No Tomorrow For Cubbies, Tribe
Jerry Lai, USATSI

With a championship in sight, the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians will put 176 years of drought on the line in a highly-anticipated Game 7.

  • Chicago Cubs (3-3)
  • Cleveland Indians (3-3)
  • World Series, Game 7, 8:00 pm ET, FOX
  • Progressive Field, Cleveland, OH

Tonight signifies every true baseball fan’s dream. A six-month marathon coming down to one game between the best of the best. The fate of two organizations being decided on a chilly November night.

This year, it cannot get more special. When Game 7 of the World Series commences at Progressive Field, the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians will put 176 years of drought on the table.

All hands will be on deck as the two cities seek a long-awaited championship.

For the Cubs, it is about turning a 3-1 series deficit into their first title since 1908 — before the Titanic sank, Taft took office, World War I took place, and the Ottoman Empire collapsed.

For the Indians, it is simply about finishing what they started, astonishingly bringing Cleveland its second championship of 2016 (Cavaliers), and avoiding what would be an offseason of misery should they fall. For the Tribe, it has been 68 painful years. The last time they hoisted the commissioner’s trophy, Neil Armstrong was 20 years away from uttering his famous words.

For both cities, it would most definitely be “a giant leap for mankind.” Both could rejoice, alleviate years of anguish, and remember this night for a lifetime.

In as meaningful a game as there is in sports, two men take forefront:

One man, with a win, will claim the MVP of baseball’s 112th Fall Classic. The other man, with a performance resembling Game 6 of the NLCS in the slightest, can undoubtedly walk off the mound a hero.

Everything else is thrown out the window. Everything else is forgotten with a masterful performance tonight. Anything less will be placed under the microscope, with November 2, 2016 being the only day of the season that truly mattered.

This, my friends, is the beauty of baseball.

The More You Know

  • The Cubs will attempt to become the sixth team in MLB history to overcome a 3-1 World Series deficit. (’25 Pirates, ’58 Yankees, ’68 Tigers, ’79 Pirates, ’85 Royals)
  • In the history of the best-of-seven World Series, home teams are 18-18 in the pivotal deciding game (No, Progressive Field does not provide a magical advantage tonight).
  • Corey Kluber will look to become the first starting pitcher since 1968 (Mickey Lolich – Tigers) to win three games in a single Fall Classic.
  • If Chicago wins, five of the last seven world champions will have been National League teams.

One break, once bounce, one inch; that’s all it may come down to. It simply does not get much better than this.