car 20 minutes later heading for Progressive Field.

Seven hours later, after one stop for gas and a free taco, I was at the epicenter of the sports universe. Chants of “Go Tribe, go!” and “Go Cubs, go!” took turns filling the air amid a buzz of whistles and cheers as fans roamed around soaking it all in.

I met Kent at the gate and we walked through the stadium, dodging bathroom and beer lines along the way, and made our way to our seats with Kent’s crew of five. The seats were “Wait, what?” good: six rows up down the first base line just past the dugout.

“This is unreal,” I said.

“It’s either a top-five sports moment of all time if the Cubs win,” Kent said, “or Kyrie’s shot won’t top my list anymore.”

I’m a Tigers fan. I grew up in Bath, Mich., bred on Detroit sports – but I was all in on Cleveland with Kent for Game 7. Even after a certain celebrity fan showed up.

Bill Murray seemingly came out of nowhere. The row in front of us was empty for the first three innings — just a man and woman in Cubs gear. Then he showed up, wearing a golf shirt with “William Murray” written on the back and a Cubs hat, and he was walking into that empty row in front of us. He was straight-faced, but seemed on the verge of a smile. I did that thing you do when you see a celebrity, nudging Kent and whispering, “Dude, that’s Bill Murray.” Everyone around us realized the same thing, and all eyes in our section were on the most famous Cubs fan around.

He looked up at us and shook his head with a smile at all the Cleveland gear, then he turned to the game. Fans clamored around Murray for selfies — he posed and smiled for them all.

Then a Cleveland fan brought him a can of Bud Light. Murray grabbed it, slowly turned around, and handed it to Kent, who took it with a laugh. “That money’s going to the Cardinals, anyways,” Murray said and winked. After a beat, we realized he was making an Anheuser-Busch joke.

Watching the game with Murray sitting in front of you was like watching any normal game, aside from having to deal with the groups of people crowding you for selfies between innings and a stream of free beers being passed to you. When Javier Báez homered in the fifth, Murray gave high fives to everyone around him, then turned to us and slowly put his hand down mockingly. When Anthony Rizzo singled in another run later that inning, he tried to give high fives to us, anyways.

And the beers kept on coming. Even when Murray’s son — he was the guy sitting in front of us when the row was mostly empty — handed Murray a pumpkin beer, he had Kent test it. Kent did, then handed it back and Murray had a few sips.

Cubs fans started counting down the outs in the seventh. They were four away when Aroldis Chapman came in. Then Brandon Guyer doubled and Rajai Davis went yard to tie the game. I didn’t see Murray’s initial reaction because I was busy jumping up and down with Cleveland fans, but I did see him slink in his seat, grabbing his head in disbelief.

Once the dust settled and the Cubs were up in the ninth, he leaned back and told us to look out for a suicide squeeze with Báez up to bat. The Cubs tried it, but Báez struck out. The Cubs held them in the bottom and we readied for extra innings.

Then the rain came down.

Murray didn’t come back to the seat in front of us once play resumed. I didn’t get to see his reaction when Rizzo caught the final out and 108 years turned to nothing. Not that I needed to. It was all over the web, including a story or two about Murray buying beers for the fans behind him.

The rest of my night wasn’t quite as fun as Murray’s. I drove back to Jersey through the night — don’t worry, I only had one of the free beers — barely staying awake. It ended up being a 20-hour trip, 14 of which were spent on the road.

It was all worth it, though. While Kent didn’t get to witness the top sports moment of his life, I think Murray did ... and so did I.