October 9, 2015 Chicago Sun-Times Cubs ride Jon Lester’s World Series pedigree into historic Cubs-Cards opener By Gordon Wittenmyer ST. LOUIS – Whether it’s a year early or right on time, Jon Lester’s $155 million moment arrives just after 5:45 p.m. Friday. The big left-hander has been a major reason the Cubs are even in the playoffs this season – even as he seemed to slide deeper into the growing shadow of Jake Arrieta as the second half of the season wore on. But all the heavy lifting in the regular season aside, this was the ultimate vision. This was the kind of moment the biggest free agent deal in team president Theo Epstein’s career was supposed buy – a Game 1 start in a place like this, in a series that could turn the postseason on its head. Lester, a two-time World Series champion with the Red Sox, calls it “just another game,” but then that’s also what he called the last postseason game he pitched for the Red Sox – a Game 5 World Series victory over the Cardinals in this same stadium two years ago. “Listen, I signed here to win,” Lester said in the champagne-spray aftermath of Wednesday’s wild-card victory in Pittsburgh – bristling at the suggestion the 97-win success of Joe Maddon’s Cubs this year should be considered a shock or “gravy” because it’s supposedly coming a year before it was expected by most. “I wouldn’t have signed here if Theo didn’t make me believe we were going to win,” he said. Lester got through a rough April battling “dead-arm” soreness – then managed his way around infield throwing “yips” much of the season – to put up 205 innings of impressive work (3.34 ERA, 207 strikeouts) to help get the Cubs to this point. And now comes the moment the Cubs could only suggest last winter that Lester imagine – an image they tried to inspire through their exhaustive sales pitch that included video of what a Cubs World Series winner might look like. “I know he’s going to be ready,” said Maddon, who would have Lester again for a possible winner-take-all Game 5 start in the same place Wednesday. “He loves this kind of stuff. “He’s pitched really well against this group. He’s pitched well against them in the past. So I have all the confidence in the world in Jon going into that game [Friday] and if we need him at the end, we have him at the end, also.” The Cubs’ success in this series might depend on it.

With one start from other-worldly ace Arrieta spent on the wild-card shutout in Pittsburgh, he will be available only for a Game 3 start in this best-of-five series. With tougher matchups for the Cubs in Games 2 and 4, they might need to win both Lester starts to beat the Cardinals – something he did in that 2013 World Series, allowing one run over 15 1/3 innings in those two starts (0.59 ERA). And that goes back to why he was signed. That he faces his close friend and former teammate on the 2013 Red Sox champion, John Lackey, figures only to heighten intensity Friday. Lester is reluctant to elevate the importance of any game as he prepares for Friday’s start. But even he understands the symbolic importance as the series open – if not the significance toward the history these Cubs are trying to make. “I wanted to come here to win. I wanted to come here and be part of this, and hopefully bring a World Series championship here,” he said. “But I can’t look at it being that defining game.” That’s part of how he has built a 6-4 record and 2.57 ERA in 14 career postseason games (12 starts). Besides, there might be another defining moment next week. Or later this month. “I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “I know how the regular-season went with these guys. It’s going to be a grind. They’re a good team – the best team in baseball. And we’ve got to go into their place and win a short series. “Winning in the regular season and winning in the postseason are two totally different things,” he said. “We’re prepared. We’ll be prepared.” -- Chicago Sun-Times Cubs sign Cuban prospect Eddy Julio Martinez—report By Dan Cahill It looks as though the Cubs can never have enough young prospects. The deepest, young team in baseball just got deeper as they signed Cuban center fielder Eddy Julio Martinez, according to MLB.com. When a deal fell through earlier in the week with the Giants, the Cubs moved in on the 20-year-old, signing him for a reported $3 million. Martinez, 6-2, 195, is the No. 1 prospect on MLB’s Top 30 International player rankings. Martinez possesses a tremendous work ethic, according to MLB.com. He travels more than two and half hours every day to work out at a complex in the Dominican Republic. From MLB: Martinez is on the complex’s track by 7 a.m., and by 9 a.m., the 20-year-old is on the nearby baseball diamond for three hours of batting and fielding practice. He has a break for lunch and some downtime to study English before the outfielder puts in a few hours of weight lifting at VIP Fitness, the same gym where Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes and Red Sox outfielder Rusney Castillo once trained before becoming big leaguers. --

Chicago Sun-Times In the middle: A strange tapestry of Cubs and Cardinals fans By Mitch Dudek BLOOMINGTON — Baseball loyalty in this downstate city is like religion — or the measles: Everybody gets it from somebody. The city lies almost exactly between Chicago and St. Louis. Nearly everyone here can connect the dots of their allegiance to either Wrigley Field or Busch Stadium — each a two-hour car trip in opposite directions. Schooners tavern, a friendly neighborhood joint, represents the town’s divided baseball allegiances. Banners from each club adorn the walls — on opposite ends of the bar. “There are some fans, one way or the other, that totally hate the other team,” said Bob Groetken, who owns the bar. A group of Cardinals fans standing in a semicircle, with draught beers stationed chest high, ticked off names of extreme regulars who despise the Cubs: Hank, Chad, Donny, to name a few. According to the group, one of Donny’s favorite sayings is, ‘The only thing dumber than a Cubs fan — is two Cubs fans.’ ” Thousands of Cubs fans will pass Bloomington as they travel down Interstate 55 to St. Louis in the next few days. Bob’s brother, Rich Groetken, an accountant, admitted his 14-year-old granddaughter was a Cubs fan — most likely because of the influence of a wayward aunt who lived in Chicago for a time. “She’s out of the will,” came a voice from the group. “But her 7-year old sister — the smart one — she’s a Cardinal fan,” Rich Groetken added. The bar was short on Cubs backers on Thursday. There was the bar’s general manager, Mike Svob, 61, who grew up in Oswego, and Scott Laughlin, 57, a morning radio host and third-generation Cubs fan. You won’t find Laughlin at the bar Friday night when the two teams start their playoff series — the first time the rivals have met in the post season. “I won’t watch a game here with Cardinal fans around,” Laughlin said, jabbing his pals. “I’ll just do it at home. I’m just superstitious. I don’t like being around Cardinal fans. I don’t need that s—.” But Cubs fans are expected to be well-represented at the bar Friday night. One called the bar earlier this week to see if Groetken would be serving Old Style — a brand of suds with long ties to Wrigley Field — during the wild-card playoff game the Cubs won on Wednesday. The phone call launched Groetken on a beer quest. “You couldn’t find Old Style at any liquor store in town.” he said. “I’m serious. I looked. I went to two or three liquor stores and they said they have never run out of Old Style before, ever.”

A strong indication of Cubs fans blanketing the area? “A strong indication they’re a bunch of drunks,” joked Randy Crutcher, 57, an electrician. Groetken expects a healthy amount of jabbing from opposing sides on Friday night. But his voice won’t be among them. “I kind of lay low in the weeds,” said Groetken, a Cardinals fan who enjoys selling beer to everyone. “As a rule, I try to play it low-key.” Who’s going to win? “I don’t know. The Cubs are good, but they lack depth on the mound,” he said, adding that only one thing is certain. “It’s going to get heated,” he said. -- Chicago Sun-Times The Cubs have a 54-percent chance to beat the Cardinals in NLDS By Rob Ogden The Cardinals are the NL Central champs, but the Cubs are favored to win the NLDS, at least according to FanGraphs.com. The statistics website says the Cubs have a 54.4-percent chance of defeating St. Louis and moving on to the NLCS. From there, Chicago has a 24.9-percent chance of capturing the NL pennant and a 12.9-percent chance of winning its first World Series since 1908. According to the site, the projections are based on “a combination of Steamer and ZiPS projections” and use the FanGraphs Depth Charts to calculate the winning percentage of each remaning game in the major league season. The best World Series odds belong to the Dodgers at 22.3 percent, followed by the Blue Jays (16 percent) and the Cubs. Chicago begins its best-of-seven series with the Cardinals Friday in St. Louis. The Cubs were 8-11 against St. Louis during the regular season and will meet their longtime rival in the postseason for the first time. Jon Lester will get the Game 1 start for the Cubs against John Lackey. -- Chicago Sun-Times Thanks to Theo, Cards got big bang for buck with Game 1 starter Lackey By Daryl Van Schouwen ST. LOUIS — OK, “dirt cheap” is a stretch when we’re talking about a half million dollars, but in terms of baseball salaries, that’s what the Cardinals got right-hander John Lackey for thanks to an injury clause in the veteran right-hander’s contract that was given to him by none other than Cubs president Theo Epstein.

Lackey, who will face the Cubs in Game 1 of the National League Division Series Friday at Busch Stadium, made the league minimum $507,500 in 2015 because an injury clause kicked in at the end of a five-year, $82 million contract – negotiated by then Red Sox GM Epstein — due to his missing the entire 2012 season with an elbow injury. With a 13-10 record and 2.77 ERA in 2015, Lackey might be baseball’s value of the year. At 36, Lackey has been a rotation life saver for the Cardinals, who lost Adam Wainwright to an Achilles injury in April (he’s back for the playoffs as a reliever) and Carlos Martinez to a shoulder in September. Michael Wacha, whom Cubs Game 1 starter Jon Lester thought he’d be matched up against, probably lost the nod because of his struggles in September (7.08 ERA). So Lackey will go against his good friend and former Red Sox teammate Lester in his 19th postseason start. He’s 7-5 with a 3.08 ERA in postseason games for the Angels, Red Sox and Cardinals. “You hear some guys saying it’s just another game,’’ Lackey said of playoff baseball. “It’s not. You gotta accept that you’re going to feel something different. You gotta accept that you’re going to be a little more amped up.’’ After Lackey, the Cardinals will go with Jaime Garcia in Game 2, Wacha in Game 3 and Lance Lynne in Game 4. Epstein, who added the contract clause when he discovered Lackey’s elbow damage before finalizing that deal, is eager to see Friday’s matchup. “He’s worked hard to come back from Tommy John and has been a really good pitcher after the surgery,’’ Epstein said Thursday. “He deserves a lot of credit. “He’s a big time competitor. This is his favorite time of year. It’ll be a heck of a matchup of two guys that know how to pitch in October.’’ -- Chicago Sun-Times Thank you Kyle Schwarber for that wonderful memory By Rick Telander ST. LOUIS — Chicks dig the long ball. But so do guys. And when this guy saw Kyle Schwarber connect with a Gerrit Cole fastball in the third inning of Wednesday night’s National League wild-card game, launching the pellet into the sky like a tiny, wild asteroid that disappeared over the right-field wall — well, this guy got pretty excited. It’s not just that the home run knocked in Dexter Fowler, or that it put the Cubs up 3-0 on the Pirates, or even that it was Schwarber’s third RBI of the night. Nor was it the fact this was the first home run hit by a Cubs rookie in his first postseason game. It was that the home run was a thing of majesty and power seldom seen in any game pitting one man against another, your best against my best. The 22-year-old Schwarber gave the bat a bit of a flip after his swing, possibly to remind Pittsburgh Pirates ace Cole that the Cubs right fielder had just turned one of his pitches lopsided. But it also was Schwarber’s statement to himself. Hello, me. I belong. Sure, it was only one home run. And there are hundreds hit during a baseball season.

But this was the big stage. Win-or-see-you-at-spring-training. And Cole is no slouch, with the Pirates having gone 8-1 in games he’d started against the Cubs. But that blast. The ball left Schwarber’s bat at an incredible 111.3 mph (thank you, Statcast), and it traveled roughly 450 feet. That’s 1 ½ football fields, folks — if you’ve ever seen football fields lined up back to back. And the ball might have landed in or bounced into the Allegheny River, flowing beyond the bleachers. The Allegheny’s connected to the Ohio, which flows into the Mississippi, which rolls past St. Louis. Maybe that ball’s floating toward Busch Stadium as we speak. Schwarber had felt the pressure building before the game, and he was jacked. ‘‘The nerves really hit [Tuesday night] when I was watching the American League wild-card game,’’ he said after the Cubs’ 4-0 win. ‘‘Because I realized that was going to be us, and in less than 24 hours.’’ And it was them, and like the Houston Astros who shocked the New York Yankees 3-0, the Cubs dominated behind outstanding pitching. But this Schwarber kid and his mammoth home run — it just makes your toes tingle. Less than a year ago, Schwarber, who’s built like a high school middle linebacker — he was second-team All-Ohio at that position — was a college kid in a dorm at Indiana. There was a funny video out from his student days, made by one of his teammates, featuring Schwarber and his roommate as the collegiate Odd Couple, with Schwarb clearly the low-key, clean, mostly sane guy. There was also a video of then-catcher Schwarber hitting a monstrous home run to win a tournament game, a tater that must have traveled 450 feet. So what the Cubs have here is a left-handed-hitting power phenom. Like fellow star rookie Kris Bryant this season, Schwarber didn’t start in the big leagues this spring, and since he’s been called up, he’s been moved to all kinds of positions. Manager Joe Maddon wants Schwarber’s bat in there as often as possible, especially against right-handers. The kid is batting .667, lifetime, in the postseason, averaging a home run and three RBI per game. OK, he’s only played in one playoff game. And he may be too young to appreciate where he and the Cubs are perched right now. How could he know? He was only 9 when the Cubs gagged away the 2003 NL Championship Series to the Marlins. And he was nine years from being born when the Cubs booted away the 1984 NLCS to the San Diego Padres. So he’s pure. Just baseball. I hesitate to say this, but with his stocky build and swift, strongman’s swing from the left side, he looks a little like Babe Ruth. A little, I said! As a lefty hitter who started as a catcher, he’s a tad like Joe Mauer. But enough of that. How about that home run? How great that must feel, to demolish a ball that way. How does it feel, kiddo? ‘‘It really doesn’t feel like anything when you hit it,’’ Schwarber answered. ‘‘[When you get] jammed or, you know, your bat breaks, you feel that stuff. But once you barrel a ball, you really don’t feel it come off the bat. You just see the trajectory and how it flies.’’ Oh, it flew. It flew the coop.

-- Chicago Sun-Times Flashback Friday: Lester, Lackey part of Red Sox fried chicken and beer debacle By Zack Pearson For the first time ever, the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals will meet in the MLB playoffs with game one scheduled for Friday night at Busch Stadium. The two starting pitchers, Jon Lester and John Lackey, both have had success in the playoffs and will look to give their team an early 1-0 lead in the series. The two pitchers met just one time this season with Lackey getting the better of Lester in July with both pitching good games. But the two share something in common other than the pitchers mound. Lester and Lackey have been good friends throughout their careers, dating back to their days with the Boston Red Sox. Both won the World Series with the team in 2013, but before that they were the center of one of the weirdest stories in Red Sox history. The Red Sox were expected to contend for a World Series in 2011 with a stacked lineup and a solid rotation that also included Josh Beckett and Clay Buchholz. They led the Tampa Bay Rays by 9 games on Sept. 3, and then it all went down hill in a historic collapse. The Boston Globe did some reporting and found tha some Red Sox pitchers, mainly Lester and Lackey, developed a weird habit that irritated teammates: Instead, Boston’s three elite starters went soft, their pitching as anemic as their work ethic. The indifference of Beckett, Lester, and Lackey in a time of crisis can be seen in what team sources say became their habit of drinking beer, eating fast-food fried chicken, and playing video games in the clubhouse during games while their teammates tried to salvage a once-promising season. The story went national and was a bizarre turn of events for a storied franchise. Chicken, beer and video games aren’t so harmless for the common guy but for baseball players it wasn’t a good look. The story does have its positive though as both pitchers went on to win the 2013 World Series. As Lester and Lackey compete against each other, the friendship will be put on hold until the series is over. When the postseason is over, it’s very possible that one of them will be celebrating with beer hoisting the trophy and the other eating fried chicken thinking what could have been. -- Chicago Sun-Times Cubs' Kyle Hendricks takes strong finish into Game 2 start By Gordon Wittenmyer ST. LOUIS – Right-hander Kyle Hendricks, who had an impressive finish to his first full season in the majors, gets the call to start Game 2 against the Cardinals on Saturday in St. Louis. Hendricks (8-7, 3.95) closed out the season with 13 consecutive scoreless innings – part of the 0.30-ERA stretch for the rotation during the nine-game winning streak (wild-card game included) that they carry into Friday’s Division Series opener. “You saw his last couple of games,” manager Joe Maddon said of the decision. “He’s been really sharp. The fact that he could put the ball on the ground matters a lot, too; keep the ball out of the air.” Hendricks faces left-hander Jaime Garcia (10-6, 2.43) Saturday.

Jon Lester (10-11, 3.34) faces the Cards’ John Lackey (13-10, 2.77) in Friday’s opener. And Jason Hammel (10-7, 3.74) would follow ace Jake Arrieta in a potential Game 4 start at Wrigley unless he’s needed out of the bullpen early in the series, Maddon said. The Cardinals’ Michael Wacha (17-7, 3.38) goes against Arrieta in Game 3, with Lance Lynn (12-11, 3.03) in a possible Game 4. -- Chicago Sun-Times Hard to believe, but Cubs-Cardinals rivalry could go to a new level By Rick Morrissey ST. LOUIS — Could it get any better than this? Of course it could. For extra tension, the Cubs and the Cardinals could be playing each other in the National League Championship Series instead of the N.L. Division Series. That way, they’d have a possible seven games to cultivate their dislike for each other instead of a possible five. And if there were some cosmic force running baseball, the Cardinals could be realigned right into the American League so the two teams could meet in the World Series, which the Cubs would win after 106 years of trying, leading, of course, to the end of the world. But this will do. How the Cubs plan to top Wednesday’s wild-card victory over the Pirates, I know not. But starting Friday in Game 1 of this NLDS, they’ll aim higher. They have risen to the occasion at almost every turn this season. They have done what they weren’t expected to do. Some of these Cubs are rookies who don’t know better. Some are veterans who know enough to know this is special. We know it’s Cubs-Cardinals, with all the attendant bad blood and historical antipathy. The only thing missing is Tony La Russa’s nose in the air, all a-sniff in dismissal of the Cubs. Too bad. This is the first time the archrivals will face each other in the postseason. The Cardinals are the gentry with the (world) titles, the Cubs the peasants with the pitchforks who want something better out of life. That’s a one-dimensional oversimplification for which we make no apologies. Let the easy narratives begin. They happen to be true. “They’re proven, we aren’t,’’ Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo said Thursday. “They have a lot of guys with a lot of experience, we don’t as far as position-player wise. But we’re ready for it. We know we can play with them.’’ “There’s great storylines out there, without question,’’ Cards manager Mike Matheny said. “It helps build this up. But you’ve got two rival teams already, two very good teams that won a lot of games this year and have had some tough matchups already. “There’s plenty to help boost the excitement about this series, but for us and for them, it comes down to let’s just play the game. We can talk about it all we want. We can build it up all we want, but it gets down to let’s go out and do this and see who’s standing last.’’ The Cubs and the Cardinals engaged in a battle of hit batters last month, adding a few more logs to the competitive fire. Recall Cubs manager Joe Maddon’s anger after the Sept. 18 game at Wrigley Field, in which Cards pitcher Matt Belisle plunked Rizzo: “That really showed me a lot today in a negative way. I don’t know who put out the hit. I don’t know if Tony Soprano is in the dugout. I didn’t see him in there. But we’re not going to put up with it, from them or anybody else.’’

