Hope grows for Cubs in bid to end century of hurt

“So we square up with our best guy for that situation against their best guys, and we see what happens”.

Westgate Sportsbook installed the Chicago Cubs as the betting favorites to win the 2015 World Series.

Much of a raucous, towel-waving crowd of 42,411 lingered as manager Joe Maddon posed for a selfie with his wife, and Jon Lester sprayed champagne with his young son.

“I can only imagine what the next thing is going to look like”, said Lester, the lefty who twice won the World Series with Boston. “Hopefully, this is just a taste of what’s to come”.

As the music blared and the strobe lights flashed in the clubhouse, Cubs players and coaches soaked each other. “The whole city is going to celebrate this”.

The Dodgers beat the Mets 3-1 on Tuesday night and will play Game 5 of their division series on Thursday in Los Angeles. Cubs SS Addison Russell, who left Monday’s game due to left hamstring tightness, did not play Tuesday.

The Cubs had a string of five consecutive losing seasons before they went 97-65 this year.

Chicago won the series three games to one. “I can’t even put it into words”. “It truly is a special time right now”.

The Cardinals claimed a 2-0 lead just four pitches into the game.

“That’s always hard to walk away from”. They should all be back again next year. In the Cubs half of the 6th Anthony Rizzo re-took the lead for Chicago with a solo shot to make it 5-4.

In the seventh, Schwarber added an insurance run with a leadoff solo homer off Siegrist that landed outside right field on Sheffield Avenue. The ball seemed to disappear, possibly clearing the videoboard in right or hitting the Budweiser sign above it. This time the Cubs were able to eliminate their arch nemesis 6-4 in Game 4 of the NLDS.

St. Louis equalized in the sixth after Jason Heyward and Jhonny Peralta hit back-to-back singles.

Cahill, the fourth Cubs pitcher, let in two sixth-inning runs as the Cardinals forced a 4-4 tie. Chicago dropped those final two at home, including the infamous Bartman defeat in Game 6.

The Cubs answered with four runs in the second inning, the first scoring when Chicago pitcher Jason Hammel singled in Starlin Castro from second base.

Lackey gave up four runs and four hits over three innings after outpitching former teammate Jon Lester in a dominant series opener.

The Cardinals, playing without catcher Yadier Molina (left thumb), failed to advance in the postseason after winning at least one series the previous four years.

“I think the playoff atmosphere can drain you of energy mentally and you spend a lot of brain power throughout the day contemplating things, thinking about different scenarios and it can be taxing, and sometimes that’ll translate into a few physical fatigue”, he said. “They also have a really good lineup”, Lackey said.

There was late drama at Wrigley Field as Matt Carpenter hit a two-out single in the ninth for St Louis to bring Stephen Piscotty, who had homered in the first inning, to the plate as the potential tying run.

“I will be shocked if they’re not in the World Series or winning it”, Piscotty said. “There was considerable weakness in his thumb”, manager Mike Matheny said. Cruz started in his place. “I want to believe that Javy is arriving at that same point”, Maddon said. “He’s not going to play today, of course”.

Shortstop Javier Baez, filling in for injured Addison Russell, launched a three-run homer to right center to bring home Schwarber and Hammel.