Cubs secure first trip to postseason since 2020
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PITTSBURGH -- Not since they won the NL Central crown in 2017 had the Cubs experienced a true postseason celebration before Wednesday.
The team was limited to high-fives and fist bumps after clinching the National League Central title during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season, and two years prior, it elected not to party after locking down an NL Wild Card spot, still hoping it could play its way to a division crown that never came. Suffice to say, after punching their ticket to play postseason baseball for the first time in five years with an 8-4 victory over the Pirates Wednesday afternoon at PNC Park, the Cubs made sure to soak in the moment.
“This is the right group to do it with, and I love being a Chicago Cub,” Pete Crow-Armstrong said. “I love being able to celebrate with these people, specifically.”
Players tossed their shoes into a laundry bin on their way into the clubhouse. Moments later, chaos ensued, with champagne painting the plastic-wrapped walls of the visitors’ clubhouse.
While understanding the team still has everything to play for -- including a quest for its fourth World Series title -- manager Craig Counsell highlighted the importance of acknowledging that they have achieved its first of many goals.
“You don't get to do this in regular jobs, where you get to celebrate and throw champagne on each other,” Counsell said. “You just don't get to do it, right? So you take advantage of it, have fun with it, enjoy each other and celebrate each other.”
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“We’ve been thinking about that first champagne shower since February,” starter Matthew Boyd added. “And this is just one step in where we ultimately want to go.
“We’re not done yet. There’s still a mission to be accomplished, lots of steps in that. We’re all well aware of that. But you want to take these moments to celebrate and reflect on the long journey that it has been, because it's been a special year and you want to enjoy that.”
While the team’s journey started in mid-February at its Spring Training facility in Mesa, Ariz., Counsell credited the Opening Day games in Tokyo for unifying the team.
“You’re happy for everybody involved,” Counsell said. “That's the biggest part, is that there's a lot of people involved in this. …
“You want the fans to be able to experience October baseball and be a part of that and take them on a journey with the team. That's so much fun. Those are the people you think about when this stuff happens -- everybody that puts in the work, everybody that shows up at 12 o’clock for a night game and all the fans that come every day to Wrigley. We want them to be able to enjoy the best of baseball, which is October.”
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Nico Hoerner said it was cool to look around the room and make eye contact with everybody who had helped make the season special. That included Ian Happ, the longest-tenured Cub who, fittingly, recorded the final out of the game.
“We got to go to the playoffs in 2020, but doing it near the end of a true 162 [-game schedule] is totally different,” Hoerner said. “Baseball is such a game of persistence and camaraderie. Getting to celebrate like this is a really special thing. It’s obviously not our ultimate goal, but it's still a huge milestone along the way.”
The Cubs scored four runs in the top of the first inning Wednesday via four hits -- including back-to-back home runs by Happ and Moisés Ballesteros -- a walk, a wild pitch and a balk. Boyd allowed a three-run blast in the bottom of the first to Joey Bart, and he walked in a run to tie the game in the second.
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In the sixth, Dansby Swanson reached on a throwing error and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Michael Busch. Consecutive hits by Hoerner, Happ and Justin Turner drove home two more runs to open up the lead to three. That supplied more than enough insurance for the Chicago bullpen, as Porter Hodge, Aaron Civale, Drew Pomeranz and Taylor Rogers combined to pitch six innings of scoreless ball.
With 10 games remaining in their regular season, the Cubs (88-64) still have plenty more to play for. They are 4 1/2 games back of the Brewers (92-59) in the NL Central and hold the tiebreaker over Milwaukee in the event of a tie after all 162 games have been played.
“I’m just looking forward to going back to Chicago, seeing everybody and continuing to just go win ballgames for them,” Crow-Armstrong said.