On Friday, Jon Lester will face St. Louis’ John Lackey, his one-time Boston teammate. Both know something about intense rivalries, having been through the Yankees-Red Sox battles. This is that, without the accents. Both pitchers say they will work the corners of the plate Friday, with dominance in mind, not malice. “I think everybody, even on their side, knows I’m not going to back off on coming inside,’’ Lackey said. “I think I’ve got enough of a reputation. They know what time it is.’’ The Cardinals think it’s their time, again. They won 100 games this season, despite some significant injuries. The Cubs think it’s their time, and who’s to argue? Look at Wednesday’s wild-card game. Untested playoff team beats the Pirates in Pittsburgh with a killer combination of unblinking confidence, childlike wonder and a lights-out Jake Arrieta. Kyle Schwarber, a half season of big-league baseball under his belt, accounting for three of the Cubs’ four runs in an elimination game? If you say so. Arrieta will step on stage for Game 3 Monday at Wrigley, raising the question, What happens when you cross a zoo with a funny farm? But that’s for later. For now, sit back and enjoy Cubs-Cardinals, a rivalry fueled by passionate fan bases and the occasional errant pitch. “All-out war? No,’’ Rizzo said when asked what he expects from this series, especially after the bad feelings from last month’s meetings. “I look for baseball, up to five games.’’ That will do. -- Chicago Sun-Times There is no underdog between the Cubs and Cardinals By Kyle Thele One team has won 11 World Series championships, the other hasn’t won any since 1908. One team finished with 100 wins and in first place, the other finished in third and in the Wild Card game. However, despite all of that, the bookmakers Bovada.lv don’t see a clear cut favorite between the Cubs and Cardinals. The Cardinals are a little banged up and the Cubs are clearly on a hot streak, but this is a surprise. There is undoubtedly a few things at play in this situation. It’s not just that they believe the Cubs and Cardinals are even, but Chicago teams always get adjusted odds because of the amount of action on the city’s teams. Bovada isn’t the only place that has the Cubs as even with the Cardinals or barely underdogs. Nearly every sports book, both online and in Las Vegas, has the Cubs as the slightest of underdogs for Game 1. In fact, MGM, Westgate and the Wynn have the two teams even. Despite the odds, everyone knows the reaction to the Cubs advancing to the NLCS would be significantly different than that for St. Louis. --

Chicago Sun-Times Consumer advocates warn against scams targeting Cubs fans By Sun-Times Wire The Better Business Bureau is warning Cubs fans against scammers who will try to take advantage of the team’s postseason run to sell fake tickets and merchandise. “Whenever there’s excitement about a special event, like the Cubs postseason appearance, there are counterfeiters who want to take advantage of the opportunity in an illegal way,” Steve Bernas, president of the BBB in Chicago and Northern Illinois, said in a statement. The consumer advocacy agency suggests fans: Be wary of too-good-to-be-true deals; Shop at reputable, legitimate ticket brokers and retailers; Keep an eye out for the official hologram and license from MLB; Shop online only at licensed websites; Check the bbb.org/chicago for business reports on individual businesses; and Use a credit card when possible, so you can appeal to the credit card company if necessary. “Cubs fans have waited many years for a postseason opportunity,” Bernas said. “We don’t want their excitement to be spoiled by losing money with fake tickets or poor merchandise.” -- Chicago Sun-Times Get ready for the Super Bowl! Cubs vs. Cardinals By Rick Telander PITTSBURGH—“It’s the World Series tonight, it really is,’’ said Joe Maddon before the wild-card game. “It’s the Super Bowl. It’s all that.’’ It wasn’t any of that. But we knew what he meant. Win and move on. Lose and be done. And away we go! St. Louis, be ready. The Cubs’ bandwagon is on its way, and half-crazed fans who have been waiting since the Ark floated away are piling aboard. Cubs-vs.-Cardinals? Now, we are talking Super Bowl. Or as close as you get before the World Series. Jake Arrieta, the Cubs winning pitcher Wednesday night at PNC Field, is so aflame that if he were a prairie fire, he’d have scorched his way to the Atlantic by now. Kyle Schwarber? Ice buckets, please. Dexter Fowler? Dip tank. But it was just one game, this 4-0 shutout of the Pirates. It’s over. It may not have been fair, a one-game playoff between the teams with the second and third best records in all of baseball.

“It doesn’t necessarily determine the better team tonight,’’ said Maddon beforehand. But the one-and-done silliness is hot-stove-league discussion now. Because on we go, and this is what we’ve all been waiting for, isn’t it? The Cubs against the Baddest Team on Earth? Make that the Baddest Team in the Solar System. Hyperbole comes fast these days. And not just in Chicago. The whole baseball world has to have been wondering when the men in blue would produce a real challenge to the men in red. The Cardinals have become the nemesis of the Cubs, an army of small-town Darth Vaders with a system from the Galactic Empire, winning again and again in taunting monotony, something that has made the NL Central a near-joke and hasn’t helped the Cubs become more than a compilation of curses. Finally, we have a five-game series to see if the power structure has changed. To see if the globe has tilted toward the thirsty and starving. Nobody expected the Cubs to be this good, but here they are. And if you look at what’s trending, it is this young ball club. Their 24-game turnaround from last season is the best in baseball. Their 46 wins in the last 65 games is the best in baseball. Could this be the worm turning? make that the caterpillar. Because somewhere within the Cubs dismal history thre must be a butterfly ready to hatch. This series rivals the Bears against Packers for all the marbles. Yes, there is a lot that must happen before the Cubs could move on to the next round. But face it. Don’t either the Dodgers or Mets—the NLCS possibilities– seem like easier foes than the Cardinals? St. Louis has won 90 or more games ten times since 2000. This year they have a league best 100 wins. Everybody on their entire roster has been injured, it seems. And none of it has mattered. Onward marches the enemy. Somebody said our city would calm down after this desperation win. But that’s impossible. The hyperventilating you hear is Cubs fans starting to think something is in the offing. Cold towels and oxygen tanks are now being passed around. And sedatives for those whose constitutions can’t take the suspense. It may have taken five years of being wretched—to go with many, many years of being forlorn—but the Cubs now have Arrieta, Jon Lester, Anthony Rizzo, Starlin Castro, and all those kids, and you never know. Do we dare thank owner Tom Ricketts and management guys like Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer? Nah, let’s hold off until the next round. OK? For now it’s enough to think the Cubs are actually going to St. Louis to do something more than gaze at the arch. They’re too young to choke, too good to fold. Oh, and one more thing. The Cardinals are used to this post-season stuff, and they know the Cardinal Way will get them into it again. For the Cubs, and their legion of fans, it’s seize the damned cursed moment right here. Next year may not be better. This is the perfect time to get that monkey—and the goat and his pal, the cat—off our backs, without drawing more blood. On to the Mississippi! --

Daily Herald Cubs fans: Headed to St. Louis? Here's a guide to the city By Diane Dungey A historic Chicago Cubs playoffs matchup against the archrival St. Louis Cardinals. A weekend, with games Friday and Saturday starting off the National League Division Series of a lifetime. Cubs fans, it's time for a road trip. Point your car down I-55 and in less than six hours you'll spot the Gateway Arch looming over a city where baseball's in the blood and the temperature is just enough warmer to bring shorts back into your wardrobe. When you're not at Busch Stadium, here are some places around the city to check out to make your weekend in St. Louis complete. Ballpark Village No game tickets? Head for Ballpark Village just north of Busch Stadium for big screens and views into the ballpark. If you can stomach having to walk past the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum, Cardinals retail store and Cardinals Nation restaurant, you'll find plenty of huge TVs, bars, restaurants and a grassy park that once was the infield of the old Busch Memorial Stadium. The old one was torn down to make room for the current stadium, opened in 2006. Rooftop bleachers overlooking the stadium imitate Wrigleyville, but you'll need a ticket to sit there. 601 Clark Ave., (314) 345-9481, www.stlballparkvillage.com/ The Outfield at Mike Shannon's The traditional game-day central a few blocks from Busch Stadium is owned by the Cardinals broadcaster and former third baseman, who frequently hosts live broadcasts from his steak and seafood restaurant at the same location. The Outfield has a casual bar and beer garden, and a quieter and more stylish bar is inside the restaurant, which serves up lunch and dinner, including gluten-free meals. 620 Market St., (314) 421-1540, www.shannonsteak.com Sustenance It's hard to beat the Broadway Oyster Bar south of Busch Stadium, a spot beloved for its live music and Cajun classics. It's a tight squeeze in the restaurant; opt for the fun outdoor patio when the weather allows. 736 S Broadway, (314) 621-8811, www.broadwayoysterbar.com • You'll know when you're at Pappy's Smokehouse by the line winding around the block. It keeps moving, though, and a little patience will show you why Pappy's holds a spot on many "best BBQ" lists. A bonus: Pappy's sometimes opens a stand near Mike Shannon's on game days. 3106 Olive St., (314) 535-4340, www.pappyssmokehouse.com • You'll have to drive to the Italian-American neighborhood known as The Hill, a neighborhood a few miles west of downtown where Yankee Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra grew up. Once you're there, you can choose from a dozen restaurants, including Charlie Gitto's, Zia's and Cunetto House of Pasta.

www.TheHillStLouis.com At the ballpark All rivalries aside, this is a great place to indulge your passion for baseball. Stroll around the outside of Busch Stadium, but don't look too closely at the memorial bricks under your feet -- most are loving tributes to Cardinal fans, but a few take jabs at the Cubs. • Head to the west side of the stadium to get your picture with the statue of Stan Musial, one of the greatest hitters of all time. This is the meeting spot for stadium tours, which show you the broadcast booth, the dugout and, ahem, the World Series trophies. • Head inside for batting practice, or cross the street to the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum. Yes, there's a lot of Cardinal red. You can skip the Championship Gallery celebrating the team's titles and head instead to the substantial collection of baseball artifacts and memorabilia. 700 Clark Ave, (314) 345-9600, www.stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/stl/ballpark/ Sightseeing There's not a musty mummy in sight at the City Museum, a jaw-dropping collection of architectural castoffs reassembled into a mighty playground for kids and adults alike. You can climb, jump and run through a 10-story slide, two aircraft hanging off the roof, caves and tunnels in the floors and walls and much more. It all looks slightly dangerous, which is part of the fun, and it's open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. 750 North 16th St., (314) 231-2489, www.citymuseum.org • You might see Anheuser Busch's famed Budweiser Clydesdale horses rounding the outfield before the game, pulling up outside Mike Shannon's or being walked through Ballpark Village. For an even closer look, head out to Grant's Farm, billed as the official prep school for the huge horses, where you can visit the stables or book a behind-the-scenes tour. Rides and other attractions fill the 281-acre ancestral estate of the Busch family. 10501 Gravois Road, (314) 843-1700, www.grantsfarm.com • You can't miss the Gateway Arch, the centerpiece of the city and a stunning backdrop to Busch Stadium. Ride to the top (buy tickets in advance), visit the museum or just stroll under it to the banks of the Mississippi River. 100 Washington Ave., (877) 982-1410, www.gatewayarch.com -- Daily Herald Matheny says Cardinals' dustup with Cubs is in past By Scot Gregor Not only is the NL Central baseball's best division this season, it's the most volatile. The benches cleared in Wednesday night's wild-card game between the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park after Pirates reliever Tony Watson drilled Cubs ace Jake Arrieta. In a Sept. 18 game between the Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field, the blood was boiling after Anthony Rizzo was hit twice and the Cards' Matt Holliday was hit in the back of the batting helmet. After the game, Cubs manager Joe Maddon went on the attack.

"I have no history with the Cardinals except that I used to love them as a kid growing up," Maddon said. "Right now, that really showed me a lot today in a negative way. I don't know who put out the hit (on Rizzo). I don't know if Tony Soprano was in the dugout, but I didn't see him in there. But we're not going to put up with that. I'm going to say that. From them or anyone else." Will tempers flare again when the Cubs and Cardinals meet in the National League division series? "We just go play the game," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said Thursday. "This time of year, you play teams as much as we play teams in our division you're going to have times when, whether it's just the competitive nature or whether it's tempers, whatever it is, it goes in a direction like that. "But for us that's in the past. We go out and play the game and understand that we're required to go about the game the way that we think it should go." Leading the way: When rotation ace Adam Wainwright went down with an Achilles injury in April, veteran right-hander John Lackey stepped up and had one of the best seasons of his career with a 13-10 record, career best 2.77 ERA in 218 innings. Lackey gets the ball in Game 1 of the ALDS. In 3 starts against the Cubs this year, he was 2-0 with a 1.25 ERA. "I definitely take pride in throwing innings and being a guy you can rely on throughout the regular season," Lackey said. "My past postseasons aren't going to help me tomorrow. I have to prepare and I have to go there and do it again." Piscotty recovers: After taking a knee to the head in a frightening collision with teammate Peter Bourjos during a Sept. 28 game against the Pirates, it looked like left fielder Stephen Piscotty's season was over. Piscotty, who was knocked unconscious on the play, was diagnosed with a concussion, but he passed major-league baseball's protocol test and returned to the field Sunday against the Atlanta Braves. He is expected to start against the Cubs in Game 1, either in left field or first base. "What a great story that we're able to sit up here and honestly say that we have run him through the paces on the medical side, and there are no reservations at all," said St. Louis manager Mike Matheny. "I have a soapbox here that I want to get on because this is a big deal. It's trauma to the brain. And when we saw that collision, I think there was a collective gasp all through not just Cardinal Nation, but baseball when you see something like that. "It didn't look good. Stephen had to jump through all those hoops and appeased everybody and he feels great. He had some soreness there for a while, which is to be expected, but that's the benefit of these last few days here, to get his body recouped and now it's just back to baseball." -- Daily Herald In St. Louis some fans worry; others say bring it on By Mike Riopell St. Louis -- Some Cardinal fans worry about a better-than-usual Cubs team coming to the home of the Gateway Arch to begin a historic playoff series between archrivals. But Mark Burton, on a break from a construction job blocks from Busch Stadium hours after the Cubs won Wednesday night, sees no reason to be alarmed.

After all, look at the history. "It's the Cubs," he said. Cardinal baseball fans expect "pandemonium" here as the longtime rivals get ready for their first post-season matchup. Water in downtown fountains has been dyed red ahead of Friday's game here, and a local radio host urged his listeners Thursday morning to research Cubs starting pitcher Jon Lester's World Series scandal in 2013, when the then-Red Sox player was accused of having a foreign substance in his glove during a game against the Cardinals. "Check his glove for goo," 550 AM host McGraw Milhaven said of Lester, who denied using anything but rosin. In downtown St. Louis, software tester Darian Cummings of Belleville, Ill., says he's a Cubs fan living among Cardinals die-hards. He's from southern Illinois but went to college at Aurora University. "It's personal whenever it's a border war between Illinois and Missouri," Cummings said. "It's been like Bernie Mac and Cedric the Entertainer, you know? Jack Buck and Harry Caray. Richard Pryor and Redd Foxx. The Bears and the Rams. The Blues and the Blackhawks," he said. "It's a spiritual thing to watch this," he said. Burton discounted the Cubs' chances, but his co-worker thinks the series will be a battle. "It's going to be a tough one," Brad Jenkins said. "(Cubs President Theo) Epstein has done his job." The relatively calm Thursday in downtown St. Louis will liven up soon as Cubs fans arrive and game time approaches. That could mean big business for Carlos Pereira, selling flame-grilled hot dogs and sausages from a small metal stand on a corner a few blocks from Busch Stadium. "When the Cubs come to town, the business picks up," Pereira said. His special recipe includes something that's simmering in a pot, the contents of which he won't disclose. Pereira didn't have a strong opinion about Cubs fans' team, but the baseball rivalry has extended to his trade. "They want Chicago-style, and I say 'no,'" he said of Cubs fans' hot dog requests. "I do it better." One of his St. Louis customers Thursday was quick to tout Cardinals fans' self-described reputation as the best fans in baseball. "You have never heard us boo. We are the calm, collected, but loyal fans," Matt Koylu said. As for Cubs fans? "They are a little bit rough," he said. Make no mistake, though, Burton said. Cardinals fans are looking forward to a historic matchup with the Cubs. "It's going to be mayhem," Burton said. Because of the Cubs fans? No, Jenkins said. "We've got enough problems of our own," he said. --

Daily Herald Chicago Cubs getting a grip on rivalry By Bruce Miles ST. LOUIS -- The Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals have been through a lot together over the centuries. Just recently, they renewed open hostilities over hit batters. But there's still one thing missing between these ancient rivals: playoff competition between each other. That all changes Friday as the Cubs and Cardinals open the best-of-five National League division series at Busch Stadium. Games 1 and 2 are Friday and Saturday, with the series resuming Monday for Game 3 at Wrigley Field. The Cardinals won the NL Central with a record of 100-62. The Cubs were third in the division at 97-65, and they knocked off the second-place Pirates on Wednesday night in the one-game, wild-card playoff at Pittsburgh. Despite the Cubs' and Cardinals' long and storied history between them, this is uncharted territory for both. Before the wild-card age, which began in 1995 (a players strike wiped out the 1994 playoffs, the planned first year of wild-card teams), the Cubs and Cardinals could not face each other in the postseason because the teams were in the old National League East from the beginning of divisional play in 1969. Since wild-card play began, the Cardinals have had much the better of it. And in years when the Cubs made the playoffs -- 1998, 2003, 2007 and 2008 -- the Cardinals were suffering rare down seasons. Now, the wait is over, and these two Midwestern stalwarts are ready to go at it in the postseason. "I didn't even realize this was the first time we had met in the postseason," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said Thursday after the Cubs worked out at Busch Stadium. "I thought that was kind of interesting, but then again, it's believable if you look at how this thing plays out." There's more than a trip to the National League championship series on the line against either the New York Mets or the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the Cubs on the rise, at least this year, might there be a changing of the guard in the offing in the NL Central? The Redbirds have ruled the roost in the Central in recent years, and there's little reason to believe this well-run organization can't keep winning. But the big-market Cubs have awakened, their stated goal being a run of "sustained success." "Of course we're ready for some kind of a changing of the guard," Maddon said. "But I don't expect the Cardinals to go away. The whole division, I think, is every competitive. I know Cincinnati and Milwaukee did not have years that they would like, but they have some really nice players in both places. "So next year could be rather interesting with all the teams, I think. But again, at the end of the day, I always preach about worrying about us and ourselves only first, and I would like to believe that the Cubs are going to get better, too, next year." Cardinals manager Mike Matheny was asked if it was "cool" that these teams are meeting for the first time in the playoffs. "Yeah, I get the cool factor, especially for our fan bases," Matheny said. "And fan base is the heartbeat of this industry. So that means something to us. But when it comes to us and doing our business and going out and competing, it really doesn't matter."

Matheny cautioned that the Cubs' lack of playoff experience didn't hurt them against the more experienced Pirates in the wild-card game. The Cubs have talked all year about "playing the same game" no matter what the calendar says. "We have a lot of confidence in our group," veteran catcher David Ross said. "We don't really think about the other team that much. We try to take care of our stuff in house and worry about our own guys, our own pitching, our own hitting, our own bullpen and try to go out there and put together a game plan to beat the other team." Another veteran, left-hander Jon Lester, will pitch Game 1 for the Cubs against former Boston Red Sox teammate John Lackey. Lester experienced plenty of Red Sox vs. Yankees from his days in Boston, but Cubs-Cardinals will be a different twist. "I was never fortunate enough play in a Yankees-Red Sox postseason," he said. "So this is, I guess, my time to figure it out to see what it's all about. Obviously coming here with the Red Sox in '13 (for the World Series against the Cardinals) and playing these guys is a little bit different than coming as a division rival, so it's going to be fun. "Obviously, the fans are going to be pumped up. Chicago is pumped up. And I'm learning. You know this will be a good learning experience, and to be a part of this, it's an honor to be a part of it." -- Daily Herald Lester's time to step up for Chicago Cubs in Game 1 By Bruce Miles ST. LOUIS -- With Jake Arrieta having pitched Wednesday in the wild-card victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates, the ace of the Chicago Cubs' pitching staff is out until Monday's Game 3 of the National League division series. Jon Lester goes in Game 1 Friday, and manager Joe Maddon said youngster Kyle Hendricks would pitch Saturday's Game 2, with veteran Jason Hammel a possibility for a fourth game. "A lot is going to depend on how the first three games go," Maddon said of Hammel. "He'll be out of the bullpen early, and then we'll see what's available by Game 4." Hendricks, 25, finished an up-and-down season strong, posting quality starts in his final 3 outings of the season. "You saw the last couple of games and the fact that he's really, I think been really sharp," Maddon said. "The fact that he puts the ball on the ground matters a lot, too. Keep the ball out of the air. He's just been very sharp, so we just chose to do that." "And then it's going to get back to the idea if you don't use Jason Hammel before that, you probably will see him in Game 4, but if we need him sooner than that you'll see him sooner than that, and then we'll have to make an adjustment for Game 4." In the leading role: The Cubs brought Jon Lester in last winter to be their ace, signing him to a six-year deal worth $155 million. Lester finished the season 11-12 with a 3.34 ERA. Jake Arrieta, who assumed the role of ace last year, never relinquished it, even though Lester was the Cubs' opening-night starting pitcher. Now he's the Cubs' Game 1 starting pitcher in a playoff series, something the Cubs probably envisioned when they signed him. "I think you've got to look at the bigger body of work than just one game," Lester said. "I would like to think the guys in that clubhouse look at … the greater body of work than just the outcome of tomorrow."

During Wednesday night's champagne-soaked victory celebration, Lester reiterated one big reason he came to the Cubs. "Listen, I came here to win," he said. "I wouldn't have signed here if Theo (team president Epstein) didn't make me believe we were going to win. Joe (Maddon) set a goal of 90 wins. I guarantee you every one of us, including me, I'm watching everything this guy says, especially to a place I'm coming to, and he says 90 wins out of the gate. "He hasn't met anybody yet. He's met Theo. That speaks volumes." Few changes expected: The Cubs will set their roster for the NLDS by 10 a.m. Friday. For the one-game playoff against the Pirates, they went with 15 position players and 10 pitchers. Joe Maddon said the Cubs wouldn't have "significant" changes, but they'll carry at least 11 pitchers "because you can't have the same configuration based on a five-game series over a one-game series … But it's not dramatically different, honestly." He said it: Asked about a "real or imagined" hangover from Wednesday's victory celebration, Joe Maddon said: "It wasn't imagined, man." But, seriously, he said the one-game playoff provided a test to his players. "I know we will be ready tomorrow," Maddon said Thursday. "Truly, when you go through a moment like we did (Wednesday), we played Game 7 already. "Think about it. So you go through a moment where you have to win in order to advance. That's the most intense game you're going to play all year." -- Daily Herald Editorial: Success of Cubs provides important life lessons By The Daily Herald Editorial Board Wednesday was an extraordinary night for Chicago sports. One Chicago team celebrated its long-term success by hoisting another championship banner while another kicked off what may be long-term success with its first playoff win in 12 years. The story of hockey's Blackhawks and their rise from one of the worst-run professional sports teams to one of the best is well told now after three Stanley Cup championships in six seasons. The story of the Cubs' earlier-than-expected rise to prominence is still being written. But in both, there is a lesson for all of us that goes beyond the hockey rink or the baseball diamond, beyond the Stanley Cup or the World Series. And it's certainly something to consider as the Cubs prepare to face a daunting task in a best-of-five-game series against their most hated rival, the St. Louis Cardinals. The success of both the Hawks and Cubs can be attributed not to quick fixes (yes, somewhat of an understatement when discussing the more than a century-old futility of the North Siders) but from careful planning, wise judgments, good investments, a hefty dose of patience, a willingness to experiment and the belief that you are not constrained by the mistakes of the past.

