Indians underdog

Any other year, against any other team, the Cleveland Indians would be the sentimental choice in this year’s World Series in the US.

You know, because of that long championship drought and all. But not against the Chicago Cubs.

The lovable Cubbies, who captured the nation’s heart by exorcising curses and winning their first NL pennant since 1945 on Saturday (Sunday NZ Time) and are aiming for their first Series title since 1908, are a popular pick.

The oddsmakers in Las Vegas have pegged the Cubs as heavy favourites going into Game 1 on Tuesday night (Wednesday NZT).

Heck, even Barack Obama, a die-hard White Sox supporter, said he was happy to see the North Side of Chicago rocking. Well, all the love toward the NL champions has left the Indians as underdogs – a role they’ve embraced this October.

And that assuredness has only grown. Cleveland wasn’t supposed to beat Boston, but the Indians swept Big Papi into retirement and the Red Sox into their offseason sooner than expected. Cleveland’s pitching staff followed that by whittling Toronto’s big bats down to toothpicks in the AL Championship Series.

Now the Cubs, who won 103 games during the regular season, have three aces at the top of the rotation and a flame-throwing closer and seem to have a date with destiny. The Indians know they can match up with anyone.