2010s decade of Sports
End of 108-year drought is top 2010s moment
They still leave Budweiser cans and bottles at Harry Caray’s grave site, roses at Ernie Banks’ tombstone, and tears seeing the ivy at Wrigley Field.
They remember the moment late in the night on Nov. 2, 2016, the one that will be cherished forever. First baseman Anthony Rizzo caught a slipping Kris Bryant’s throw for the final out, clinching an 8-7, 10-inning win in Game 7 of the World Series.
The out that ended the Cubs’ epic 108-year title drought.
Oh, sure, the Cubs winning the World Series was the greatest moment in baseball this past decade, but for Cubs fans, it’s like saying Ryne Sandberg was just a second baseman.
They’ll tell you that night was the greatest moment in the past century, going back to 1908, if you will.
It was the night their heartbreak ended, when they could stop saying, “Wait til Next Year,” when they could finally pronounce themselves as the greatest team in baseball.
When a 35-year-old man collapsed at Harry Caray’s restaurant on Kinzie Street that evening, going into the fetal position, it epitomized the way every Cubs fan felt beating the Indians in Game 7 of the World Series.
“Why not, it was the biggest moment in sports history in the world,” says Grant DePorter, the CEO of the Harry Caray restaurant group who watched the game with 87-year-old Dutchie, Caray’s wife. “And that’s an understatement.”
The Cubs had some special teams over the years. They were in the World Series in 1945. They had a great team in ’69, only to collapse down the stretch. They had a 2-0 lead in a best-of-five
Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo celebrates the Game 7 win in the 2016 World Series.
playoff series against the Padres in ’84, only to lose the next three games. They were up 3-1 against the Florida Marlins in the 2003 National League Championship Series, with aces Mark Prior and Kerry Wood on the mound in Games 6 and 7, only to wind up making Steve Bartman a household name.
It was always something, whether black cats or billy goats or foul balls into the stands that would happen along the way, continuing the curse.
“It was such a relief,” Cubs owner Tom Ricketts said. “Really, you think about the Cubs as a member of your family. Like all members of your family, you love them, but sometimes they let you down. And they might let you down for 108 years in a row. And we did.”
The Cubs finally ended the most famous sports drought in history but had to do it in the most Cubs way possible.
Finding themselves on the brink of a championship after roaring back from a 3-1 deficit in the series, the Cubs blew it.
Only this time, the pain was shortlived.
The Cubs were rolling along to a 6-2 lead, and the next thing you knew, Rajai Davis was hitting a two-run homer off Aroldis Chapman, the game was going to the 10th inning, and there was a rain delay.
It was surreal.
Then came Jason Heyward. Heyward, who batted .150 in the World Series, delivered the biggest moment of the evening.
He gathered the players in the indoor batting cage, told them they had come much too far to lose now, reminding them of their talent.
“At that moment,” Heyward said, “I just had to vent a little bit. I was a little heated. I told them, ‘This is a great team. We won 103 games. We overcame adversity all year. Let’s keep that fire. Here we are boys, let’s reset, and let’s go do this thing.’ ”
The game resumed 17 minutes later and the Cubs got run-scoring hits from Ben Zobrist and Miguel Montero in the top of the inning. Cleveland would score one run in the bottom of the 10th, but lefty Mike Montgomery came in to shut the door, getting Michael Martinez to roll a grounder to Bryant at third.
And at 12:47 a.m. ET, the Cubs were World Series champs.
They became the first visiting team to ever win a Game 7 in extra innings.
“Our guys pulled it off,” Cubs president Theo Epstein said. “They stayed together. They care about each other. They like each other. They overcame tough circumstances. I don’t mean to sound corny, but I think that’s why we won.
“To do with these guys, the way we did, to come together like we did, it’s otherworldly.”