Imagine if we all lived our lives like that. Imagine if we had the smarts to trust our gut the way Theo Epstein trusted his while building a team full of youngsters, rookies who now are shining at bat and in the field. Imagine if we had the patience Cubs executives have shown not to rush their plans, to experience the failures of the last few years knowing that good things come to those who wait. Imagine if we had the confidence in our leadership skills to brashly speak of getting to the playoffs on the first day on the job and then actually following through as Joe Maddon has done. Or imagine if we believed so strongly in our abilities, despite some rocky times, to become the best at what we do as ace pitcher Jake Arrieta did this year. Sports can be more than wins and awards and champagne showers. Enjoy them, certainly, but like these athletes, dig just a little deeper as well. -- Daily Herald McKnight: Cubs-Cardinals rivalry has lots of special moments By Connor McKnight The answer to the trivia question everyone's been asking you the past 24 hours is: Never. Despite the fact that baseball in America dates to when James K. Polk was the President of the 28 United States, the Cubs and Cardinals have never met in the playoffs. The Cubs, however, hold a modest lead in the regular-season series. They've gone 1,194-1,144 against the Cardinals since play started 1892. There also have been 19 ties. All that history and virtually none of it will matter once St. Louis starter John Lackey throws pitch number one to Cubs' leadoff hitter Dexter Fowler to open the 2015 National League Division Series. Still, this rivalry can be a bitter affair. And the connection between the two clubs is undeniable. Whether it be the proximity of the two teams, the mutual territory shared by Cubs fans and Cardinals fans down around Peoria and into Springfield or even legendary broadcaster Harry Caray, who called games for both teams, the connections run deep. • There's the Ryne Sandberg game in 1984; a game Bruce Sutter would rather just forget. • Then the home run chase in 1998 between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa that, regardless of the additives used, fueled a rivalry and the game itself to new heights. • A somber moment when Cubs catcher Joe Girardi asked fans to pray for the Cardinals lost Darryl Kile. • Another race in 2005 when Derrek Lee was near to chasing down Albert Pujols for the NL MVP. But for years now, the Cubs have had very little to say. The Cardinals have been class of the NL Central -- class of Major Leagues, really. They've reached the NL Championship Series each of the last four years, won a World Series in 2011 and lost in 2013. It's no secret; the Cubs just won their first playoff game since 2003.

Things have changed since then, too. While the Cubs of 2007 and 2008 did their best to win an arms race against the Cardinals by signing Alfonso Soriano and Mark DeRosa and trading for Ryan Dempster and Derrek Lee, the Cardinals did what they've always done. Grow their own. Whether it was Albert Pujols, Yadier Molina, Adam Wainwright or even David Freese (who they traded for one year after being drafted in the ninth round), the Cardinals were growing from the inside before supplementing with the likes of Matt Holiday, Jim Edmonds, Carlos Beltran or Scott Rolen. Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer have now adopted the same approach and even talked freely of emulating the Cardinals -- though neither would likely acquiesce to the implication of imitation inherent in the word. Now the upstart has a chance to prove a point. The challenge has been issued again and, for the first time, the Cubs and Cardinals will meet in the post season. One thing is certain, what will follow will be history. -- Daily Herald Cardinals hoping Molina is good to go vs. Cubs in NLDS By Scot Gregor As the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates battled for their playoff lives Wednesday night at PNC Park, the Cardinals kicked back in St. Louis and awaited the winner. The Cardinals earned the break by finishing the regular season with baseball's best record (100-62) and finishing in front of the Pirates and Cubs in the rugged NL Central. As they watched from afar, the Cards also had the luxury of knowing they would have to face either Pirates ace Gerrit Cole or Cubs ace Jake Arrieta only one time in the upcoming National League Division series. With Arrieta continuing his remarkable run Wednesday night, the Cubs beat Pittsburgh 4-0 in the wild-card game. Considering the Cardinals got a few extra days rest and have home-field advantage for the NLDS, they seemingly have an edge over their longtime division rivals. As Game 1 approaches late Friday afternoon at Busch Stadium, St. Louis' overall health remains the big concern, however. Yadier Molina might be the Cardinals' most important postseason player, considering his skill handling the pitching staff and his .290/.344/.375 hitting line with 3 home runs and 31 RBI in a staggering 86 playoff games with St. Louis dating back to 2004. The 33-year-old catcher has been out since Sept. 21 with a torn ligament in his left thumb. Molina has been working out at Busch Stadium this week, and manager Mike Matheny told reporters he is "much more optimistic" the seven-time all-star will be behind the plate Friday in Game 1. Molina has been wearing a splint on the thumb and while he might be good to go, he is likely to be rusty and also has to deal with the pain factor. Elsewhere on the Cardinals' injury front, starting pitcher Carlos Martinez (14-7, 3.01 ERA) was shut down in late September with a right shoulder strain. He is done for the season. Adam Wainwright, St. Louis' No. 1 starter when the season opened, tore his left Achilles tendon while batting in an April 25 game at Milwaukee. Expected to miss the rest of the season, Wainwright returned as a relief pitcher on

Sept. 30 and allowed 1 run on 2 hits over 3 innings in 3 appearances. The right-hander will be in the Cardinals' bullpen for the NLDS and is hoping to come on in "high leverage" situations. Matt Adams (quad strain), Stephen Piscotty (concussion) and Randal Grichuk (elbow strain) are all expected to be ready to play against the Cubs. -- Daily Herald 'Back to the Future' writer says 2015 Cubs prediction no longer a joke By Christopher Placek The screenwriter of 1989's "Back to the Future Part II" -- which famously has the Cubs winning the 2015 World Series -- meant it as a joke. But Bob Gale -- a born and bred St. Louis Cardinals fan -- says it's not impossible for the Cubs to go all the way this year. "Whether the Cubs make it or the Cubs don't make it, the joke will still be funny," Gale said recently from his Southern California home. "And if the Cubs do make it, then I'm a visionary." If the Cubs defeat the Pittsburgh Pirates in tonight's do-or-die wild-card playoff, they'll face the Cardinals in a best-of-five division series starting Friday. In the sequel to the 1985 blockbuster "Back To The Future," Marty McFly (played by Michael J. Fox) takes the DeLorean time machine to the year 2015. He is watching a "holomax" (think hologram and IMAX, Gale says) broadcast the news in the town square and is stunned to see the Cubs have beaten Miami in the World Series. "Being a baseball fan, I thought, 'OK, let's come up with one of the most unlikely scenarios we can think of,'" said Gale, who co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Chicagoan Robert Zemeckis. "Back in the day, seeing the movie with an audience, that always got a laugh," Gale recalled. Zemeckis isn't a huge baseball fan, Gale said, though he does favor the White Sox since he is from the South Side. Players on this year's Cubs -- some of whom were alive in 1989 -- are aware of the movie. Jake Arrieta, tonight's starting pitcher, said back in January that the coincidence between the 1989 movie and the 2015 season is "crazy, to say the least." "So we'll do our best to make sure that happens," he said. After all, other visions of the future from "Back To The Future Part II" have come true -- like video conferencing and watching multiple TV channels at the same time. So who's not to say the 2015 Cubs can take some inspiration from the Hollywood flick? "Life imitates art, as they say," Gale said. Not in everything. In the movie, the Cubs sweep Miami in five games (not four) on Oct. 21, 2015. Miami didn't have a baseball team in 1989, so Gale gets points for thinking they would by 2015. But the Miami Marlins play in the National League, so it would be impossible for them to face the Cubs in the World Series. Gale also said he made the mistake of naming the team after a gator, since that is the University of Florida's mascot.

The earliest this year's World Series could end is Oct. 31. Gale thinks his Oct. 21 prediction would have been about right had Major League Baseball not added an extra round of playoff games. Gale was 7 or 8 when he went to his first baseball game, at old Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Cardinals were playing the Cubs, and the hometown crowd applauded a "spectacular play" made by Ernie Banks. "I turned to my dad and I said, 'Why are they clapping? He got our guy out.' He said, 'That was great baseball, and whenever you see great baseball, you applaud it.'" In 1970 Gale left for film school at the University of Southern California, where he met Zemeckis. But he has never lost his love of the Cardinals. He has faith however, that Cardinals fans won't make him a scapegoat if the Cubs actually do win. "Cardinal fans are not like Cubs fans," he says. "If the Cubs win the World Series, I will not become the St. Louis version of Steve Bartman. The Cardinal fans are too together to do that." Still, he adds, "I think it's ironic if the Cubs do get in the World Series to think it was a Cardinal fan that helped get them there." -- Cubs.com Relaxed Maddon says pressure off in NLDS By Adam Berry ST. LOUIS -- Joe Maddon sat behind a table at Busch Stadium on Thursday afternoon, about 12 hours after the Cubs got into their hotel following a Wild Card celebration in Pittsburgh. He was asked if he sensed any sort of hangover from his club, whether it was real or ... "It wasn't imagined, man," Maddon quipped. A day after managing his team to a 4-0 win over the Pirates at PNC Park, Maddon was at his easygoing best as the Cubs and Cardinals prepared for Game 1 of the National League Division Series, live Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT on TBS. And why wouldn't Maddon relax a little? The Cubs aren't about to kick up their feet after one postseason victory, but they've won nine straight games -- including, the way their manager sees it, possibly the most stressful one they'll play all October. "We played Game 7 already. Think about it," Maddon said. "That's the most intense game you're going to play all year. ... I mean, we'll do well in less than five or less than seven games, but to play a one-and-go-home game, we've done it and we've come out on top. "We know we can do things like that. So when you get that out of the way early, I think that actually helps you." In typical Maddon fashion, he didn't anticipate making any changes heading into the Cubs' best-of-five series against the Cardinals. No speeches, no team meetings, no mandatory batting practice. "Just play the game, Maddon said. It's still a personally significant game for Maddon, too. The Hazleton, Pa., native became a Cardinals fan at a young age. His father took him to a Yankees game and told him he could have any baseball cap he wanted. The young Maddon picked a Cardinals cap because he liked the logo, started following St. Louis and carried that fandom throughout the rest of his life.

Well, most of his life, anyway. "When you're a Cub, though, you can't necessarily be a Cardinals fan. But I have a lot of respect for the organization, always have," he said. "The whole group wreaks of tremendous tradition. I'm a big Branch Rickey guy. But right now I'm a Cub, and hopefully will be a Cub for a long time." There is another, more serious element at play for Maddon and the Cubs over the next few days. Since his time managing the Rays in the ultra-competitive American League East, Maddon has emphasized the importance of beating better teams in developing a winning culture. This year, the Cubs won 12 of 20 games against the NL Central-rival Pirates, but lost 11 of 19 to the Cardinals. In other words, there's no time for a hangover -- real or imagined -- on Friday night. "It's really important that you know that you can beat somebody that's really good in their ballpark, and especially a team like St. Louis or a team like Pittsburgh. You've got to be able to know that," Maddon said. "Until you actually know that, it's very difficult to get it done. You're going to be intimidated. You're going to expect something bad to happen. "So the fact that we actually played pretty good in Pittsburgh all year, we played better in St. Louis, it matters. Not a little bit. A lot." -- Cubs.com Hendricks, Arrieta lined up for Games 2, 3 By Carrie Muskat ST. LOUIS -- Kyle Hendricks will start Game 2 of the National League Division Series on Saturday against the Cardinals, and not Jason Hammel, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said Thursday. Jon Lester (11-12, 3.34 ERA) will open the best-of-five series against the Cardinals on Friday at Busch Stadium, live at 5:30 p.m. CT Friday on TBS, and 22-game winner Jake Arrieta, who threw a four-hit shutout to win the Wild Card Game presented by Budweiser over the Pirates, will start Game 3 at Wrigley Field on Monday. Hendricks, 25, faced the Cardinals once this season on May 5, and did not get a decision, giving up four runs over five innings. Hammel, 33, has dealt with St. Louis three times, and is 1-1 with a 5.73 ERA. He picked up the win on Sept. 8 at Busch Stadium, serving up three runs over six innings on four hits and four walks. Hammel could start Game 4, but Maddon said that would depend on whether the right-hander is used out of the bullpen in the first two games of the NLDS. This is Hendricks' first full season in the Major Leagues, and Maddon said he picked the right-hander over Hammel for Saturday because Hendricks has been sharp in his final regular-season outings. "The fact that he could put the ball on the ground matters a lot, too, keep the ball out of the air," Maddon said. "He's just been very sharp, so we just chose to do that, and then, of course, we're not going to skip Jake [for Game 3]. And then it's going to get back to the idea of if we don't use Jason Hammel before that, you probably will see him in Game 4, but if we need him sooner than that, you'll see him sooner than that, and then we'll have to make an adjustment for Game 4." In his last three outings, Hendricks (8-7, 3.95 ERA) has given up three earned runs over 18 innings. --

Cub.com Moments that will matter in NLDS Game 1 By Adam Berry ST. LOUIS -- Jon Lester's last start of 2014 and his first start of 2015 exposed a potentially critical hole in the veteran left-hander's game and prompted a question that will inevitably follow him throughout the playoffs. Can Lester control his opponent's running game? Every postseason game and series can swing on the result of a few key plays. The National League Division Series between the Cubs and Cardinals, starting tonight at 5:30 p.m. CT, live on TBS, at Busch Stadium, will be no different. Each moment will matter, some more than others. In this case, perhaps the most scrutinized moments of the series opener will come when the Cardinals get a runner on first base against Lester. In their first game of the season, back on April 5, the Cards swiped three bases on Lester, shining a brighter spotlight on a weakness the Royals revealed last October. "I think we're going to be opportunistic and we're going to be aggressive," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said after that game, a 3-0 Cardinals win. "We have a couple guys who have the ability to do it." Last year, Lester's inability to slow down the Royals' baserunners was arguably the most memorable cause of the A's 9-8, 12-inning loss in the American League Wild Card Game. Either unable or refusing to throw over to first base, Lester allowed three stolen bases, and all three runners scored as Kansas City overcame a four-run deficit after seven innings. St. Louis ran hard on Lester this season, going 8-for-12 on steal attempts. The Cards aren't much of a basestealing threat, collectively -- they finished 21st in the Majors with 69 steals -- but they may seize the opportunity against Lester. However, to Lester's credit, he has made strides in that area down the stretch. He and catcher David Ross have devised a scheme in which Lester varies his delivery to throw off runners' timing. Lester hasn't permitted a stolen base in either of his last two outings. He caught two St. Louis baserunners stealing and picked off another on Sept. 20. Can he do the same again tonight? Strop's struggles with St. Louis Pedro Strop is the Cubs' right-handed setup ace. His numbers this season show why, as he recorded a 2.91 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP and 81 strikeouts in 68 innings. There's just one problem for Strop. He has struggled badly against the Cardinals, allowing nine runs on 10 hits and six walks in only 7 1/3 innings. He's been particularly plagued by the Cards at Busch Stadium, giving up seven hits and a homer in 12 at-bats. Can Cubs manager Joe Maddon afford to stand by Strop in a critical eighth-inning situation during this series? Maddon thinks so. "He has had some problems here. I cannot deny that," Maddon said. "But at the end of the day, man, it just takes one really good outing to get you over the top." Where to play Piscotty?

Let's say the Cardinals have built up a narrow lead in a tight game through six innings, and rookie Stephen Piscotty got the start at first base. It's not his natural position, so how does manager Mike Matheny navigate the final few innings? Over the last month, the Cards almost always shifted Piscotty to the outfield to finish games. In fact, Piscotty made nine starts at first base during the regular season but only played one full game there. Moving Piscotty to left or right field and bringing in Mark Reynolds at first would improve their defense, but can they afford to take out Randal Grichuk or Matt Holliday to clear a spot for him? Or will St. Louis choose to leave Piscotty at first base, running the risk of him making a costly late-game mistake at a mostly unfamiliar position? -- Cubs.com Cubs-Cards rivalry enters uncharted territory By Phil Rogers ST. LOUIS -- Before getting started with the seemingly important stuff, there's one detail you should know about this National League Division Series that begins tonight (6:30 p.m. ET, TBS). Should the Cubs ever find themselves with a five-run lead, the Cardinals are advised to hold runners on first base, because the Cubs will look to steal bases and push the action to extend the lead to six runs. We know this because Joe Maddon told us so a few weeks back, when the Cubs and Cardinals were engaged in a weekend series that was so intense it was impossible not to wonder how great it would be if these rival franchises met in October. We also have Maddon's assurance that the Cubs won't be looking to start anything. "But we will stop stuff,'' he said. On the heels of a hotly contested weekend turf war that saw Maddon and Cardinals manager Mike Matheny get ejected, along with pitchers Matt Belisle and Hector Rondon, Maddon's often-replayed rant -- in which he labelled the Cardinals as "vigilantes'' and asked if Tony Soprano was hanging out in their dugout -- helped reawaken a rivalry that had begun to slumber over the last decade, in large part because the Cardinals were averaging 89 wins a year, the Cubs 76. Things were going to heat up at some point, as Theo Epstein's stockpiling of talent as Cubs president of baseball operations put the teams on more equal footing. But there's nothing like a postseason series to stir the emotions, and this one -- the first between these charter franchises -- promises to have fans in both cities talking about more contemporary events than Lou Brock-for-Ernie Broglio, the "Sandberg game" or the Sosa-McGwire home run duel. The Cardinals have been one of baseball's most successful franchises, with 11 World Series titles and 19 pennants (including four in the last 11 seasons) and, from their perspective, the Cubs' new confidence is likely more than a little annoying. Maybe that's why St. Louis radio play-by-play man John Rooney has taken to sarcastically calling Maddon "The Genius'' in his broadcasts. Make no mistake about the Cardinals' strength. They are as determined to remain the top dog in the NL Central as the Cubs are to climb over them. The work of St. Louis scouts and coaches, resources and direction provided by chairman and CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. and general manager John Mozeliak and the deep inventory of pitching talent should keep the Cardinals as a 90-win team for the foreseeable future. Matheny should hold his own managing against Maddon, and that's saying something.

