The year of the Cubs!
The St. Louis Cardinals won 100 games this past season, so it’s no mistake they’re in the playoffs. They live for the post season and there’s been more than enough instances where their backs were to the wall in a must-win game. After a loss in Game 3 at Wrigley Field thanks to Jake Arrieta and the young Chicago Cubs bats, they needed this to extend the NLDS and send the series back to St. Louis.
With the energy in Chicago on full tilt, Stephen Piscotty quieted the crowd in the first inning blasting a 2-run homer into center field and putting the Cardinals up 2-0.
But the 2nd inning belonged to the Cubs. Jason Hammel brought Starlin Castro to bring Chicago within one run and Javier Baez sent a ball out of the park for a 3-run homer that put the squad up 4-2. The crowd went absolutely wild.
More runs were scored in the 6th inning, as the Cardinals brought in two more thanks to Tony Cruz and Brandon Moss, but a crucial out at home plate saved the Cubs from an even bigger inning by the Cards. Jorge Soler threw a monster ball from outfield to get Cruz out at the plate.
In the bottom of the 6th, Anthony Rizzo hit a home run to right field.
As most who have been watching the Cubs know, the young bats have been coming up victorious in the clutch and it proved in the 7th inning when Kyle Schwarber absolutely crushed a shot over the scoreboard into another universe to put Chicago up 6-4.
The Cubs held on to the lead for the remainder of the game and are now moving on to the NLCS to face the winner of the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.
This is the first time that Chicago moves on to the National League Championship Series since 2003, en route to what would be an unthinkable road to the World Series, to finally break the 107-year old championship drought. They also clinched a playoff series for the first time in their history.
Is this finally the year?!