So, I’m walking around AT&T Park before Thursday’s Game 5 NLCS matchup between the Giants and Cardinals.

It’s the usual bedlam, with S.F. fans dressed as clowns skateboarding around Willie Mays Plaza, playing kazoos. Just another day in San Francisco, really.

Then I spot an elderly gentleman, clad in a full-on Chicago Cubs gamer with matching Cubs hat. I couldn’t resist, so I walked up to him and asked some version of: “What the heck, man?”

The Cubby fan’s name is Jim Dawson, a 74-year-old from Wheatland, Calif., near Marysville off Hwy. 70. But he’s got Waveland Ave. in his heart.

“I’m just looking for someone to beat the Cardinals,” said Dawson, by way of explanation. “We feel about them like you do about the Dodgers.”

And there you have it. Nothing warms a baseball fan’s heart like the failure of a hated rival.

So, here’s to you Mr. Dawson. His favorite team is the Cubs … and whoever’s playing the Cards.