Despite the Cubs improving from 73 wins to 97 in Maddon's first season, Matheny will get Manager of the Year support for leading the Cardinals to 100 wins with a roster that was plagued by injuries, including ones to Adam Wainwright, Carlos Martinez, Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina. He was typically stoic when a beanball battle broke out after the Cubs' Dan Haren hit Holliday behind his ear on Sept. 18, refusing to get into a war of words. Haren, a former Cardinal, said that the organization has historically stressed the need for their pitchers to "protect'' hitters by drilling opposing hitters. "They've been known for doing those types of things, policing it that way," said Haren. "Sometimes it goes to a little bit of an extreme." And should that happen? "We're not going to put up with it,'' Maddon said three weeks ago. "From them or anybody else.'' Maddon also took a swipe at the Cardinals' reputation for playing the game the Cardinal Way. "I never read that particular book that the Cardinals wrote way back in the day,'' he said. "I was a big Branch Rickey fan, but I never read this book that the Cardinals had written on how to play baseball." Neither side was turning on the machismo at the Busch Stadium workouts on Thursday. "We just go play the game,'' Matheny said. "This time of the year, you play teams as much as we play teams in our divisions, you're going to have times when, you know, whether it's just the competitive nature or whether it's tempers, whatever it is, it goes in a direction like [that recent series at Wrigley]. But for us, that's in the past. We go out and play the game and understand that we're required to go about the game the way that we think.'' Jon Lester, who faces former Red Sox running buddy John Lackey in Game 1, says that runs are too precious in the postseason for pitchers to start throwing at hitters. "I don't think we can really worry about what happened during the regular season,'' Lester said. "This is a different time. You can't allow bad blood to boil over here and allow free baserunners, you know. The playoffs are too important to give guys free bases.'' That sounds great in theory, but just Wednesday night the Cubs cleared the benches at PNC Park in the NL Wild Card Game presented by Budweiser when the Pirates retaliated against Jake Arrieta by drilling him after he'd hit two batters. I asked Arrieta what happened on the field for that situation to escalate so quickly, with bullpens clearing and the Pirates' Sean Rodriguez looking like he wanted to tear someone's head off. "The playoffs,'' he answered. "There's a lot at stake. Tempers are running hot, and it is what it is. It's just the environment. It breeds that kind of intensity, and sometimes those things happen.'' You'd better believe the Cardinals haven't forgotten about Holliday getting hit in the head, nor about anything that Maddon said. As dramatic as that series as Wrigley Field was, the intrigue is just getting started. --

Cubs.com Lester: One start won't define my time in Chicago By Adam Berry ST. LOUIS -- When the Cubs signed Jon Lester to a six-year, $155 million deal this offseason, this was what they had in mind. Maybe they didn't expect it so soon, but Lester came to Chicago to help the Cubs push through the postseason. Lester will get his first chance at 5:30 p.m. CT on Friday (live on TBS) at Busch Stadium, when he'll start Game 1 of the National League Division Series against old friend John Lackey and the Cardinals. While he obviously understands the importance of Friday's start, the 31-year-old left-hander isn't ready to overplay the significance of what the outing means for his personal legacy. "You can't get too amped up for things. It's just how I work. I can't look at April 15 any differently than tomorrow," Lester said on Thursday. "Obviously, tomorrow when you go out there, there's going to be a little more adrenaline and there's a little bit more on the line, but at the end of it, you can look at that and see where you're at. "But I can't worry about the possibility of tomorrow defining my short stint here with the Cubs." Nor can Lester worry about his win-loss record against the Cardinals this season. He finished 1-3 against St. Louis, despite posting a 2.59 ERA in five outings, including three quality starts. For that reason, Cubs catcher David Ross said he and Lester didn't plan to change anything this time out against the Cardinals. "It's all about pitch execution, really. It's not like he's had bad outings against them," Ross said. "They've just found a way to push one more across. He'll be locked in as ever." According to Lester, he'll be locked in as usual. This may be the kind of start for which the Cubs acquired him, but he is simply portraying it as one step toward a greater goal. "I wanted to come here to win. I wanted to come here and be a part of this and hopefully bring a World Series championship here," Lester said. "But I can't look at tomorrow being that defining game. I've got to take it as a normal start against the Cardinals and prepare the same and go out there and, you know, like I've always said, I'll give you everything I got. "Hopefully, at the end of the day, it's better than the other guy." -- Cubs.com Lester, Cubs face Cards in Game 1 in St. Louis By Anthony Castrovince They've faced each other 2,363 times lo these many years. They made the Brock trade. They played the "Sandberg Game." They provided the McGwire and Sosa chase. They've stoked about as much red vs. blue passion as an Election Day. But they've never met like this. The Cardinals and Cubs will play a National League Division Series more than a century in the making, and it all gets started tonight at 5:30 p.m. CT on TBS, when the former Red Sox ring-bearers, John Lackey and Jon Lester, oppose each other at Busch Stadium. Game 1 is game on for these two NL Central stalwarts. And if their regular-season series is any indication, we're in for a treat.

"It will be much like we've seen all year long," said Cards manager Mike Matheny. "Just a knock-down, drag-out [battle]." The Cardinals, en route to their 100-win tally, took the season series, 11-8. But the Cubs won six of the last nine. Seven of the 19 meetings were decided by one run, and two more were decided by two runs. This is a fascinating matchup between the NL Central's perennial power and its rising one. In dispatching a Pirates team all-too-accustomed to the silver showing in the Central, the young Cubs, led by bespectacled skipper Joe Maddon, have earned the right to go for the gold-bearer, a Cards team that has not only won three straight division titles, but advanced to four straight NL Championship Series. "Everybody knows I grew up a Cardinal fan," said Maddon, "and I get this opportunity as manager to work versus them in a Division Series 2015. That's pretty awesome, man. Beyond that, I don't want to make it personal. It's about the players and our guys getting this opportunity. Our young guys. You have to understand, you have a bunch of young players getting this opportunity to experience playoff baseball their first year out of the chute. That down the road is invaluable." The Cards, basically, are the kind of club Theo Epstein envisioned the Cubs to be -- a sustainable force in an otherwise fickle sport. And the Cubs know they have to get through the Cards if they're going to get back to the Fall Classic for the first time since 1945 (and, of course, win it for the first time since 1908). But these two clubs are built in decidedly different ways -- the Cards with the lowest staff ERA we've seen in nearly three decades and the Cubs with that unique stash of booming rookie bats not at all overwhelmed by their surroundings or their situation. Because the Cubs had to survive the abnormally intense arrangement that is the one-and-done Wild Card Game presented by Budweiser, they come into this game with the momentum but without their ace arm. Cy Young Award contender Jake Arrieta, whose performance against the Pirates might have been even more impressive than the no-hitter he tossed against the Dodgers in his amazing second-half surge, won't be ready until Game 3. But Lester, the playoff-tested vet who was brought in on a $155 million contract for assignments such as these, is a fine substitute. And the 31-year-old Lester opposing the 36-year-old Lackey, whose resurgent season cost the Cards all of $500,000 because of a contractual clause related to past injuries, is a great storyline all its own. The two were instrumental in Boston's World Series triumph against the Cardinals just two falls ago, as they were responsible for three of the four wins combined. Another storyline: Yadi Molina. The Cards' beloved backstop has been out with a bum thumb since Sept. 20, but the Cards are optimistic he'll be good to go for Game 1. Anyway, the personal storylines pale to the overall team tale -- the experienced October entry vs. the long-suffering franchise with a newly opened window. Few rivalries in this sport can match the passion of Cards-Cubs, and that passion will be palpable in Game 1. "Oh, it's going to be awesome," said Cubs reliever Jason Motte, with the unique perspective of having played for both clubs. "It's going to be exciting. It's going to be loud here. I told people [Wednesday] night I'm pretty jacked to see what Wrigley's going to be like Monday and Tuesday. That'll be fun." Three things to know about this game • The Cubs and Pirates had, shall we say, a difference of opinion in the Wild Card Game after Arrieta was plunked by a pitch from Tony Watson. There could be lingering tension in this series, too. Maddon called the Cardinals "vigilantes" for hitting Anthony Rizzo twice in the series opener when these two clubs met in late September. The Cubs hit three batters in a win the next day. • The Game 1 start will be Lackey's 19th (and 22nd appearance) in a postseason game, dating back to the Angels' 2002 American League Division Series against the Yankees. Lackey's 3.08 postseason ERA in 117 innings is better

than his 3.92 career ERA in 2,481 1/3 innings. Among teams he faced multiple times this season, he fared better against the Cubs (1.25 ERA) than any other club. • Lester will be making his 13th start and 15th appearance in a postseason setting, dating back to Boston's 2007 AL Championship Series against the Indians. He, too, has taken his game to another level on this stage, on measure, with a 2.57 ERA in October and a 3.55 mark elsewhere. This is a tough matchup for the Cards in the sense that they had the third-lowest OPS (.662) in baseball against left-handed pitching this season. But Lester was just 1-3 with one no-decision against them despite a respectable 2.59 ERA and 9.8 strikeouts per nine innings in those five starts. It's worth noting that the Cards swiped 12 percent of their total stolen bases this season off Lester. • Former Cardinals outfielder Reggie Sanders, who drove in 10 runs in the Cardinals' 2005 NLDS sweep of the Padres, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch. The Budweiser Clydesdales will parade around the field as part of the pregame festivities, and the national anthem will be performed by local acapella group 4-Digit Chord. Gates will open at 3:15 pm CT. -- Cubs.com Cubs-Cards: 10 most compelling moments By Phil Rogers ST. LOUIS -- They've played more than 2,300 times, but the Cubs and Cardinals have never played any games that mean more than the ones they're going to play over the next week. Yet along the way the Cubs and Cardinals have built one of baseball's greatest rivalries, with passion on the field and in the stands whether playing for first place or bragging rights alone. The 10 best moments in the series, to date: 1. Brock for Broglio trade, June 15, 1964 Lou Brock, signed by legendary scout Buck O'Neil after being a star at Southern University, had barely gotten his feet wet in the Major Leagues after one season in the low Minors. Ernie Banks, his roommate, knew the kid had greatness in him. Unfortunately for the Cubs, general manager John Holland did not. With the Cubs in need of pitching depth at the Trade Deadline, Holland traded the 24-year-old outfielder to the Cardinals for veteran right-hander Ernie Broglio. Brock would not only immediately revitalize a St. Louis team that was sputtering, helping it win a seven-game World Series over the Yankees, but would go on to help the Cards win another championship in 1967 and a pennant in '68 on his way to the Hall of Fame. After the Cubs suffered their near-miss in 1969, among other disappointments, Banks lamented that they were one player short. Brock was that player. 2. Mark McGwire's 62nd home run off Steve Trachsel, Sept. 8, 1998 In hindsight, it is easy to classify the McGwire and Sammy Sosa duel for the all-time, single-season home run title as a product of PEDs, but there is no denying the excitement it created as they traded homer after homer down the stretch. While the Cardinals were a non-factor in the playoff chase that season, Busch Stadium, like Wrigley Field, was the center of the hardball universe every time McGwire or Sosa stepped into the batter's box. It was great theater when the teams intersected at Busch for the swing that sent McGwire past Roger Maris, with Sosa jogging in from right field to congratulate him. Maris' children watched from the stands while children, and adults, all around the world took in the spectacle. 3. Stan Musial's 3,000th hit, which came at Wrigley Field on May 13, 1958

One of the game's greatest hitters, Musial was 37 years old when he stroked that double to right field off the Cubs' Moe Drabowsky. Musial reacted to the milestone with his typically understated nature, he did reveal one goal that day. He told reporters he'd liked to keep playing long enough to retire "as the one player who had more hits than anybody else in the National League.'' When Musial retired five years later, after 22 years with the Cardinals, he had 3,630 hits, one more than he needed to achieve that goal, since passed by Hank Aaron and Pete Rose. 4. The Sandberg Game, June 23, 1984 While the Cardinals' Willie McGee hit for the cycle that day at Wrigley Field, you may have guessed he was not the leading man. Ryne Sandberg, then just building his reputation as a power-hitting second baseman, homered off future Hall of Famer closer Bruce Sutter in the bottom of the ninth and the 10th to give the Cubs a chance to win, 12-11, in the 11th. This was a tipping point moment for the Cubs, who would go on to win their first NL East title that season and capture a national audience, thanks in part to WGN's Harry Caray, who had been hired away from the Cardinals. 5. Bill Madlock, Al Hrabosky trigger ugly brawl at Busch Stadium, Sept. 22, 1974 Hrabosky, known affectionately as the Mad Hungarian, triggered the brawl by firing a pitch over the plate as Madlock, on-deck hitter Jose Cardenal and Cubs' manager Jim Marshall were gathered near it, arguing with umpire Shag Crawford that Hrabosky's previous pitch -- thrown while Madlock was putting pine tar on his bat -- should not have been called a strike. As Hrabosky remembered it in a 1992 article, "[the] pitch separated all three of them" and "for some reason that started a fight. And it was a good one." This was a real fight, not your typical benches-clearing scrum. Cardinals catcher Ted Simmons landed the biggest blow, punching Madlock, who was standing at the plate with his bat in his hands. You have admire the conviction, if not the lack of common sense. 6. Rogers Hornsby wins an MVP in Chicago four years after winning one in St. Louis Hornsby, who had won the 1925 NL MVP for the Cardinals, was traded to the Giants in '27, the Braves and in '28 and then the Cubs in '29. He was not the easiest man to manage, as his travels suggest, but had plenty of talent left when he donned the Cub flannels. He carried the North Siders to a pennant by hitting .380 with 39 home runs. His 156 runs scored helped Hack Wilson drive in 159. Not bad, huh? Hornsby would establish his permanent home in Chicago and, when he wasn't betting on the ponies, spent time as a Cubs' coach, working with a young Banks in the 1950s. 7. Four-day war (of words) between Dusty Baker and Tony La Russa, Sept. 1-4, 2003 With the Cubs, Cardinals and Astros locked into a tight three-team race for the NL Central, the Cubs took four-of-five emotional, at times nasty games in a span of four busy days at Wrigley Field. Baker, who was in his first year with the Cubs after managing the Giants to the pennant in 2002, stood up to La Russa several times throughout the series. At one point, La Russa was upset that Kerry Wood had brushed back pitcher Matt Morris on a bunt attempt, but it was Baker who took the offensive. "If you're going to bark, you have to be ready to bite," Baker said. That series provided the ultimate margin in the race. The Cubs wound up winning the division by one game over the Astros and three over the Cardinals. 8. Cardinals win 8-7 in 20 innings at Wrigley Field, Aug. 28, 1930

From 1926 through '35, the Cubs or Cardinals won eight of 10 pennants. The Cubs were leading the NL when this game was played but the hard-fought victory helped turn the tide toward St. Louis, which would finish two games ahead of the Cubs. While not as well-known as the Sandberg Game, it is probably the best of the 2,363 games that the teams have played. The Cardinals led at one point, 5-0, before the Cubs scored three in the seventh and two in the eighth to tie it. No one scored again until the 15th. The Cardinals took a 7-5 lead, but the Cubs scored twice to send it to the 16th. There was no answer when the Cards pushed across a run in the top of the 20th. That earned a victory for Syl Johnson, who had pitched the final 12 innings for St. Louis. It's the only Cardinals-Cubs game that has lasted more than 17 innings. 9. The Cardinals let Banks get away, 1953 Mr. Cub could have been a Cardinal. Imagine that. Cool Papa Bell, the Negro League legend, was among the first scouts to seize on Banks' potential as he made the rounds with the Kansas City Monarchs after a stint in the Army. Bell was scouting for the St. Louis Browns, who were too cash-strapped to let Bell try to sign Banks. He instead turned to the cross-town Cardinals, who got back good reports from their scout, Quincy Trouppe. But GM Richard Meyer sent another scout to check out Banks and he sent back a report saying he "can't hit, can't run." Bell told St. Louis columnist Bob Broeg he blamed Meyer for not trusting Trouppe and him. The Cubs didn't identify Banks as a target until late in the '53 season, when they were looking for a second African-American to bring to the Major Leagues alongside infielder Gene Baker. 10. Cardinals open Wrigley Field-style rooftop at Busch Stadium, 2014 The rooftop is part of the Ballpark Village built on the lot where the old Busch Stadium was built. When it was in the development stage, team president Bill DeWitt III made trips to Chicago to study the ones that sit beyond the ivy-covered walls at Wrigley. It has become a major revenue-producer for the Cardinals, who own it in partnership with the developer while the Cubs were until recently engaged in economic battles with the owners of the Chicago rooftops. -- Cubs.com Arrieta-Carpenter bond faces playoff test By Carrie Muskat and Jenifer Langosch ST. LOUIS -- When Jake Arrieta and Matt Carpenter were teammates at TCU, they created their own decathlon, including events such as ping pong, foosball and basketball. Since the Cubs acquired Arrieta in July 2013, the two have found themselves going head to head in the National League Central. Carpenter said he could cheer for Arrieta when he was with the Orioles, but since the right-hander joined the Cubs, it's been tough. "I wanted him to do well, but now he's done plenty well and I'm perfectly fine not rooting for him anymore," Carpenter said of Arrieta, who was a groomsman at his wedding. "But it was hard, at first, facing him because I was like, 'Man, I want this guy to do well. I want him to have a successful time here in Chicago.' That was also when they had no chance of making the postseason. But now that things have changed, I can't root for him anymore."

Things have changed. The Cubs and Cardinals square off Friday in Game 1 of the National League Division Series at Busch Stadium at 5:30 p.m. CT on TBS, the first time the two teams will meet in the postseason. Carpenter won't have to face his TCU teammate in the first game; Arrieta got the Cubs to the NLDS with a 4-0 complete-game victory in the Wild Card Game presented by Budweiser on Wednesday over the Pirates. The collegiate bond is strong. Arrieta and Carpenter, both 29, stay in touch with some of their TCU teammates. "They always reach out, whether it's to Carpenter or myself, we both see [text messages]," Arrieta said. "I feel we motivate each other. It's just that chemistry we have that has carried over to our professional careers that we've had forever." What about Carpenter saying he won't cheer for Arrieta anymore? "He's lying," Arrieta said. "He roots for me. I root for him, but, obviously, I don't root for him when I'm pitching against him, because I think he's like 0-for-18 against me, which he doesn't like to talk about. It's one of those things, man. I told him, 'Hey, when you step in the box, I can't give up a hit to you.' I still haven't. I'm going to hold that one over his head for a little while longer." Carpenter actually is 0-for-16 against Arrieta, with five walks and has struck out four times. The Cardinals' third baseman said Arrieta's cutter is the difference maker. "His ability to throw that at 91 [mph], 92 [mph] and then 95 [mph] with his sinker -- it's just really hard to do that," Carpenter said. "You don't know what side he's going with. You can't sit on one. If you sit on one, he goes to the other. It's not a very comfortable at-bat for lefties or righties." Arrieta and Carpenter were teammates for two seasons at TCU, then the infielder needed Tommy John surgery and stayed a fifth year. "What a player those guys got in the 13th round," Arrieta said of the Cardinals. The Cubs' ace became committed to healthy eating in college, and Carpenter said he learned from the right-hander. "Ever since I've known the guy, he's been a workout fanatic," Carpenter said. "He was healthy and conscious of his eating when we were in college, and I didn't even know what it was like to eat healthy." The two trained together, but Carpenter couldn't quite keep up with Arrieta. "He's big and strong, but also the most flexible human being ever," Carpenter said. "He does pilates and does stretches that are very weird. You just have to see it. He's extremely flexible. It's crazy. He had to work on that. He didn't use to be like that. He's always been big and strong and fit, but he's added this flexibility thing and it's worked for him." Arrieta said he started exploring different workout options to prevent injuries and strengthen his body. He's carried that over to the Cubs. There's now a pilates machine at Wrigley Field. Back to the friendly decathlon. The two most likely challenged each other in everything, from brushing their teeth to sprints on the track. "Racquetball, pool, ping pong, foosball -- we'd go to the 'rec' after practice and stay there for four hours playing basketball against each other, running around the track," Arrieta said. "We'd have an athletic decathlon, and have 10 events and see where we ended up at the end." Who won?

