Photo courtesy of Arturo Pardavila III/Flickr
In 1908, Taft was elected to be the next president, a gallon of gas cost 11 cents, and it was the last time the Chicago Cubs had won a World Series, until now.
The Cubs broke the “Curse of the Billy Goat,” a 108-year span in which the Cubs didn’t win the World Series. The Cubs defeated the Indians in an 8-7 thriller in the winner-take-all game Nov. 2.
The title brought joy to Cubs fans around the world, including Northwood student Cade McCallister.
“I was thrilled to see it happen,” McCallister said. “There are so many fans that had waited a long time to see them win, and I was happy that I was there to watch it when it finally happened.”
The Cubs were riding a 6-3 lead going into the bottom of the 8th inning, and it was all but over for the Indians. Chicago had a three run lead, and the Cubs were bringing in one of the best closers in the MLB: Aroldis Chapman. But with two outs, a substitute from earlier in the game, Indians outfielder Brandon Guyer, hit an RBI double. After that, Indians outfielder Rajai Davis came up and hit his only home run of his postseason. It was the unlikely two-run home run that tied the game.
“I got very worried,” McCallister said. “I knew that it would give momentum to the Indians, and I thought it was all but over for the Cubs.”
The Cubs finally got the third out to send it to the 9th inning. The 9th inning was very stressful for fans of both teams, but no runs were scored and Game 7 went to extra innings. Behind Ben Zobrist’s RBI double and pinch hitter Miguel Montero’s RBI single in the 10th inning, the Cubs took the lead back. Cubs relievers Carl Edwards Jr. and Mike Montgomery closed it out in the bottom half of the inning, causing Cubs fans to go into a frenzy.
“I screamed in my living room with my dad, who has been a Cubs fan for 56 years,” McCallister said. “It was very exciting.”
The Cubs had a parade in downtown Chicago on Nov. 5. According to MLB.com, five million Cubs fans attended the parade, making it the largest gathering ever in the Western Hemisphere. School was off on the Friday of the parade, which helped contribute to the astonishing number of Cubs fans that attended the parade.
This World Series for the Cubs is more than ending a curse, but without the pressure of the curse weighing the Cubs down, it could possibly take off that pressure for future postseason runs.
“I think it will take pressure off for future postseason runs,” McCallister said. “I also think winning it all will give a lot of the younger players on the team confidence for big postseason games in the near future.”
But for now, the Chicago Cubs are World Series Champions for the first time in over a century, breaking any curse they may have had.
– By Jeffrey Marcin
