WRIGLEY’S BELIEVE IT OR NOT
Chicago ready to rock for Cubs’ 1st home Series game in 71 years
CHICAGO — If Saturday was Mardi Gras in October in Wrigleyville, t his weekend has t he potential to become the celebration that ends them all in this city.
Eleven U.S. presidents have taken the oath of office since Wrigley Field last hosted the Fall Classic, but the wait for the Cubs and their fans will end Friday, when Game 3 of the World Series is played.
“There is just going to be a lot of love and excitement in the stadium,” Cubs catcher David Ross said. “It’s Wrigley. It’s the Chicago Cubs. It’s the World Series. This is why you come to Chicago.
“If you’re a professional athlete that wants to do something special, you go to a city and try to change history, and that is what we have an opportunity to do.”
Wrigley Field last hosted the World Series on Oct. 10, 1945, when the Tigers beat the Cubs 9-3 in Game 7.
These Cubs, tied 1- 1 with the Indians, would like nothing better than to hoist a World Series trophy on Wrigley soil, ending a title drought that dates to 1908.
Reaching t hat goal would entail sweeping the three games in Chicago, but why not? The Cubs finished off the Dodgers in the NLCS with three straight victories, culminated by a pennant-clinching celebration Saturday following Game 6.
Shortstop Addison Russell admitted he was nervous before Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday in Cleveland and would expect those j i tters to return Friday.
“The anxiousness is going to be more intense being here because we’re going to be in front of our fans,” Russell said before a Cubs workout Thursday.
There will be comfort for the Cubs with Kyle Hendricks on the mound. Saturday, it was Hendricks who seized the moment against Clayton Kershaw, pitching a two-hitter over 7 1/3 innings for the pennant-clinching victory.
The Indians will counter with Josh Tomlin, who pitched two strong games against the Red Sox and Blue Jays in the first two rounds, recording a victory in each.
Only adding to the challenge for both pitchers is expected wind gusts of 25-30 mph blowing out to center field.
“Whether t he wind is blowing out or in, it’s going to be the same game plan for me,” Hendricks said. “Making good pitches is going to get hitters out. If you’re trying to get fly balls, ground balls, you can get out of your routine or game plan.”
But, with the elimination of the DH, the Cubs will lose a weapon in Kyle Schwarber, who has not been cleared medically to play the field. Schwarber, who returned f rom a
6 month hiatus for the World Series, had two hits and two RBIs in the Cubs’ 5-1 victory in Game 2.
Just returning to Wrigley for their first game since the pennant clincher will mean plenty to the Cubs, who have become celebrities of the highest magnitude in this city.
“It’s pretty evident if you go out and you’re a player that [the fans] feel a connection,” Ross said. “I’ve gotten people, without asking, coming up and hugging me. Putting their arm around me and I think they feel like part of this group and it makes me laugh sometimes after they walk away. I’m like, ‘Who walks up to strangers and hugs them without permission?’
“But it just shows the type of group we have in here and the connection between front office and coaching staff and fan base. It’s a big family and I think why it’s called the Friendly Confines is you feel you’re part of a group and a family.” mpuma@nypost.com