"He was good at pool, horrible at ping pong, pretty good foosball player," Arrieta said of Carpenter. "He had me in a couple events, but in the real athletic events, I had the upper hand, obviously. That's just the kind of people we are and that's why he's accelerated his career so quickly. "I think he surprised a lot of people at first, but I wasn't one of them," Arrieta said. "I knew that's the kind of player he would be. The way he dedicated himself to his diet, his training, keeping his body in good shape and doing the things that are necessary to prolong one's career and stay injury free -- he's on board with all that. Those are the kind of people I gravitate to and that's why we've had such a great relationship. Although we compete against each other at the highest level in the same division, we still pull for each other." Carpenter still lives in Fort Worth, Texas, while Arrieta is in Austin. They get together in the offseason. They'll have plenty to talk about this winter. "I think in Baltimore, he talked about how they had kind of a cookie-cutter technique with him," Carpenter said of Arrieta. "He's a very coachable guy, so he tried to play along and it didn't work for him. When he came to Chicago and started over in a new scene, he could be himself. It's worked." When Carpenter and Arrieta got together this past offseason, the Cubs pitcher was coming off a 10-5 record and 2.53 ERA in 2014. "I asked him last year, 'Do you think you can repeat what you did?'" Carpenter said. "He was like, 'No, I'll be better than that.' And here he is." -- Cubs.com NLDS: Cubs-Cardinals position by position By AJ Cassavell The Cardinals and Cubs -- who will square off in the National League Division Series beginning Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT on TBS -- combined to win 197 games this season. It's the most combined wins by Division Series opponents since the Cards and Dodgers won 198 in 2004. St. Louis and Chicago faced each other 19 times during the season, with the Cardinals winning 11 of those matchups. Those three extra wins proved to be the difference between the two clubs in the NL Central, and the Cardinals will open the NLDS at home with a fully rested pitching staff, as a result. The Cubs, meanwhile, beat the Pirates, 4-0, in the NL Wild Card Game presented by Budweiser on Wednesday, meaning one of the greatest rivalries in sports will take center stage over the next week. Here's a position-by-position breakdown of the Cubs-Cardinals NLDS: Catcher: There's no denying the brilliance of Yadier Molina when he's healthy. But while Molina will return for the NLDS, it's hard to envision him being the same player. A bad thumb is an awful injury for any ballplayer, let alone a catcher. Meanwhile, in the other dugout, Miguel Montero has batted .301/.373/.370 since the start of September, and he knows how to handle a staff, too. Advantage: Cubs First base: Before the season began, Anthony Rizzo predicted a division title for the Cubs. They may not have won the NL Central, but he certainly established a swagger that Chicago played with all season. And he backed it up with his play, too, posting an .899 OPS and launching 31 homers. For the Cardinals, it's been a bit of a revolving door at first, with Mark Reynolds and Stephen Piscotty seeing playing time. Piscotty, typically an outfielder, has been especially impressive, hitting .305 with a 130 OPS+ as a rookie. But there aren't many players in the game more impactful than Rizzo. Advantage: Cubs Second base: There's no shortage of options for the Cubs at second base. Tommy La Stella, a left-handed hitter, owns a .286/.343/.429 slash line against righties. Starlin Castro, meanwhile, has hit .369 with five homers since the start of September. Both are very solid options. So, too, is Kolten Wong for the Cardinals, despite some late-season

struggles. Wong owns an .879 career postseason OPS, including a walk-off home run in the lone Cardinals victory in the 2014 NLCS. Advantage: Cardinals Third base: There might not be a better positional debate in the entire postseason than: Kris Bryant vs. Matt Carpenter. Bryant has had an unreal rookie season, batting .275/.369/.488 and setting a Cubs rookie record with 26 home runs. Carpenter's numbers (.272/.365/.505, 28 homers) are right on par with Bryant's, and he's proven himself to be an unshakeable pest at the plate in the postseason. Just ask Clayton Kershaw. It's almost a toss-up, but the slight edge goes to the 23-year-old wunderkind. Advantage: Cubs Shortstop: Make no mistake, Addison Russell is going to be a star. The 21-year-old finished fifth among Major League shortstops with 10 defensive runs saved -- and played half as many innings as the top four. Plus, after a rocky start, Russell showed some offensive potential at the plate, posting a .744 OPS in the second half. Jhonny Peralta, on the other hand, has managed to sustain his peak for quite a while now. He hit .275 with 17 homers -- his 10th consecutive season with a double-figure home run total. Among shortstops, only Derek Jeter, Cal Ripken Jr. and Miguel Tejada have more. Advantage: Cardinals Left field: It's not completely clear whether Kyle Schwarber will spend more time in right field or left field this series, but we'll put him in left for the purposes of this exercise. And given the bat Schwarber swung in Wednesday night's NL Wild Card Game, how could anyone pick against him? The No. 4 overall pick in the 2014 Draft, Schwarber launched 16 homers in 242 at-bats with an .842 OPS. Schwarber's opposite number, Matt Holliday, is a grizzled postseason veteran, who owns 13 playoff dingers and a .757 OPS. When Holliday's locked in, he can be one of the most dangerous hitters in the game. But since returning from a right-quad injury in mid-September, Holliday has batted just .182. Advantage: Cubs Center field: Randal Grichuk has made strides with the strained right elbow that bothered him late in the season, and there haven't been many rookies more impactful than Grichuk, who batted .276/.329/.548. But he remains a question mark, and if he ends up playing at less than full strength, the Cubs will be sure to take advantage of his injured arm. One of those Cubs sure to test Grichuk's arm would be center fielder Dexter Fowler, who has a knack for getting on base and some wheels to go with it. He pounded out three hits in the NL Wild Card Game, including a back-breaking fifth-inning homer off Gerrit Cole. Advantage: Cubs Right field: There aren't many defenders that match up with Jason Heyward, who led all right fielders in both DRS and Ultimate Zone Rating. That's not to mention Heyward's .318/.397/.469 second-half slash line. The Cubs will put Schwarber, Bryant or Austin Jackson in right -- none of whom come close to the all-around impact of Heyward. Advantage: Cardinals Starting rotation: If this series goes five games, chances are Jon Lester and Jake Arrieta will start three of them. Arrieta has been on another planet in the second half of the season, having given up just four earned runs since the start of August. (Yes, you read that right.) That includes Arrieta's nine shutout innings against Pittsburgh on Wednesday. Lester has been quite good, too, posting a 2.36 ERA and a 0.786 WHIP during September. But while the Cubs rotation is very good, the Cardinals' staff is at another level -- an historic level. St. Louis allowed 478 earned runs this season, 44 fewer than the closest competitors, and the fewest by any team in a non-strike-shortened season since the 1988 Mets. With Arrieta starting just once this series, the decisive edge goes to St. Louis' rotation of John Lackey, Jaime Garcia, Michael Wacha and Lance Lynn. Advantage: Cardinals Bullpen: The Cardinals' relief corps was a massive part of their historic season on the mound, too. Among NL teams, only the Pirates' bullpen had a better ERA than the Cardinals' 2.82 mark. And that doesn't factor in the boost given to the bullpen by ace Adam Wainwright, who returned from an Achilles injury that many thought would sideline him for the season. The Cubs' bullpen hasn't been nearly as effective. Pedro Strop and Justin Grimm have filled their roles nicely, but the depth in St. Louis is tough to beat. Advantage: Cardinals Closer: St. Louis went 87-1 this season when leading after eight innings, in large part because of closer Trevor Rosenthal (2.10 ERA). The Cubs' Hector Rondon, on the other hand, uses a completely different approach, as he threw three pitches -- his two-seamer, his four-seamer and his slider -- almost equally. Rondon posted a 1.67 ERA

and a WHIP of exactly 1. Still, Rosenthal boasts a 0.75 ERA in 21 career postseason appearances, and his stuff is as nasty as it's ever been. Advantage: Cardinals Bench: The strength of the Cardinals this season has been their depth. Not many teams could lose a starting first baseman (Matt Adams), a starting center fielder (Grichuk), a middle-of-the-lineup bat (Holliday) and an ace (Wainwright) and still win 100 games. It's an unbelievable feat. But those injuries have shortened their bench a considerable amount in the postseason. The Cubs, meanwhile, possess an extremely versatile bench for manager Joe Maddon to tinker with. La Stella, Jackson, Javier Baez and David Ross could all be starting one day and coming off the bench in a late-game situation the next. If both clubs are healthy, the nod goes to St. Louis here. But they aren't, and Chicago gets the slight edge. Advantage: Cubs -- Cubs.com Game 3 start time based on other DS outcomes By Carrie Muskat ST. LOUIS -- The Cubs will play their first postseason game at Wrigley Field since 2008 on Monday, and the start time is a little fluid. If there are four postseason games on Monday, Game 3 of the National League Division Series between the Cubs and the Cardinals will start at 5:07 p.m. CT. If there are only two or three postseason games on Monday, the game will begin at 3:37 p.m. CT. Monday's schedule includes Game 3 of the NLDS between the Mets and Dodgers, and also could include Game 4's for both of the American League Division Series. Monday's game will be the first postseason game at Wrigley Field since Game 2 of the NLDS between the Cubs and Dodgers on Oct. 2, 2008. Chicago lost that game, 10-3, and was swept in the best-of-five series. If there is a Game 4 in the Cubs-Cardinals' NLDS, it will start at 3:37 p.m. CT on Tuesday, but could move to 7:07 p.m. CT if the Mets and Dodgers NLDS has ended. If Game 5 is necessary, it would be played at Busch Stadium on Oct. 15 and start at either 3:37 p.m. CT or 7:07 p.m. CT, again depending on the Mets-Dodgers series. Worth noting • Manager Joe Maddon said the Cubs' NLDS roster would not be "dramatically different" from the Wild Card Game. "You have to do a couple of different things based on the numbers," Maddon said Thursday. "We need more pitchers, legitimate bullpen guys, a couple more starters." The Cubs are expected to trim a position player from the Wild Card roster. They carried 10 pitchers and 15 position players against the Pirates. The 25-man NLDS roster is expected to be announced around 10 a.m. CT on Friday. • Jake Arrieta batted ninth in the NL Wild Card Game, but that was an exception. This season, Maddon inserted the pitcher in the No. 9 spot 12 times, preferring to have them bat eighth. Part of the reasoning was that he thought it would help rookie Addison Russell develop as a hitter by batting ninth, plus he becomes what Maddon called a "leadoff batter in training." Batting the pitcher eighth also permitted Maddon to pinch-hit sooner. After watching his format for a full season, Maddon's first in the National League, what did he think? "I think it works if you have a really good bench and options, left- and right-hand options," Maddon said. "We have a really good switch-hitter on the bench. The eight-hole is really attractive to have your pitcher in the eight-hole game in progress, and the final point would be to hit him ninth, which I'm considering doing [Friday].

"By hitting [the pitcher] ninth, you extend making a decision [regarding the] pitcher," Maddon said. "So those are the kind of things that I've thought about, but primarily this year, the primary reason to do it was to benefit Addison Russell." Did it? Yes, Maddon said. "I don't think you'd have seen the same kind of development offensively from him had he been hitting in front of a pitcher all year," Maddon said of the rookie shortstop. "He would've been walked a lot. You'd expand the strike zone more often because you don't care, and you get to the pitcher next. "So again, moving forward the rest of this playoff series, you might see the pitcher eighth, you might see him hit ninth -- it just depends on a couple of different variables, but the overarching philosophy contains all of those different components." Update: the ball that hit @JArrieta34 suffered a deep contusion to the left stitch and is out for the rest of the season. #LetsGo #NVRQT — Jon Lester (@JLester34) October 8, 2015 • The Pirates won't find it funny, but Jon Lester tried to make light of teammate Jake Arrieta getting hit by a pitch in the Wild Card Game. On his Twitter account, @JLester34, he posted: "Update: the ball that hit @JArrieta34 suffered a deep contusion to the left stitch and is out for the rest of the season. #LetsGo #NVRQT" • Reliever Jason Motte, on the disabled list with a strained right shoulder, will not be on the Cubs' NLDS roster. "I feel good," Motte said Thursday. "I threw a live [bullpen session] in Arizona, threw a bullpen the other day, played catch today. Everything feels good. I don't make the decisions. I go out and do what I can do to be healthy. I feel good." -- Cubs.com Top prospect Martinez is headed to Cubs By Jesse Sanchez Cuban outfield prospect Eddy Julio Martinez has signed with the Chicago Cubs for $3 million, according to industry sources. The Cubs did not confirm the deal. Martinez agreed to terms on a signing bonus worth $2.5 million over the weekend with the Giants and later changed his mind. The deal, which the Giants did not confirm, was pending a physical. Sources told MLB.com that Martinez's father was seeking a bonus closer to $3 million. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Martinez is ranked No. 4 on MLB.com's Top 30 International Prospect list. Martinez, 20, was among the first Cuban players eligible to sign during the international signing period. However, he later found himself in a competition for attention with top Cuban prospects like outfielder Yusnier Diaz, 18, and Vladimir Gutierrez, 19, and others who entered the market in search of deals with Major League teams. Martinez left Cuba in November, established residency in Haiti in February and has been training in the Dominican Republic. The right-handed hitting Martinez has a quick and compact power stroke. He's shown the ability to hit home runs to all fields and work the count. He's speedy out of the box and shows base-stealing potential. He has also shown good instincts on defense and the ability to cover the gaps in the outfield. Those skills combined with a playable and accurate arm could mean he should stay in center field as he develops. The outfielder played for Cuba's junior national teams in Mexico and Venezuela and spent two seasons with Las Tunas in Cuba's Serie Nacional, the island's top league.

Martinez is set to join a class of top international prospects for the Cubs that includes shortstop Yonathan Perlaza, ranked No. 15; outfielder Yonathan Sierra Estiwal, ranked No. 18; shortstop Aramis Ademan, ranked No. 21; and Panamanian catcher Miguel Amaya, ranked No. 26. -- ESPNChicago.com Source: Eddy Julio Martinez agrees with Cubs for $3M signing bonus By ESPN.com News Service Cuban center-field prospect Eddy Julio Martinez has agreed to terms with the Chicago Cubs, a source close to Martinez told ESPN's Keith Law. Martinez, 20, will receive a $3 million signing bonus, pending a physical, the source said. He will receive the standard minor league contract because the current collective bargaining agreement prohibits major league deals for amateur players. The agreement comes after a potential deal with the San Francisco Giants fell apart earlier this week. At 6-foot-2, 195 pounds, Martinez is considered to be among the top international prospects. He has been training in the Dominican Republic. Martinez left Cuba last November after playing two seasons for Las Tunas in Cuba's Serie Nacional, according to MLB.com. MLB declared him a free agent in May. -- ESPNChicago.com Cubs playoff notes: Start times for Games 3 and 4 announced By Jesse Rogers ST. LOUIS -- Potential start times for Games 3-5 of the National League Division Series between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals were announced on Thursday as the Cubs will host Game 3 on Monday at Wrigley Field at either 4:37 p.m. ET or 6:07 p.m. ET. If four playoff games are played that day, then the Cubs will start at 6:07 p.m. ET. If another series has ended and two or three games are played, then they’ll start at 4:37 p.m. ET. Game 4 on Tuesday – if necessary – will start at either 4:37 p.m. ET or 8:07 p.m. ET. If the Dodgers-Mets series is over, the Cubs will take the later time slot. Same goes for Game 5 back in St. Louis on Thursday. First pitch will be at 4:37 p.m. ET or 8:07 p.m. ET. Home-field advantage: The Cubs won’t have home-field advantage no matter who they play the rest of the postseason, as division winners are awarded home-field advantage even if wild-card winners have better records. The American League has home field for the World Series as well, meaning the Cubs would start every series on the road if they keep advancing. The rules could change in future years, as commissioner Rob Manfred said recently that MLB would look into reseeding after the wild card games. The Cubs had a better record than either of the other two NL playoff teams, the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets. Cubs relaxing: It wasn’t exactly a rigorous workout for the Cubs on Thursday at Busch Stadium after celebrating their wild-card victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates, then flying to St. Louis in the early morning hours. A few players took batting practice while others like Anthony Rizzo, David Ross and Kris Bryant played “Golf-Baseball.”

“Bryant taught it to us,” Ross said. “You pick a spot in the outfield and you try to hit it, throwing a ball up to yourself.” A group of Cubs decided to go to the movies after the workout including Ross and Rizzo. “I want to see that Martian movie with Matt Damon,” Ross said with a straight face. “Rizzo probably wants Disney. Is there a new Shrek movie out?” Motte still rehabbing: Former Cardinal Jason Motte still isn’t ready to return from shoulder soreness, which has kept him out since late August. “We're still trying to get him ready to be able to pitch for us,” Maddon said. “I'm going to tell you that; he's not going to be on the roster right now. So we're trying to get creative in regards to getting him well and healthy so if we continue, we can make an informed decision whether to use him or get him on the roster or not.” -- ESPNChicago.com Cubs to start Kyle Hendricks in Game 2 of NLDS against Cardinals By Jesse Rogers ST. LOUIS -- Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon has elected to start second-year right-hander Kyle Hendricks in Game 2 of their best-of-five NL Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday. The moves passes over veteran Jason Hammel, who could still get the nod in a potential Game 4. "I think he's been really sharp," Maddon said of Hendricks. "The fact that he could put the ball on the ground matters a lot, too, keep the ball out of the air. He's just been very sharp, so we just chose to do that." Hendricks, 25, threw well down the stretch, earning him the opportunity in a huge road game. He dropped his ERA to less than 4.00 in his last start of the regular season, shutting down the Milwaukee Brewers in a 1-0 victory. In fact his past two outings resulted in 1-0 wins, as he kept the dangerous Kansas City Royals off the board as well. Hendricks was 8-7 with a 3.95 ERA for the season, including a 1.51 ground ball to fly ball ratio. Meanwhile, Hammel struggled in September, putting up a 6.46 ERA before pitching well in his final start. And Hammel's ground ball to fly ball ratio was just 0.94. Maddon indicated Hammel could pitch out of the bullpen in any of the first three games. "And then it's going to get back to the idea of, if we don't use Jason Hammel before that [in the bullpen], you probably will see him in Game 4," Maddon explained. "But if we need him sooner than that, you'll see him sooner than that, and then we'll have to make an adjustment for Game 4." Jon Lester will start Game 1 for the Cubs on Friday, with Jake Arrieta pitching in Game 3 on Monday at Wrigley Field. -- ESPNChicago.com What curse? Cubs are living in the moment and unencumbered by history By Jon Greenberg CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta, who is seemingly invulnerable to everything but kryptonite and Baltimore pitching coaches, does pretty much whatever he wants nowadays as he twirls his way toward a possible Cy Young Award and -- who knows? -- maybe the World Series. The Cubs simply follow his lead, pushing and shoving their way to the front of the line.

But even Arrieta must bow the laws of Major League Baseball conformity and branding. When he tried to take a bottle of celebratory booze on stage for his postgame news conference late Wednesday night in the bowels of PNC Park in Pittsburgh, he was stymied for the first time in months. He relinquished the bottle but gave up nothing earlier in the evening, pitching the Cubs to a 4-0 win over the Pirates in the wild-card game and into the National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. The series starts Friday night. St. Louis has its Clydesdales, but Chicago has a horse in Arrieta. Arrieta will pitch Monday night in the first home playoff game at Wrigley Field since the 2008 NL Division Series debacle. But first comes two games in St. Louis in the rivals' first playoff series in their storied history. Of course, given the Cubs' paucity of playoff opponents, that's not a surprise. The last two times Chicago played in this best-of-five series, it was swept. The Cubs' win Wednesday was their first playoff victory since Game 4 of the 2003 National League Championship Series -- you know, back when Kyle Schwarber was still making Little League pitchers cry. The road to the postseason is fraught with potholes in the infield and wild swings of chance. But teams like the Cubs seem sprinkled with fairy dust, or in their case, droplets of sparkling wine. Will the Cubs dry out this week? "In October, you have a special team, and you want to see a special run," Cubs president Theo Epstein told me as the regular season ended in Milwaukee. "There's such an arbitrary nature to it sometimes. A ball bouncing a certain way or a bleeder down the line or something. You want to see teams get what they deserve. I think our guys deserve a lot." Whether they get what they deserve is up to them. It's unlikely that Arrieta will walk seven guys like Ryan Dempster did against the Dodgers in 2008. Jon Lester will presumably pitch the opening NLDS game and, behind their top two pitchers, the Cubs are sublimely confident about their chances to advance to the NLCS against either the Mets or Dodgers. Big shoulders and big dreams. That the Cardinals are in the Cubs' way is a sign of some kind of cosmic alignment. When Cubs manager Joe Maddon railed against the "Cardinals Way" last month after a couple of his hitters were hit, saying, "We don't start stuff, but we will end stuff," Epstein loved it. A big part of Maddon's job is to set the tone, and few do it better. "It's great," Epstein said the next day at Wrigley Field. "It reminded me a little of 2003 [with the Red Sox], when we were starting to get the Yankees' attention." Could this really be the Cubs' year? Or will this be like it was for the Red Sox 2003, when they came up a game short against the Yankees, only to win it all the next season? The Cubs have the hitting, the defense and the coaching. The only thing they lack is a third top-tier starting pitcher. Kyle Hendricks and/or Jason Hammel will have to start against St. Louis, and while both of them had scoreless outings recently, pitching against the Cardinals in the playoffs is a different story. Chicago's young hitters haven't been too intimidated, so no one should worry too much about them in this kind of atmosphere. Schwarber blasted a two-run homer off of Pirates ace Gerrit Cole on Wednesday and did a GIF-worthy bat flip to celebrate. Kris Bryant and Addison Russell will have big hits this series. "You don't think these guys are 21, 23 years old, because they don't play like it," Arrieta said. "They elevated their play to a level that's beyond their years, and it's one of the big reasons we're here."

But nothing is a given. While the Cubs led 1-0 after two hitters, and it felt like they dominated Cole, who was pulled after five innings and two homers, most of the lineup didn't do much. Five of the six hits Cole allowed were to Dexter Fowler and Schwarber, who combined to drive in and score all four runs. Next game, it might be Anthony Rizzo or Bryant carrying the load. We just don't know who will step up next, and that's the fun part. Defensively, Maddon initially went with rookie corner outfielders in Bryant and Schwarber to get his best bats in the lineup. But Bryant, who moved from left field to third base late in the game, then made a couple of spectacular defensive plays at third. Russell bobbled a hard-hit ball by Andrew McCutchen to load the bases in the sixth but then started a double play on an even harder-hit ground ball by Starling Marte. It was very un-Cub-like. There is no question that this isn't some Cubs team of timeworn vintage, but rather a free-spirited group of dudes that is making its own luck. Great teams have their own narrative, and the Cubs' story is impatient youth. The Cubs were seemingly put together slowly, like a recipe that takes years to bake, but then they cooked all at once. No one could have predicted 97 wins this season. "This was honestly the best-case scenario in terms of the timetable," Epstein said last week in the Miller Park concourse. And that's great! You can't plan everything, and who would want to? Certainly not Epstein, a baseball romantic at heart who read a "Baseball is Better" poem at his introductory news conference in 2011. He is also too smart to think the Cubs will replicate this kind of season every year. This is a unique team unencumbered by history or expectations and living in the moment. That's why everyone around the Cubs was hopeful they could get over the hump against the Pirates, because after that, they would feel unbeatable. "This team all year has that little bit of magic, and they've had a special feeling in the clubhouse," Epstein said. "It feels like the type of team that deserves a real run here, and you just want to see them have that." The magic is in the work. The Cubs' young hitters have adjusted to minor slumps that often waylay inexperienced players. Several veterans have changed their swings for the better during the season -- including Starlin Castro, who has had an incredible late-season reversal of fortune. Credit hitting coach John Mallee, along with the hitters themselves, for making incremental improvements that have paid big dividends. As they say, the flap of a hitter's bat in the cage in August can lead to a World Series parade in October. The buildup around the Cubs has reached a din familiar to those who have covered the team during their last three playoff seasons. There is an abundance of hope and almost a feeling of earned serendipity around the city. But I don't think this team is burdened by it all, because it happened so gradually. In 2008, we must have asked Mark DeRosa twice a day what it would be like when they won the World Series. We saw how that worked out. With the franchise's first playoff win since the rookies were in grade school, the Cubs partied their brains out Wednesday, spraying champagne into the wee hours. No surprise. This is a team that practiced celebrating all season, dancing around with a smoke machine after mundane wins. They have bottle-popping muscle memory. When they swept San Francisco in a four-game series in early August, players and front office officials partied together late into Monday morning, singing karaoke in Lincoln Park bars and making noise in downtown steakeries. The fun-loving, homer-swatting, fist-pumping Cubs are more than ready for this moment, as quickly as it has come. Now are the Cardinals ready for the Cubs? We'll find out. The moment is here.

