Chicago Throwing World Series Party On Hold For 71 Years

The Indians and Cubs game starts at 8:00 P.M. Eastern.

Slugger Kyle Schwarber wasn’t medically cleared to play in the field after coming off knee surgery, so Chicago manager Joe Maddon can only use him as a pinch-hitter.

By Wednesday, however, with the Indians up 1-0 in the series and cold, rainy weather in the forecast for game #2 in Cleveland, fan interest (and therefore ticket prices) dampened significantly. It had been awhile since hospitals near Progressive Field had to prepare for a World Series as well – the Indians made it most recently in 1997.

Souvenir sellers were on almost every corner, peddling cheap caps and “I ain’t afraid of no goats” T-shirts, a nod to both the film “Ghostbusters”, which starred celebrity Cubs fan Bill Murray, and the “Curse of the Billy Goat”, a hoodoo placed upon the Cubs by an irate fan after he and his goat were thrown out of a 1945 World Series game.

Even if it is the Chicago Cubs, who the baseball gods have used as a chew toy for more than a century now. But still, it potentially outweighs not playing him or (Mike) Nap (Napoli).

“It’s just something that gets you going, even though you’re in a visiting park”, Napoli said. “They have such good young players, I think they’re going to win it and they’re going to be in it for a long time after I’m gone”.

It’s been pretty great so far, and it’s only getting started. This could turn Wrigley Field into a launching pad for hitters, possibly giving the home run-hitting Cubs a small advantage. Trevor Bauer lasted just 3 2/3 innings, beginning a parade to the mound that included six relievers and a total of 196 pitches. Soler was in the sixth slot, followed by second baseman Javier Baez, shortstop Addison Russell and pitcher Kyle Hendricks. “Everybody has been waiting for this moment”. Needless to say, Wood and Prior both met with serious, career-altering injuries, and the Cubs finished well out of first place.

It turned out to be a good call as the game went on without a hitch and ended after more than four hours as light rain was beginning to fall.

“It’s a class move by them”. Instead, they played at West Side Park, located by what is now the University of IL at Chicago campus. One of Marie’s early dates with Brueck’s father had been a trip to the 1929 Series, and the program from that game remains a family heirloom. But he had an encouraging checkup with Dr. Daniel Cooper on October 17 in Dallas, clearing the way for a short stay in the Arizona Fall League before serving as the designated hitter in Cleveland. It has been 71 years since they’ve done that, and the Cubs fans in the city are celebrating appropriately.

“Facts are facts”, Schwarber said. “I just can’t physically do it”.

“I knew I hadn’t given up a hit all the way to the sixth”, Arrieta said.

“It’s a disadvantage”, Francona said. “When I was here, they didn’t have the new clubhouse, so it was fun being at the ballpark until it was time to shower or go to the bathroom or something”. “OK, he’s a big part of our offense”.

But as the postseason began, the Indians found a dependable starter to slot in behind Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer and Josh Tomlin. Recommending “Catching Hell” feels a bit like giving two thumbs up to a snuff film, but Gibney gets major points for pointing out that this series’s true villain was Cubs shortstop Alex Gonzalez, who, shortly after the Bartman incident, booted a tailor-made double play that would have gotten the Cubs out of the inning leading 3-1.

“It’s unbelievable. I love baseball history, and Wrigley Field is as good as it gets”, he said.