Cubs Put The Giants Away in 4 Games

Check. Yet every one of manager Joe Maddon’s men recognizes the task ahead.

In the top of the ninth inning, the Cubs finally got into the Giants’ bullpen and miraculously took the lead.

The 6-5 comeback victory over the Giants on Tuesday night also allows the Cubs to rest before their next challenge. And he’s going to get bigger and stronger. And the competition will do nothing but get stiffer, as their 4-0 series loss last season at the hands of the New York Mets in the NLCS proved.

The young present and future of the Cubs was on full display as they moved into the NLCS for the second straight season, ending the Giants’ streak of 10 straight victories in playoff elimination games and 10 straight postseason series wins.

What are the key elements that can either propel the Cubs into the World Series? “And they are contributing in a way that they’ll go down in history so that’s fabulous”. Cueto has had a lot of success against the Cubs, and the Giants had their big horse in reserve. Willson Contreras’ two-run single tied the game before Javier Baez singled in the game-winner following an infield error. “Maddon and many others have spoken of the Cubs” commitment to playing all 27 outs.

Chapman closed out each game of the Giants series, but was noticeably less sharp than he was during the regular season.

Jon Lester became the 10th Cubs pitcher to throw at least eight shutout innings in a postseason game.

Make no mistake, the Giants were the biggest threat to the Cubs in the National League this year.

This isn’t to compare the Cubs-Giants “rivalry” (it isn’t even a rivalry) to that one.

Kris Bryant tossed his glove high in the air, Jake Arrieta jumped over the dugout railing and the rest of the Chicago Cubs rushed to join the celebration. In the World Series, they won a decisive Game 7.

“Once the playoffs start, I don’t put pressure on myself”, Contreras said.

The Joe Maddon factor is real.

If they are willing to spent a lot of money on a closer, San Francisco can make a push for Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen or Mark Melancon. The “1918 chants” and “Curse of the Bambino” talk would dominate Red Sox’s playoff series through the 1990s and 2000s, especially when they played the Yankees.

And it’s not like he wasn’t confident in his 103-win team entering the series. In 2014, they won the wild-card game before slicing through the NL.

The San Francisco Giants leaned on some new faces and aces this time around, hoping to ride that even-year magic through another October. Dexter Fowler had two hits, and Jason Heyward, Anthony Rizzo and Addison Russell had one.

Based on what he saw in the room, he said, this group has “five, six years” to be “making runs like this all the time”. Rizzo in particular hit.310 with runners on base and carried a 1.078 OPS with runners in scoring position.

Lopez goes out, Sergio Romo comes in, and Ben Zobrist hits a double, 5-3. Had the series gone the limit of five games, the tension within the friendly confines of Wrigley would have been nearly unbearable.

The Cubs, reacting just as they did all season with the burden of expectations, sneered at them, embraced them, then mocked them as they wildly celebrated the latest milestone in a year they’ll never forget. It is a game of parity and one where the underdog often has his way. So just sit back and enjoy the ride, St. Louis, because your rivals are primed to win their first World Series title in 108 years. The Giants may have their toughest decision with Romo, who spent most of the first half of the season on the disabled list but when healthy recorded a 2.64 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 30 2/3 innings. Starter Matt Moore had pitched eight attractive innings (and maybe should have gotten a chance for one more), allowing just two hits, two walks and one earned run, but the Giants bullpen proved the team’s Achilles heel as it had throughout the year. Chicago hasn’t been to the World Series since 1945, the year Billy Goat Tavern owner Billy Sianis supposedly placed his hex on North Siders.

If reminders of what this season is about were necessary, if we needed to identify again those who were preordained to be its central characters, we got them Tuesday night. Williamson appeared in 54 games in 2016, posting a.223/.315/.411 line, with six home runs and 15 RBI.