-- ESPNChicago.com Inside look at Cubs' crazy wild-card celebration By Jesse Rogers PITTSBURGH -- My night in the Chicago Cubs clubhouse in Pittsburgh ended about an hour after the celebration began – a party that started not long after Jake Arrieta shut out the Pirates, advancing the Cubs into the National League Division Series, where they’ll face their archrivals, the St. Louis Cardinals. I was drenched. For the umpteenth time in trying to conduct an interview, someone – I’m looking at you Neil Ramirez or Chris Coghlan -- poured champagne on me and my interviewee. My eyes burned and I was dripping. As I turned the corner to leave the clubhouse I ran into Cubs hitting consultant and all-around fun guy Manny Ramirez. He was coming out of the coach’s locker area looking clean, having probably just showered. He looked past me as he spoke. “Is it still going?” Ramirez asked. As I answered he turned his head and made eye contact. “Yeah, it’s still going,” I replied. He sized me up for a split second. “Oh my god, Papi,” he laughed. “What did they do to you? It’s still going? Really?” You know it must be a crazy party when Ramirez is stunned by what he’s seeing. My first thought after I finally left was, how impossible it is to visualize how the Cubs would react if this team actually wins the World Series. After all, a wild-card win resembled New Year’s Eve combined with the end of the world. What would a victory even in the next round look like? “I know. It’s crazy,” relative newcomer Austin Jackson said a few minutes into the celebration. But Jackson put it into perspective. “I mean if we go crazy after a regular-season win, what do you think we’re going to do here?” he asked. “We’re going to enjoy this.” And enjoy it they did -- along with a growing entourage of former players, a Chicago hockey icon and even a rock star. Yes, Chris Chelios and Eddie Vedder were hanging out getting doused and dousing others while former Cubs and front office special assistants Kerry Wood and Ryan Dempster held court. The difficulty came in talking to the current players, as anyone who actually started an interview was quickly descended upon with champagne and beer. On a side note, Cubs hitting coach John Mallee would be impressed with the deft hand/eye coordination employed by reporters. Using an electronic recording device in this atmosphere is taking its life into your hands. In this case my iPhone served as my tape recorder and when the first feel of beer or champagne was upon me I quickly put the phone in my pocket. This cycle repeated itself. Somehow, the phone stayed sober. So it’s with that backdrop I roamed the locker room. Listening to Wood and Dempster talk about this talented Cubs team reminded me of what Anthony Rizzo said before the game. “I think it matters a lot to the former players,” Rizzo said. “There’s a lot of people that have put everything into this organization and this city. We want to make them proud.”

Many former players feel there is unfinished business with the Cubs. Some of them, like Wood and Dempster, are part of the reason. They were on teams that came close but never got far enough. Now they can enjoy the success as they watch a player who just might take the Cubs all the way. “He’s amazing,” Dempster said of Arrieta. “I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. No one has. Did you see how everyone had his back right away when he got hit?” As for Wood, he has claimed for a while now that Arrieta’s stuff was better than even his own when the 1998 Rookie of the Year was striking out 20 batters in a game. Two months ago someone could have put up an argument -- because Wood had it going on back then -- but not anymore. There is no current or historic comparison for Arrieta in Chicago. No one has put up consistent zeroes on the scoreboard at this time of year like he has. His arm is on automatic right now. As for Arrieta during this party, his now infamous beard was alternately getting wet and being squeezed dry, as he attempted to conduct interviews while simultaneously being pulled back into the fray by his teammates. But in between being pulled in several directions Arrieta had time to explain his favorite moment in the game. It came not long after getting hit by a pitch in the seventh inning, which cleared the benches for a few minutes. When the dust settled, first base coach Brandon Hyde told Arrieta to take off. He became the first pitcher ever to steal a base in a postseason elimination game. At that moment you knew the Pirates were done. “I might like that more than the CG [complete game],” he joked. “I’m going to try and stack up a few more in St. Louis.” Not far from Arrieta in the locker room was probably the player available the most during this mass hysteria, former champion and NLDS Game 1 starter, Jon Lester. He’s older now and has always given off the vibe preferring to watch the fun more than participating in it. It’s not that he doesn’t enjoy the celebrations, he’d just rather not get in the fray in the same way the young guys do. “I don’t dance,” Lester once told me. “You won’t see me doing that.” That’s OK because there were plenty in the locker room to accommodate. At one point the music stopped for a moment, but pitchers Pedro Strop, Carl Edwards Jr. and several others kept dancing and spraying champagne. The other stars of the night, Dexter Fowler and Kyle Schwarber -- who acted as the daily double at the top of the order going a combined 5-for-6 against Pirates starter Gerrit Cole -- were equally elusive in being pinned down for an interview. Why did they have all the success in the game? I wanted to find out but it wasn’t easy. Every time a camera or microphone approached Fowler so did a mass of champagne spray. Finally, I had my moment. “You had a quiet September. What worked against Cole?” “Patience,” Fowler responded. “We waited him out.” It’s true. He and Schwarber got ahead in the count and then did their damage. Not often does the game plan work to perfection, but for the top two in the Cubs order, it’s exactly what happened. They made Cole come back over the plate after he tried to jam some pitches inside on the lefties. Several pitches into the game the Cubs led 1-0 because Fowler and Schwarber followed their plan. The man with the wet beard took care of the rest. And the party continued. A chartered flight to St. Louis awaited but takeoff wasn’t happening until every champagne bottle was emptied – not so much in anyone, but rather on them. It’s a cliché but it’s often said a team takes on the persona of its head coach or manager. The Cubs are no different. It’s not that other teams wouldn’t be celebrating, but more business-like environments bring more businesslike celebrations. Not under Joe Maddon as “keeping it loose” really does mean just that. Consider this: The Cubs are now 47-19 in their past 66 games. And the further they got into the season, the less the Cubs took batting practice as Maddon calls it the “most overrated thing we do in baseball.” Yet with the wins

piling up so did the daily celebrations. The reality is that the Cubs dumped beer and champagne on one another more than they hit before games. That’s not an exaggeration. It means they’re getting good at it. And that gives larger meaning to bench coach Davey Martinez’s words to the team as he climbed a chair during the celebration. The players quieted down while raising their cups and champagne bottles. “Here’s to the never-ending party boys,” Martinez yelled. The way they’re playing now, the party may indeed never end. -- CSNChicago.com Heated Cubs-Cardinals rivalry finally gets playoff spotlight By Patrick Mooney ST. LOUIS – The Cubs had popped all those champagne bottles, smoked their victory cigars, broken out the dance moves and toasted this unbelievable year inside PNC Park’s visiting clubhouse. The Cubs then went through the motions for Thursday’s workout at Busch Stadium and completed Major League Baseball’s media obligations. A broadcaster asked manager Joe Maddon about the wild-card hangover, “real or imagined.” “It wasn’t imagined, man,” Maddon said with a laugh during his news conference. But the Cubs won’t have any problems getting up for this, their first-ever playoff matchup against the St. Louis Cardinals in a rivalry that began in 1892. If anything, it’s whether or not all the emotions will boil over on Friday in Game 1 of this best-of-five National League division series. “Of course, we’re ready for some kind of a changing of the guard,” Maddon said. “But I don’t expect the Cardinals to go away.” For a front office that grew up on the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, this is the Midwest version. In Year 4 of this rebuilding project, the Theo Epstein administration produced a team that has won 98 games including Wednesday night’s 4-0 wild-card victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. “It’s inevitable,” general manager Jed Hoyer said. “They’re a perennial power. They’ve shown it every year. I think we always felt that way in Boston – we had to go through New York to win. And I think given that these guys are always in the playoffs, you know you have to go through (St. Louis). “We play 19 times. With that many games, there’s bound to be subplots when you have two good teams that are battling all the time.” Back in spring training, Maddon said he doesn’t like his hair to get too bushy on the sides or else he starts to look too much like HBO gangster “Paulie Walnuts.” This is a manager who clearly loves being in the spotlight and stirring up the rivalry. Maddon made another mafia reference when he wondered if Tony Soprano ordered the hit on Anthony Rizzo from the St. Louis dugout. That was three weeks ago at Wrigley Field, Maddon fuming about the pitch that hit his All-Star first baseman and openly mocking “The Cardinal Way.” Fast forward to Thursday afternoon, Rizzo standing in Busch Stadium’s visiting clubhouse and listening to a St. Louis reporter suggest this could be an “an all-out war.” “An all-out war?” Rizzo said. “No, I look for us to play baseball for up to five games. I wouldn’t include ‘war’ in there. It’s going to be a good test. They’re proven. We aren’t. They have a lot of guys with a lot of experience. We don’t.

“We’re ready for it. We know we can play with them.” The Cubs showed they won’t back down, pouring out of the dugout and the bullpen after Pirates reliever Tony Watson drilled Jake Arrieta with a pitch as payback in the seventh inning, the wild-card game almost escalating into an all-out brawl. “You gotta be real careful trying to wish for a certain team, because one day you just might wish that you didn’t,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “So we just watched (the game) as unbiased as we could and tried to look at it through the eyes of scouting out the team that we’re going to play next. Not necessarily pushing for one team or the other, regardless of all the storylines and excitement that can come from it.” The Cardinals have 11 World Series titles, one losing season since 2000 and 20 playoff wins with Matheny across the last three years. But now with Maddon running the Cubs – and having the players to back up all this talk – the rivalry may never be the same again. “There’s an inherent leadership need in this position,” Matheny said. “And without question, he’s been able to provide that. You see a group of guys that truly believe in what they’re doing. They have had a very consistent battle cry that, you know, things are going to change. “And this is living proof right now that things have changed.” -- CSNChicago.com Cubs: Joe Maddon believes Pedro Strop can shut down Cardinals By Tony Andracki ST. LOUIS - Jake Arrieta can't go the distance in every game for the Cubs this postseason. Joe Maddon and the Cubs aren't going to win it all without relying on the bullpen. As they proved in the last two head-to-head series in the regular season, this Cubs team can beat the Cardinals. But can Pedro Strop and the bullpen hold onto leads with the pressure of the playoffs on the line? Strop's struggles against the Cardinals this season are well-documented; he finished with an 11.05 ERA against St. Louis in 11 games, surrendering nine earned runs in 7.1 innings. But that doesn't mean Maddon is scared to turn to his top setup man at a time of the year when a bullpen can be the difference between an early exit or an extended run toward a championship. "I'm not worried [about Strop]," Maddon said Thursday. "I mean that sincerely. The guy's got great stuff. He has had some problems here; I can't deny that. "But at the end of the day, man, it just takes one really good outing to get you over the top." Did Strop already have that outing? The 30-year-old righty posted back-to-back shutout appearances against the Cardinals in mid September, though those games were at Wrigley Field. At Busch Stadium, Strop has surrendered seven runs and has gotten just six outs in five games. "There are really good matchups for him vs. this team," Maddon said. "Just gotta go out there and process it slowly and that's what we'll ask him to do.

"But I'm not going to run away from him in this ballpark or against this team if it's the right situation." Closer Hector Rondon has allowed just one run in eight innings to the Cardinals this season, but Maddon is going to need more than just one guy against the game's only 100-win team and will be without one of the most experienced options out of the bullpen in Jason Motte. Motte has been sidelined since late August with a shoulder issue and Maddon said the 33-year-old veteran is not quite ready to return. "We're still trying to get him ready to be able to pitch for us," Maddon said. "He's not going to be on the roster right now. "So we're trying to get creative in regards to getting him well and healthy so if we continue, we can make an informed decision whether to use him or get him on the roster or not." -- CSNChicago.com Showdown with Cardinals: This is why Cubs signed Jon Lester By Patrick Mooney ST. LOUIS – The recruiting video shown to Jon Lester during his visit to Chicago last November built up to the climactic scene with a play-by-play account of the Cubs finally winning the World Series and the lit-up Wrigley Field marquee. The chance to make history – and $155 million guaranteed – while living in a world-class city and playing in an iconic ballpark wouldn’t have to be a hard sell. The postseason dream sequences for a last-place team required a little more imagination. “This is why he’s here, why we signed him,” general manager Jed Hoyer said. “He loves it. He loves that things have come together for us to a place where he gets a Game 1 start like this.” That would be the historic National League best-of-five division series that begins Friday at Busch Stadium, where the Cubs get their first-ever shot at the St. Louis Cardinals in the playoffs. Lester already beat the Cardinals twice in the 2013 World Series, allowing one run across 15.1 innings and earning his second championship ring with the Boston Red Sox. This rivalry will be different for someone who never got a chance to face the New York Yankees in the postseason but can now take down The Mild-Mannered Midwest Empire. “I wanted to come here to win,” Lester said after Thursday’s workout. “I wanted to come here and be a part of this and hopefully bring a World Series championship here. But I can’t look at tomorrow being that defining game. I gotta take it as a normal start against the Cardinals and prepare the same. “Like I’ve always said, I’ll give you everything I got. And hopefully, at the end of the day, it’s better than the other guy.” That other guy would be old friend John Lackey, a free agent Theo Epstein once lured to Boston and a big-game pitcher for two World Series winners, the 2002 Anaheim Angels and the 2013 Red Sox. “They’re both big rednecks,” said Cubs catcher David Ross, who worked with Lester and Lackey on that 2013 Boston team. “I love ‘em both. But we’ll try to kick one of their tails tomorrow.”

Lester signed the richest deal in franchise history and dealt with a “dead arm” in spring training that slowed his momentum at the beginning of the season, which got overshadowed anyway by all the talk about “the yips.” But Lester lived up to his reputation, making 30-plus starts for the eighth year in a row and putting up his seventh season with at least 200 innings. His losing record (11-12) said something about a few bullpen breakdowns and the offensive inconsistencies that could catch up to this young, inexperienced team against St. Louis. Lester finished with a 3.34 ERA, 21 quality starts (or one less than San Francisco Giants lefty ace Madison Bumgarner) and a 1.122 WHIP that almost set a new career low. He broke the franchise’s single-season record for strikeouts by a left-hander (which is now 207). “When you sign a big free agent, that number becomes attached to him, for better, for worse,” Hoyer said. “It doesn’t happen when you stay in the same city. When you go to a different city that follows you. (But) he’s won a lot of big games in his career. “In a lot of ways, it hasn’t been the smoothest year for him, just given the way it started out. But when you look at the whole body of work, he had an excellent season. “If you had told us that his innings, his hits, his walks, his strikeouts would be that in March, we would have signed on the dotted line right away.” The Cubs also overpaid for Lester’s intangibles, the professional attitude and a signal they would be serious about winning in 2015, though not even Epstein’s front office could have predicted 97 victories and Wednesday’s wild-card takedown of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Lester helped with that second-half surge (2.36 ERA in six September starts), leading the Cubs to believe he’s peaking at the right time. “All those things (come into) play,” Ross said. “Contract, new environment, pressure you put on yourself, pressure that other people (create). You’re trying to prove yourself to your teammates, your organization, the coaching staff. You’re trying to prove your worth. “And that’s hard to do. It just takes a little while to settle into the environment and know that – win or lose – Jon Lester is our guy.” Lester has at least five more seasons left on that megadeal, and the Cubs hope he will be making playoff starts for years to come, but you never know how long this window will stay open. The Cubs and Cardinals have a 123-year rivalry without a single playoff game. Until now. “You (can’t) get too amped up for things,” Lester said. “I can’t look at April 15th any differently than tomorrow, you know what I mean? You gotta prepare the same. That’s why I’m so routine-oriented. “I prepare the same for every start. Obviously, tomorrow, when you go out there, there’s going to be a little more adrenaline and there’s a little more on the line. (But) I can’t worry today about the possibility of tomorrow defining my short stint here with the Cubs. “You gotta look at the bigger body of work.” --

CSNChicago.com Adam Wainwright, Yadier Molina back in play for Cubs-Cardinals By Patrick Mooney ST. LOUIS – Adam Wainwright made only four starts and the St. Louis Cardinals still won 100 games – and baseball’s toughest division – with their organizational pitching depth and next-man-up attitude. Yadier Molina – the heart-and-soul catcher and seven-time Gold Glove winner – might be the one player St. Louis couldn’t replace. Now that Wainwright and Molina have been cleared for what should be an epic National League division series, the Cardinals will have even more championship experience to draw upon during their first-ever playoff matchup against the Cubs. Wainwright was supposed to be done for the year when he tore an Achilles tendon in late April, but St. Louis manager Mike Matheny confirmed his Opening Day starter will be on the best-of-five roster and available out of the bullpen for Game 1 on Friday at Busch Stadium. Molina sprained his left thumb on Sept. 20 at Wrigley Field and hasn’t played in a game since making that tag at the plate. It’s been a down year for the seven-time All-Star (.660 OPS), but his presence means so much to the St. Louis pitching staff and clubhouse. “I think he feels pain,” Matheny said after Thursday’s workout. “He just doesn’t recognize it, or know how to define it. “Yadi has an ability (to) put some of those things behind (and) not just play the game, but play it well. And be able to put the distraction away – whatever it is that’s bothering him – and bring something good to the field. “He’s a smart guy, too. He doesn’t want to go out there if he’s not able to contribute. If he’s not able to compete and do what he needs to do, he knows that would hurt our club. And right now, that’s not the situation that we’re in. We’re very fortunate.” Wainwright made three one-inning relief appearances during the final week of the regular season. That’s how the Cardinals probably envision using their 6-foot-7 right-hander as a playoff weapon. Wainwright famously froze Carlos Beltran with the bases loaded to eliminate the New York Mets in Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS, setting the stage for another World Series title. “(It’s) an incredible story when a lot of people said he wouldn’t make it back this year,” Matheny said. “But he’s also a very sharp pitcher right now. He looks good. And we’re going to give him opportunities, too, in big situations.” -- CSNChicago.com Dexter Fowler thrives as table-setter for Cubs lineup By Tony Andracki ST. LOUIS - Dexter Fowler joked with reporters that he can't divulge the gameplan against Cardinals starter John Lackey in Game 1 of the National League Division Series Friday night. But for the Cubs, the offensive gameplan is simple: Follow Fowler's lead. The 29-year-old outfielder set the tone in the NL wild-card game in Pittsburgh Wednesday night, leading off the game with a single, stealing second base and then coming around to score a couple pitches later.

With Jake Arrieta on the hill, one run was all the Cubs truly needed. "The leadoff at-bat by Dexter was huge," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "It's really rare that sometimes you can reflect back on a game of baseball and the very first hitter of the game can set the tone for the entire thing. "You'd almost think that's crazy, but [Fowler] did." It's been a running storyline all season that Maddon tells Fowler all the time - "you go, we go" - and it's true. The Cubs were 55-24 in the regular season when Fowler scored a run - a .696 winning percentage. More importantly, they're undefeated in the postseason when Fowler scores a run. After a slow first half (.232 average, .308 on-base percentage, .677 OPS), Fowler really turned it on in the second half (.272 AVG, .389 OBP, .852 OPS) as the young Cubs found their identity and hit their stride. Fowler led the Cubs in runs, walks and stolen bases this season, finishing with career highs in just about every category. Even when Fowler is not scoring runs, he's still helping to set the tone for the offense by just working the count and seeing pitches. He finished 10th in the NL in pitches per plate appearance (4.09). That culminated in his huge wild-card game, as Fowler added a single, homer and pair of runs to his first-inning success. The eight-year veteran is slated to become a free agent at the end of the season and he gave Maddon and the Cubs coaching staff a lot of credit for pushing the right buttons to motivate guys inside the clubhouse. Fowler takes pride in being the catalyst that makes the Cubs offense move - "you go, we go." "I appreciate it," he said. "[Maddon] tells me that all the time and I definitely take it to heart and try to do what I can." -- CSNChicago.com Kyle Hendricks cracks Cubs NLDS rotation vs. Cardinals By Tony Andracki ST. LOUIS - Kyle Hendricks was listed on the Cubs' 25-man roster for the one-game wild-card for a reason. Joe Maddon and the Cubs are giving Hendricks the ball against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 2 of the National League Division Series Saturday. Maddon also said veteran Jason Hammel - who was seen as the Cubs' "No. 3" starter to begin the season - could be in line to start Game 4 back at Wrigley Field (Jake Arrieta goes Game 3 Monday in Chicago). Jon Lester is getting the start in Game 1 Friday, but if the Cubs are going to keep this magical season going, they're going to need somebody to step up in the rotation beyond the $155 million free agent and Arrieta. Is Hendricks up to the task? "You saw the last couple games, Kyle's been really sharp," Maddon said. "The fact that he could put the ball on the ground matters a lot, too. Keep the ball out of the air. "He's just been very sharp, so we just chose to do that."

Hendricks has been sharp, rattling off three straight quality starts to end the season, striking out 25 batters in 18 innings. Of course, two of those starts came against the Milwaukee Brewers, who were well out of contention, but Hendricks also tossed six shutout innings against the Kansas City Royals in the regular season finale at Wrigley Field Sept. 28, striking out nine and allowing just four baserunners (two hits and two walks). Hammel, on the other hand, has just two quality starts in his last 14 tries since being forced to leave the game early in his July 8 start with a hamstring issue. In that span, Hammel has put up a 5.10 ERA and allowed an .856 OPS to opposing hitters. Maddon reiterated Arrieta would be ready to roll for Game 3 Monday after throwing 113 pitches in a complete-game shutout Wednesday night. But the Cubs skipper did say Hammel would be available out of the bullpen in the first three games. "If we don't use Jason Hammel before that, you probably will see him in Game 4," Maddon said. "But if we need him sooner than that, you'll see him sooner than that and then we'll just have to make and adjustment for Game 4." -- CSNChicago.com Posnanski: Cubs' Jake Arrieta channeling Bob Gibson By Joe Posnanski PITTSBURGH — There are no seismographs that measure the tension of a city … but for two days Pittsburgh seemed tense. This could be a figment of my imagination, of course, but it definitely did seem that wherever I went in the hours leading up to Wednesday’s epic wildcard matchup with the Chicago Cubs, there would be a group of slightly edgy Pirates fans. “What do you think about the game?” I would ask them and, inevitably, they would offer that bit-lip look of uncertainty before saying something vaguely positive like, “The Pirates have to win.” There would be just the hint of a question mark at the end. The issue, of course, was Jake Arrieta. In each of the last two years, the Pirates came upon a do-or-die game in the playoffs and saw a great pitcher take the mound against them. Two years ago, it was St. Louis’ Adam Wainwright, who three times coaxed double plays and choked the Pirates lineup for a 6-1 victory. Last year, it was irrepressible San Francisco star Madison Bumgarner who struck out 10 PIrates and gave up four measly singles and the Giants cruised to an 8-0 victory. And now in the latest wildcard adventure, they would face Arrieta, the Chicago Cubs ace who lately has been pitching like no pitcher in almost 50 years. Pirates fans tried to be bold. “Be ready for the sea of black,” a handle called Parody Pirate tweeted at Arrieta, adding the hashtag, #CrowdIsGoingToEatYouAlive. Arrieta’s response was chilling. “Whatever keeps your hope alive,” he Tweeted back. “Just know it doesn’t matter.” There really aren’t any good comebacks after that — it’s a bit like Drago in “Rocky IV” saying to Apollo Creed, “You will lose.” The Pirates and their fans tried to put on a brave face, tried to exude confidence after an extraordinary 98-win season, the best in Pittsburgh since Barry Bonds played left field and, before that, when “We Are Family” blared over the loudspeakers. The largest crowd ever at PNC park wore black and booed Arrieta with the famous Pittsburgh fury that through the years has melted quarterbacks and goaltenders.

But in the end, they were right to feel that tension and sense of doom. On this night, like just about every other night since June, nothing could rattle Jake Arrieta. -- Chicago Tribune Hammel added to Cubs' roster, Berry off By Mark Gonzales The Chicago Cubs tweaked their National League Division Series roster Friday morning by adding pitcher Jason Hammel and dropping outfielder Quintin Berry. Hammel will be available in relief for the first two games of the series at St. Louis. If he doesn't pitch in the first two games, it's likely he'll start the fourth game at Wrigley Field. Berry was on the NL wild-card game roster primarily as a pinch-running specialist. The Cubs will carry 11 pitchers and 14 position players. Here is their NLDS roster: Pitchers 28-Kyle Hendricks, RHP 33-Clayton Richard, LHP 34-Jon Lester, LHP 37-Travis Wood, LHP 39-Jason Hammel, RHP 46-Pedro Strop, RHP 49-Jake Arrieta, RHP 52-Justin Grimm, RHP 53-Trevor Cahill, RHP 56-Hector Rondon, RHP 57-Fernando Rodney, RHP Position players 3-David Ross, C 8-Chris Coghlan, 2B 9-Javier Baez, INF 11-Tommy La Stella, INF 12-Kyle Schwarber, OF-C

13-Starlin Castro, INF 15-Chris Denorfia, OF 17-Kris Bryant, 3B-OF 22-Addison Russell, SS 24-Dexter Fowler, OF 27-Austin Jackson, OF 44-Anthony Rizzo, 1B 47-Miguel Montero, C 68-Jorge Soler, OF -- Chicago Tribune Report: Cubs sign Cuban prospect By Mark Gonzales The Chicago Cubs have made a splash in the international market by signing Cuban outfielder Eddy Julio Martinez, according to multiple reports. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Martinez, 20, reportedly had agreed to a $2.5 million contract last weekend with San Francisco but was believed to receive a $3 million deal with the Cubs. The Cubs would not confirm the signing. -- Chicago Tribune Jon Lester's former teammates say postseason his time to shine By Mark Gonzales Maybe it's Jon Lester's success in postseason play that has caused the Cubs' prized left-hander to refrain from analyzing his season now. But after Jake Arrieta's masterpiece Wednesday night, expectations for the Cubs will be greater when they open the best-of-five National League Division Series Friday at Busch Stadium with Lester on the mound against the NL Central champion Cardinals. "This is kind of my time to figure it out, to see what it's all about," Lester said. "Coming here with the Red Sox and playing these guys (in the 2013 World Series) is a little different than coming in as a division rival." Lester's 11-12 record in the first year of a six-year, $155 million contract with the Cubs was notable for its inconsistency and the lack of run support. But Lester, the owner of World Series rings with the Red Sox in 2007 and 2013, has spoken often about the continued pursuit of championships and not being content with just reaching the playoffs. Cubs executives Ryan Dempster and Kevin Youkilis concur and give some of the credit to Lester for their own World Series rings.

"They didn't make a mistake when we signed him to be our leader of our staff," said Dempster, a 2013 teammate of Lester who recruited him to the Cubs after becoming a special assistant to general manager Jed Hoyer. "He has pushed Jake Arrieta to be better. He has pushed other guys in the rotation to be better. I just watched him (with the Red Sox) and saw how much he wanted it, how hard he worked for it. It's so much fun to see a guy work that hard and see everything he gets. "For him to be back in the playoffs is so awesome." The Cubs signed Lester with the long-range goal of having him lead the pitching staff to the World Series. Despite his sub-.500 record, Lester has that opportunity now, although he will have to share the stage with Arrieta, who won 22 games during the regular season and extended his scoreless streak to 31 innings after blanking the Pirates 4-0 in Wednesday night's wild-card game. "There's no stage that's big enough unless they start making a league on the moon that has a bigger stage," Dempster said. "(Lester) has been on the biggest stage of all. "He has won big games. He has done it as a young kid and as a younger player. He just simplifies and compartmentalizes the situation and does what he needs to do, and that's (to) focus on the task at hand. It's really awesome to see what he can do." Lester is 6-4 with a 2.57 ERA in 14 postseason starts. Some observers remember how he failed to hold a 7-3 lead in the eighth inning of the 2014 American League wild-card game at Kansas City while pitching for the Athletics. But Lester is returning to Busch Stadium, where he earned the second of two World Series victories over the Cardinals in 2013. "Jon is a competitor who always is going to be focused, and he'll get mad when he's not doing well," said Youkilis, a scouting and player development consultant. "When he's doing right, he is that prototypical guy I'm talking about. "And that's why he has had so much success in the postseason. He prepares every day as if it's the postseason. If you have that attitude (and) that approach, whether you're a hitter or pitcher or running the bases, that's how you succeed in the postseason." And playing 8 1/2 seasons before capacity crowds at Fenway Park prepared Lester for the spotlight after joining an energized franchise in one of baseball's largest markets. "The implications — win or go home — is definitely on a grander scale and in the media," Youkilis said. "But when you play in a market like Chicago and Boston, it's an everyday thing. So you're used to it and you just take it into the postseason." -- Chicago Tribune Cubs can spare baseball world from more of Cardinals admiration society By Paul Sullivan It's all on the Cubs now. They no longer are playing just for their city or their fans. No, the stakes are much higher in this first National League Division Series between two longtime rivals. Now they have the added responsibility of saving America from another October with the Cardinals.

If the Cubs fail, the country will have to endure many long nights hearing about the best fans in baseball, about a team that has overcome injuries all season and about their 11 bleeping championships. It's just too much to bear. The Cardinals, quite frankly, have jumped the shark. This will be the 12th time since 2000 the Cardinals have made the postseason, and everyone outside Missouri and downstate Illinois is tired of hearing about them. It's a great franchise and knows how to win, but somehow the Cardinals feel the need to remind us constantly they're a great franchise and know how to win. The Cubs, as we all know, are the franchise most synonymous with failure, based on the fact they haven't won a World Series in 106 years, or before the invention of radio. When they last won in 1908, Joe from Schaumburg wasn't on the line to complain about all the strikeouts with runners in scoring position. It may not be a coincidence. Yet the Cubs head into this playoff series with nine straight victories and a firm belief they're in the same class as the world-class team they're facing. It should be a made-for-Twitter-trolls matchup for the ages. "Obviously the fans are going to be pumped up," Cubs' Game 1 starter Jon Lester said. "Chicago is pumped up. And I'm learning. You know, this will be a good learning experience … and it's an honor to be a part of it. This has been going on for a long time." Over the years, Cardinals fans have treated their counterparts with a double dose of pity and mockery, knowing they never would reach their standard of excellence in this lifetime. But lately they have reserved their best shots for their manager, Mike Matheny, and imperfect closer Trevor Rosenthal. Even the St. Louis Post-Dispatch questioned their reaction of Cardinals fans to the mediocre finish of a 100-win season, calling it "weird and warped" that the fan base gravitates toward the team's shortcomings instead of applauding the fact they're the winningest team in baseball. As for Cubs fans, it's hard to trash-talk when you're usually on the bottom looking up. But things started to change since Theo Epstein took hold of the wheel, and now Joe Maddon has come on the scene, ripping the so-called "Cardinals Way" and saying he hasn't read Branch Rickey's unwritten rules. Maddon has toned it down since his classic rant last month, and was as complimentary as he could be on Thursday, rope-a-doping the Cardinals with his benevolence. Epstein always is reluctant to say anything that could be used against him. Asked about the Cardinals' success during his end-of-season autopsy last October, he said: "I'm a Cub, so I have to hate the Cardinals. But I have to admire the way they (have) run their baseball shop for basically the better part of a century." That was before this summer's scandal when a Cardinals front-office official allegedly hacked into the Astros' database called Ground Control, prompting a federal investigation. It was a big story for a couple of days, but the Cardinals haven't been raked over the coals like the Patriots are after their scandals, and it quickly drifted away. Don't look for MLB's broadcast partners to go heavy with that storyline this week. We probably will be reminded a lot of the Cubs' storied drought and the Cardinals' 11 championships. It's the only thing that matters, which is why most of America is rooting for the Cubs. New is good.

-- Chicago Tribune Harry Caray forever linked to both Cardinals and Cubs By Ed Sherman If only Harry Caray were around to see this. Can't you just hear him opening a broadcast? "Boy, oh boy," Caray would cackle with that slight gargle in his voice. "The Cubs and Cardinals playing meaningful games in October? This must be heaven, right?" If the Cubs and Cardinals have a common thread in their long history, it is Caray. His truly one-of-a-kind broadcast style filled up the broadcast booths for both teams; and don't forget his 11 years with the White Sox. And in the process, Caray's star was as big, if not bigger, than the players in his calls. More than 17 years after his death in 1998, Caray's presence still looms large at Wrigley Field. A caricature of him, sporting those comically large trademark glasses, hangs over the TV booth, and there's a "Holy Cow" embedded into the foul pole. Fans pay homage to his statue outside the park. The robust singing of "Take Me out to the Ballgame" serves as a tribute to Caray, who was wonderfully off-key in launching the seventh inning tradition. Meanwhile, in St. Louis, Caray's hometown, he isn't nearly as celebrated for his iconic 25 years as the voice of the Cardinals. Rather, it is his former partner, Jack Buck, who is represented with a microphone on the display that features the Cardinals' retired numbers at Busch Stadium. Yet it was Caray who laid the foundation for Buck and countless other baseball announcers. If you ever wanted to hear him at his peak, check out Caray's classic calls with the Cardinals from 1945-1969. His voice was clear; his rapid-fire descriptions were vivid; and his passion seemingly jumped out of the radio. He broke the mold as an unabashed homer who wasn't afraid to criticize the Cardinals. "Listen," Caray said in a Sports Illustrated profile in 1968, "I don't believe any ballplayer ever put on a Cardinals uniform who shouldn't have known that I wanted his success as much as he did. But I refuse to fool the audience. These ballclub-controlled announcers think they can, but they're crazy." Caray's reach was enormous on the KMOX-AM blowtorch and a Cardinals radio network that was in 14 states. Bill Clinton recalled listening to Caray on Cardinals games as a young boy growing up in Arkansas. "He made those games come alive," Clinton said. The passage of time probably accounts for some of the dimming of Caray's legacy in St. Louis. Caray called his last Cardinals game in 1969, as new generations heard Buck become the team's signature voice until his death in 2002. Perhaps it also is the result of his abrupt dismissal from the Cardinals because he allegedly was having an affair with owner August Busch III's daughter-in-law. The image-conscious Caray always had a standard reply through the years: "I would prefer to have people believe I was so irresistible (he was 51 at the time) that a beautiful starlet would go for me over the 25-year-old millionaire heir to the crown." After leaving St. Louis, Caray spent one year doing A's games before arriving in Chicago in 1971 to rebuild his career with the White Sox. It wasn't long before he took over the town as "The Mayor of Rush Street." After the 1981 season, Caray moved over to the Cubs, writing a memorable last chapter in his long career. Even though his skills were eroding with age during his 16 seasons on the North Side, his unique persona made him a beloved figure throughout the country thanks to the superstation power of WGN. As a result, Caray probably is more identified with the Cubs than the Cardinals these days. But the truth is, he belongs to both teams. It's hard to quantify his impact on each of them, other than to say it was immense. Somewhere, Caray surely will be watching the Cubs-Cardinals series. With a Budweiser nearby.

-- Chicago Tribune Cubs believe they are cusp of eclipsing Cardinals' division dominance By Mark Gonzales ST. LOUIS — Four victories in their last six games against the rival Cardinals blew away a dark cloud. A nine-game winning streak built confidence. And now the Cubs sense that their goal of seizing control of the National League Central is attainable. "Of course we're ready for some kind of a changing of the guard," manager Joe Maddon said Thursday on the eve of the best-of-five NL Division Series opener at Busch Stadium. "But I don't expect the Cardinals to go away." Despite losing several key players to injuries, the Cardinals won a major-league-high 100 games, and manager Mike Matheny said the four-day rest between the regular season and playoffs "was well-timed for us." For the Cubs, a division series victory would bolster their presence in the NL Central that faded significantly after they won division titles in 2007-08. A victory Friday would give the Cubs road triumphs against all four of their division foes — the Reds, Brewers, Pirates and Cardinals — in an eight-game span. But the division series stakes are greater, and the Cubs will need timely contributions against John Lackey, who is 2-0 with a 1.25 ERA in three starts against them this season. "It's not like it's getting to the point where you say, 'Who is going to do it tonight?'" Anthony Rizzo said. "You just expect it. I wouldn't say it's a surprise if Addison (Russell) goes deep Friday or someone goes deep that (usually) doesn't because it has been going on all year that someone steps up and helps carry the load." This marks the first playoff start for Jon Lester as a Cub, and he laughed when he discovered he will be facing Lackey (13-10), a teammate and friend from their days with the Red Sox. "It's not too often you get to be in a situation like this to go against one of your better friends," Lester said. "But come (Friday) we're not buddies anymore." Cubs catcher David Ross also played with Lackey and Lester on the Red Sox and called them "big rednecks, and I love them both." Lackey, 36, is expected to attract mild interest this winter from the Cubs, who are in the market to add impact pitching. "Aces are special, but they don't grow on trees," Ross said. "But there are (a) number of things that make up an ace, and personality is one of them." Lackey has the distinction of pitching World Series-clinching games for the Angels (2002) and Red Sox (2013). He is 7-5 in 21 playoff appearances with a 3.08 ERA. He is 2-1 in the World Series. Lester is 6-4 in 14 postseason starts with a 2.57 ERA and is 3-0 in the World Series. "Experience wires guys," Ross said. "You get wired (and) your personality comes out with the more experience you have. I don't think Jon Lester is the same guy on the mound that he was as a rookie or three years in. You mature and learn from your experiences and you grow as players.

"Our team is a huge example of that. This team is not the same team that we broke camp with and was playing in May. It's a totally different team and a mature team with very experienced people." Maddon pointed to the Cubs' win-or-go-home triumph Wednesday night in Pittsburgh in the NL wild-card game as the latest step in their maturity and development. "When you go through a moment like we did (in a 4-0 victory), we played Game 7 already," Maddon said. "You go through that moment where you have to win to advance." Rookie Kris Bryant doesn't anticipate the pressure of the NLDS equaling what he has already experienced. "This is my first taste of postseason baseball," Bryant said. "I don't know what to expect, but I'm ready for anything." -- Chicago Tribune Concerning Cardinals, love lost, but respect everlasting from Joe Maddon By David Haugh From their days growing up together in Hazleton, Pa., Dave Cassarella vividly recalls Joe Maddon the Cardinals fan. The buddy whose dad took him to Yankee Stadium in 1962 and told the 8-year-old to pick out a souvenir, so young Joe chose a red Cardinals hat because he liked the logo, starting the love affair. The boy who used to lie on the floor of his house on clear summer nights and listen to KMOX-AM as Harry Caray and Jack Buck described the action he dreamed of creating one day for the Cardinals. The teenager who idolized St. Louis legends Bob Gibson and Lou Brock and Curt Flood and memorized every Cardinals batting order of the 1960s. The college kid who, during a spring-break trip to Tampa, hitchhiked to St. Petersburg just to see his beloved Cardinals play an exhibition game. That was how deeply the Cubs manager once loved the Cardinals, adding another layer to the rivalry and creating a fun subplot in a National League Division Series starting Friday certain not to lack drama. "I remember Joe Maddon the Cardinal fan, but he's not a Cardinal fan no more,'' Cassarella said Thursday from Hazleton. "I asked him that earlier in the year. I said, 'I guess you're not going to stick for the Cardinals anymore.' He said, 'Heck with them.' He's not going to be fazed by being in St. Louis. He has a job to do.'' Cubs manager Joe Maddon talks about growing up a Cardinals fan and the competition in the NL Central. No manager in the majors has done the job more skillfully this season than Maddon, who acknowledged feeling nostalgic during the Cubs’ workout Thursday at Busch Stadium. Maddon bragged that he walked past a photograph of the 1964 World Series champion Cardinals and recognized every player, including infielder Eddie Spiezio, a favorite. He beamed describing his friendship with Cardinals institutions Tim McCarver and Mike Shannon. He praised Branch Rickey and still considers Whitey Herzog a mentor, which shouldn’t be Cardinal sins even for the leader of the Cubs. "I have a lot of respect for the organization, always have,'' Maddon said. "But right now I'm a Cub and hopefully will be a Cub for a long time.'' Cubs fans are thinking infinity, the word Maddon introduced Wednesday night referring to Jake Arrieta's pitch count. As Cubs players sprayed champagne and smoked cigars in a raucous clubhouse after that rewarding 4-0 wild-card victory over the Pirates, Maddon sat in the interview room and savored the chance to manage against his

favorite boyhood team in the playoffs. Ever so briefly, the most youthful 61-year-old in baseball felt like a kid again. "That's pretty awesome, man,'' Maddon said. "Beyond that, I don't want to make it personal. It's about the players.'' Sorry, but if the wild-card game was all about Arrieta, the NLDS will be all about Maddon, from the decisions he makes during games to the tone he sets between them. Every move Maddon has made lately with his versatile lineup has worked. Every message he has sent has resonated. It often goes unnoticed how Maddon's quirky charisma keeps the focus on him and away from players, much like Ozzie Guillen did with the White Sox when they won the 2005 World Series. Nobody who spends more than five minutes around Maddon worries about the Cubs being too tight. They exude Maddon's confidence and bounce around with his exuberance. There are no baseball metrics to measure that. After beating the Pirates, for example, Maddon sounded more like a sports psychologist than a baseball manager in describing what makes the Cubs fearless, not to mention how he worked in entertaining references to Gibson, Roberto Clemente and Joe Namath. Back in Hazleton, Cassarella laughed hearing his lifelong friend compare Arrieta to "Broadway Joe" Namath. From Maddon, it marked the ultimate compliment. "Joe loved Namath, and we called (Maddon) 'Broad Street Joe' because that was the main street in Hazleton and he was a damn good quarterback,'' Cassarella said of Maddon, who threw four touchdown passes in his final game for Lafayette College. "Joe wore the flashy white spikes like Namath and everything. He quit after his freshman year at Lafayette because the baseball coach said, 'Your future's in baseball.' '' The rest was history, something the Cubs believe they can make more of against the Cardinals, baseball's best team during the regular season. That record means nothing now, and Maddon, more than anyone, ensures the Cubs won't arrive intimidated or overwhelmed. "This does feel like a beginning,'' Cubs President Theo Epstein admitted. "We have a chance to win 11 more games and a World Series.'' Nobody snickered. Nobody rolled their eyes. Anybody who knows Maddon knows better than to doubt what the Cubs suddenly are capable of in the culture he created — especially those who have known him longest. "You watch, Joe's going to take them to the World Series, if not this year, soon,'' Cassarella said. "I'm proud of him, really proud. The only thing is, he has to shave that old, gray beard, that's all — but not till the season's over.'' Looks like that might be awhile. -- Chicago Tribune Kyle Hendricks named as the Cubs' surprise starter for Game 2 of the NLDS By Mark Gonzales Manager Joe Maddon doesn't anticipate any significant changes when the Cubs release their National League Division Series roster Friday morning, but the announcement of Kyle Hendricks as the Game 2 starter over veteran Jason Hammel ranks as a minor surprise. "(He) has been very sharp, Maddon said Thursday of Hendricks, who pitched 12 consecutive scoreless innings over his last two starts. "The fact he could put the ball on the ground matters a lot, too, and keeping the ball out of the air."

Hammel will be available in relief for the first two games. If Hammel doesn't pitch in either of those, it's likely he will start Game 4, if necessary. Jake Arrieta, as expected, will start Game 3 at Wrigley Field. Pedro puzzled: The NLDS marks a chance for Pedro Strop to overcome past struggles at Busch Stadium, where he has allowed seven runs in five appearances covering only two innings. "I don't have anything specific," Strop said. "It could be just a coincidence. When I struggle, most of the time it has been here. I'm not thinking about it." Strop is one of the more emotional Cubs players but knows there's a balance in the postseason. "You have to be able to control the moment, the excitement, because you do get more excited," Strop said. "You have to know how to use it to your advantage instead of rushing everything. Pitching inside: One day after Arrieta was hit intentionally by a pitch that caused both benches to empty, Cardinals Game 1 starter John Lackey stressed he would continue to pitch inside. "I think everybody, even on their side, knows I'm not going to back off coming inside," Lackey said. "I think I have enough of a reputation. They know what time it is." Extra innings: Shortstop Addison Russell said his left hand feels fine after jamming it on a slide into second base Wednesday. … As the minor-league coordinator for the Angels in the 1980s, Maddon said he once had a Weimaraner dog race speedy outfielder Devon White. "The dog did win," Maddon said. -- Chicago Tribune Cubs vs. Cardinals: Who has the edge? By Mark Gonzales Starting pitching The Cubs may have to cross their fingers after Game 1 because Jake Arrieta won't be available until Game 3 after throwing a 113-pitch complete game Wednesday night to eliminate the Pirates. Game 1 starter Jon Lester has a reputation of excelling in the postseason, and he threw seven innings of two-hit ball Sept. 9 at Busch Stadium. Kyle Hendricks, who will start Game 2, only faced the Cardinals once this season, giving up four earned runs over five innings May 5. In his last two outings, Hendricks pitched six scoreless in each. But he might not have a chance to pitch that deep as Joe Maddon could employ his entire bullpen to seize a victory. Cubs fans should keep a close eye on Cardinals Game 1 starter John Lackey — a probable free agent target who played with Lester and David Ross in Boston. Lackey was 2-0 against the Cubs and pitched much younger than his age (36) this season. Left-hander Jaime Garcia, who will start Game 2, didn't face the Cubs because of shoulder and groin injuries. Game 3-4 starters Michael Wacha and Lance Lynn were knocked around twice in September starts against the Cubs. The loss of Carlos Martinez lessens a once-dominant edge for the Cardinals in this department. Edge: Cardinals. Bullpen The Cubs' bullpen was largely responsible for four of their 11 losses to the Cardinals. Pedro Strop was 0-2 with a 9.82 ERA in 11 appearances against the Cardinals. Hector Rondon (three saves, 1.13 ERA in nine games) was more effective, but Fernando Rodney might have to play a bigger role because the Cubs could be with one fewer reliever in the best-of-five series. Clayton Richard, Trevor Cahill and Travis Wood could spell Jason Hammel, the tentative Game 4 starter.

Winning the National League Central resulted in a well-deserved break for a Cardinals bullpen that posted a 2.82 ERA. Left-hander Kevin Siegrist led the majors with 81 appearances, with less-effective Seth Maness used in 76 games. The Cubs collected only five hits in 29 at-bats against hard-throwing closer Trevor Rosenthal. Manager Mike Matheny was able to use his relievers frequently because the Cardinals had numerous pitchers with minor-league options. Matheny now can choose Adam Wainwright, a former closer, in a limited role. Edge: Cardinals. Offense The Cubs scored 30 runs in their final four victories against a Cardinals pitching staff that looked vulnerable. The Cubs simply went for the kill early and succeeded. Arguably the biggest key to the Cubs' offense will be leadoff batter Dexter Fowler, who batted .194 with 19 strikeouts in 19 games against the Cardinals. Kyle Schwarber was hitless in 12 at-bats, and he and Fowler will need to get on base to set up run-scoring opportunities for Anthony Rizzo (.323, 16 RBIs) and Starlin Castro (.310, 19 RBIs). Injuries have challenged a Cardinals offense known for working deep counts and collecting key hits. The Cardinals batted only .242 with runners in scoring position (six points higher than the Cubs) during the regular season. Matt Holliday missed seven weeks because of a right quad strain and batted only .182 in 22 at-bats after his return in mid-September. Kolten Wong and Jason Heyward, both left-handed hitters, haunted the Cubs during the regular season. Look for Maddon to try to neutralize them and take his chances with the Cardinals' right-handed hitters. Edge: Even. Fielding Look for Maddon move his players around, according to the situation. The Cardinals were tied for 11th in the NL with 69 steals, but they're bound to test Lester's ability to hold baserunners if given the opportunity. There are no quirky angles or goofy dimensions at Busch Stadium, which shouldn't hurt the Cubs. The Cardinals' biggest concern remains the left thumb of Gold Glove catcher Yadier Molina. Counterpart Miguel Montero noticed Molina never wore a batting glove under his mitt until after he was injured while making a tag on Rizzo on Sept. 20. Heyward's defense in right field will make the Cubs think twice about trying to take the extra base. Edge: Cubs. Manager Maddon's tirade toward the Cardinals three weeks ago fueled the intensity of the rivalry. While Maddon has gushed about the tradition and success of the Cardinals since his childhood, he knows they're vulnerable and will use every resource to exploit their weaknesses. No manager in baseball did a better job of coping with injuries than Matheny, who might have to manage more creatively and aggressively against a hot Cubs team. Edge: Cubs. Series winner: Cardinals in 5. --

Chicago Tribune Cubs-Cardinals 2015 series recaps By Colleen Kane The Cardinals have the season series edge 11-8, but the Cubs won four of six games in September. At Cubs, April 5, 7-8: split 1-1, 1 rained out. The Cardinals spoiled opening day at Wrigley Field, scoring three runs on eight hits off the Cubs' new $155 million pitcher Jon Lester on the way to a 3-0 triumph. Adam Wainwright earned one of his two victories this season before tearing his Achilles. A forecast of rain and cold postponed the second game, but Jake Arrieta pitched seven shutout innings in a 2-0 Cubs victory the next night to provide new manager Joe Maddon with his first North Side victory. Maddon didn't break out the champagne, saying, "That's for the end of the year…when you actually get somewhere." At Cardinals, May 4-7: Cardinals won 3, Cubs won 1. The Cubs jumped to a good start in the series opener, scoring five runs in the first inning, but the Cardinals scored four runs in the seventh off Cubs relievers Pedro Strop and Zac Rosscup to win it 10-9. The Cardinals extended their winning streak to eight games with a 7-4 victory in the second game — another loss notched against the Cubs bullpen. But the Cubs snapped the streak behind Anthony Rizzo's three RBIs in a 6-5 victory the next day. Arrieta suffered back-to-back losses for the only time this season, giving up all five runs in the 5-1 loss in the finale. At Cardinals, June 26-28: Cardinals won 3. The only sweep of the year went to the Cardinals, who walked off in the opener when Peter Bourjos scored on Mike Baxter's throwing error to the plate with the bases loaded in the 10th inning. Cubs right-hander Donn Roach took the loss in the second game in his only appearance of the year when he gave up four earned runs in the 8-1 setback. The Cardinals improved to a whopping 51-24 with the 4-1 triumph in the finale, the Cubs' fifth straight loss. At Cubs, July 6-8: Split 2-2. Lester's duel with former Red Sox teammate and good friend John Lackey highlighted the opener. Lester recorded his first career hit, but Lackey earned the victory thanks to a late surge from his teammates in a 6-0 victory. The Cubs notched their first doubleheader sweep at Wrigley Field since 2003 the next day, starting with a 7-4 victory driven by Rizzo's two-run homer and Chris Denorfia's three RBIs. The Cubs used a three-run seventh for a 5-3 victory in the nightcap. Jhonny Peralta's two-out, two-run homer on a 1-2 pitch from Strop in the ninth inning gave the Cardinals a 6-5 victory in the finale, which included ejections of Cardinals manager Mike Matheny and catcher Yadier Molina. At Cardinals, Sept. 7-9: Cubs won 2, Cardinals won 1. Dexter Fowler and Addison Russell each homered and had three RBIs apiece to fuel the Cubs' 9-0 victory in the opener. Rizzo's 100th career homer and Starlin Castro's three-run shot helped the Cubs to an 8-5 victory in the second game. The Cardinals avoided the sweep, using a three-run eighth inning against the Cubs bullpen to negate Lester's solid start. Stephen Piscotty's two-run double pushed the Cardinals ahead for a 4-3 victory. At Cubs, Sept. 18-20: Cubs won 2, Cardinals won 1. Castro hit two homers and matched a career high with six RBIs to help kick off the series with an 8-3 Cubs victory. Dan Haren hit Matt Holliday in the helmet with a pitch in the fifth inning, and Cardinals reliever Matt Belisle hit Rizzo in the back of his leg in the seventh. Maddon, angry at what he believed was retaliation, stated in a postgame rant, "We don't start stuff, but we will stop stuff." Cubs pitchers hit three batters in the next game, resulting in the ejection of Maddon and Hector Rondon. Russell capped the Cubs' 5-4 victory with a diving stop and flip to second

base for the final out. The Cardinals got the last (regular-season) laugh with a 4-3 victory, but Molina injured his thumb on a key eighth-inning play at the plate. -- Chicago Tribune Cubs, Cardinals fans found in surprising places, according to Facebook data By Rachel Crosby Illinois is a swing state. In the north, it's bright blue. A belt in the middle is mixed. And across the south, it's overwhelmingly red. But this isn't politics mapped. It's baseball. Though Chicago is home to two teams, the Cubs and the Cardinals dominate the state. A look at Facebook user data showed the divide. But it also revealed pockets of fans in other parts of the Midwest. The Cubs, for instance, have a strong following in eastern Iowa. A dark blue color, dense with Cubs fans, stretches west from the Illinois border. There it fades into a lighter hue, with a few counties which slightly favor the Kansas City Royals or Minnesota Twins. But they're outliers. Take Johnson County, Iowa, for example, where Dan Allen is from, and where, based on "likes," more than a third of Facebook-using baseball fans root for the Cubs. "There's a lot of Cards fans, but I still feel like the Cubs dominate them," Allen said. The 38-year-old drove four hours from Iowa City on Wednesday night to be at the Cubby Bear, a bar in Wrigleyville, where he watched his favorite team win the wild-card game on TV. "This is electric," he said of the atmosphere. "It's incredible." The Cubs travel to St. Louis to face the Cardinals on Friday in Game 1 of the National League Division Series. Allen's tie to the team is a generational one. He was born in Chicago, and though he moved when he was 12, "my mom was born a block from Wrigley Field. My grandfather tried out for the Cubs. All of my family seems to root for them." Another reason Iowans may root for the Cubs is the team has a minor league affiliate there, said Cassidy Lent, reference librarian for the Baseball Hall of Fame. "A minor league team is going to draw in fans for their major league team, or at least that's the hope," Lent said. The Triple-A Iowa Cubs play in Des Moines. On Wednesday, the team opened up its ballpark so Chicago Cubs fans could watch the Pittsburgh game under the lights and on the video board. The Cubs' Single-A team in South Bend, Ind., did the same. Outside of Illinois, Iowa and Indiana, a few hot spots exist. There's one in South Dakota. In Nebraska, a handful of counties light up. One of them is Stanton County, home of Stanton, a city of less than 2,000 people, where Kyle Voecks serves as mayor. There, nearly a fifth of Facebook-using fans root for them, the city's most popular team. And it didn't surprise Voecks. "I know there's a lot," he said. "You see the flags, banners waving. They're the only thing you hear on the radio in the area, so people started following the Cubs years ago and it kind of hung in there."

For St. Louis, the spread is more vast. The city is the epicenter for Cardinals fans who "like" the team on Facebook, but the team's reach can be seen in southern Illinois and Indiana, western Kentucky and Tennessee, northeastern Oklahoma, northwestern Mississippi and almost all of Arkansas. Take Pocahontas, Ark., for example, where Bill Endicott helps run a series of sister radio stations. One of them is KPOC-FM 104.1, which broadcasts Cardinals games to the city and surrounding Randolph County. He cited the broadcasts — which date back several decades — and a history of St. Louis scouts fishing for players in the area as the reason nearly 70 percent of Facebook-using fans follow the team. "It all combines together to make Pocahontas be a more rabid Cardinal fan area, but we have a lot of Cubs fans here too," he said. "I know at the churches sometimes, they'll say, 'Well, we're gonna have a shorter service today because the first pitch is at 12:30.' That's a typical preacher around here." Endicott said the Cardinals' oldest living fan, Marie Davis, also lives in Pocahontas. The team recently recognized the 108-year-old. "She's someone who still faithfully listens to the games," he said. Farther south in Arkansas, in Jonesboro, sports radio host Brad Bobo wasn't surprised nearly 60 percent of Facebook-using baseball fans in the overlying Craighead County root for the Cardinals. "We go over Cardinals highlights every day on my show," he said. "They are just like a local team." He said the Cardinals even have even more of a following than the city's Arkansas State University, since Jonesboro sees a split between those fans and those who root for University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. "You'll get some Cubs fans here, or Braves fans here, but it's such a minority," he said. Even former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee went on St. Louis' KMOX station Thursday and said he grew up listening to the Cardinals on the radio, took his children to the games on their birthdays and gave a big "Go Cards!" Original radio broadcasts breed fans, no matter the proximity, and family ties tend to keep those alive, said Lent, the Baseball Hall of Fame librarian. "Take, for example, a state like Connecticut, where they have no team," she said. "You find a split pretty much between the middle of the state with the western half being Yankee fans while the eastern half is Boston. That's because of radio and TV broadcasts, and the same is (true) for St. Louis." Aside from hot spots, clusters of Cubs fans can be found around the country. Maybe it's a family. Maybe it's a few transplants. But the team's reach isn't limited to America. Before the wild-card win, longtime Cubs fan and U.S. ambassador to the nation of Georgia, Ian Kelly, woke up at 4 a.m. with his wife, Francesca, to watch the game in their family room across the globe. She said many servicemen and servicewomen caught the Cubs win at odd hours too. "It was well worth losing a few hours' sleep," she said. --

Chicago Tribune Starting Friday, Cubs-Cardinals rivalry takes a profound shift By Will Leitch The Cubs-Cardinals rivalry, as Buzz Bissinger once put it, is about "geography and territorial rights." If you go under the notion that the percentage of Cardinals fans in Chicago is essentially zero (if not exactly zero), you can theoretically drive south on Interstate 55 and watch that percentage grow, almost in a linear fashion, all the way up to 100 by the time you reach St. Louis. Dwight is about 25 percent; Bloomington-Normal's around 50-50; by Springfield, the townie bars are showing Cardinals games, not Cubs games, much to the chagrin of the General Assembly. And it's the same in the opposite direction. If charted, I-55 would look like a bell curve. I grew up right in the middle of that — a few miles east in Mattoon, on I-57, itself a Cubs-Cardinals north-south matrix — and while we were probably 65 percent Cardinals fans, there were enough Cubs fans to make every Cardinals-Cubs game feel a bit like a casual Civil War. In Champaign, where I went to college, the campus bars all show Cubs games, but all it takes is a 10-minute walk down Green Street to the Tumble Inn on Neil, and you're at a Cardinals bar. This makes the Cardinals-Cubs rivalry uniquely powerful and also uniquely cordial. Most rivalries are provincial. Yankees fans hate the Red Sox not just because they're the Red Sox but because they're from Boston; Northern California is something fundamentally different than Southern California; every part of Texas thinks it's the only part of Texas, and so on. But down that I-55 corridor, people co-exist in every other way than their baseball team perfectly fine. It is woven into day-to-day life, a signature-identifying characteristic you carry around with you. Growing up in Mattoon, you either loved Willie McGee and Ozzie Smith and John Tudor, as I did, or you loved Ryne Sandberg and Jody Davis and Leon Durham. Neither was in your control, in the same way your eye color or your asthma was not in your control. They were just part of who you were, and we all accepted it. Your fandom is like disagreeing with a family member about politics; you know they're wrong but you love them anyway. You just hope it doesn't come up at Thanksgiving dinner. Until now — right now — this conflict has been mostly theoretical. Sure, the Cardinals and Cubs play each other 19 games a season, and these are intense psychological ordeals whether they're at Busch Stadium or Wrigley Field. But they're still generally welcoming; you see a ton of Cardinals jerseys at Wrigley and a ton of Cubs jerseys at Busch, and it's fine because it speaks to the power and breadth and devotion of each of these deep fan bases of two of baseball's platinum franchises. Everyone understands: There are Cardinals fans everywhere and Cubs fans everywhere, and we've all learned to live with each other. But you can't help but wonder if this is just because the stakes have been so low. The Cardinals and Cubs, even though they're in the same division, always seem to be occupying different universes. It's not just because the Cardinals have had more success than the Cubs. Since 1996, the Cardinals have missed the postseason only seven times: 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2010. Before this year, the Cubs had made the postseason four times since 1996, and every one of them was during a season the Cardinals missed: 1998, 2003, 2007 and 2008. It is as if they were purposely trying to avoid each other. The Cubs' postseason pain doesn't involve the Cardinals, and the Cardinals' postseason glory has nothing to do with the Cubs. The teams have never met in a postseason series. This has made the rivalry fierce but also relatively bloodless. The battles have never taken place when they mattered fundamentally, at a molecular level. Neither team has ever cost the other anything. That changes Friday evening. Starting then, not everyone is going to be so friendly. We've already noticed a difference in the rivalry this year. Cubs manager Joe Maddon, who grew up a Cardinals fan, has made a point to try to put a pinprick in the Cardinals' mystique, mocking "The Cardinals Way" and comparing them, post-beanball brawl, to Tony Soprano. This is strategic of course; the Cubs hit batters and get hit just like everybody else, and Maddon knows that. But he's trying to pick a fight. He's saying that playtime is over. And he is absolutely right.

Imagine if David Freese's 2011 homer had happened against the Cubs? Or the Bartman play — poor, doomed Bartman — imagine if that had happened against the Cardinals rather than the Marlins? Parts of Coles County would still be on fire. And now that's about to happen. This series has taken a rivalry that's ingrained into the very fabric of the Midwest and has weaponized it. It's a profound shift in the rivalry, and I bet it's irreversible. All those small towns, not just off I-55 and I-57 but throughout the Midwest, their friendly, cuddly little hey-you-like-the-Cards-that's-great-I-like-the-Cubs-good-luck! cheerfulness is about to evaporate. The Cardinals are trying to ascend again to the heights to which they have become accustomed to believe they belong, and the last thing their fans want to believe is that the Cubs — the Cubs — are going to be the team to keep them from it. And the Cubs, simply, are trying to make history and change the world. No one knows what's going to happen in this series: Predicting something this combustible is a fool's errand. But one thing is certain: It would be wise for Cardinals fans to watch this series with Cardinals fans, and Cubs fans to watch this series with Cubs fans, and ne'er the twain shall meet. This is serious business. This is for everything. It's all going to be different after this. --