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Chicago Cubs: 4th NLCS berth
1913 1940 1941 1942
Harry Caray Recaps NLDS Game 4
"Hellooo again, everybody! Holy cow! If you love October baseball, you had yourself a beauty at Wrigley Field! And if you're a Cubs fan...get ready! They're goin' back to the National League Championship Series for the THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR!"
The Chicago Cubs have done it again!
Five to two over the mighty Milwaukee Brewers, and let me tell ya something—that final score doesn't tell the whole story.
For six innings these clubs were slugging it out like heavyweight prizefighters.
Milwaukee came out swinging! Corey Shipps—who was just about the only Brewer who looked comfortable all series—absolutely crushed one into the Chicago afternoon in the second inning. Four hundred fifteen feet!
Holy cow, did he hit that baseball!
The Cubs answered right away.
Katsukuni Sato singled.
Paul Bader doubled.
Josh Lewis knocked in a run.
Antonio Sanchez lifted a sacrifice fly.
Just like that, Chicago was back in front.
Then Mark McDonald said, "Not so fast!" and launched one into the seats in the third.
Tie game!
Two to two!
And from there?
It became a chess match.
Brent Christiansen wasn't overpowering, but he kept making pitches when he had to. Milwaukee kept getting runners aboard...and kept leaving them there. Nine men stranded! Corey Shipps was intentionally walked twice because the Cubs weren't about to let him beat 'em again.
Meanwhile Tyler Wesley kept battling for Milwaukee. Seven-plus innings. He deserved better than the loss.
But baseball...
Baseball doesn't always reward what you deserve.
Now here comes the seventh inning!
Antonio Sanchez reaches on an error.
Steals second!
Brent Anderson shoots a base hit into center...
Here comes Sanchez! SAFE!
The Cubs take a 3-2 lead, and you could feel Wrigley Field start to shake.
Then came the eighth.
Sato with another hit.
Bader with another hit.
Josh Lewis lines one into the outfield.
One run scores...
Then the ball gets away from the Brewers!
Another run comes home!
Holy cow! That's the ballgame!
Bill Hollis came on and slammed the door in the ninth, striking out the final two hitters.
And just like that...
The Brewers' season...
Is over.
Now folks, let's talk about Milwaukee for just a second.
One hundred and two wins!
One hundred and two!
Nobody else in the National League even won ninety games!
You dominate the regular season. You finish with the best record in the league.
And you're golfing before the League Championship Series.
That's October baseball.
It can be absolutely heart-breaking.
The Brewers have now put together another magnificent regular season...
...and once again leave October without a pennant.
As for the Cubs?
Three straight trips to the NLCS!
1940...1941...1942!
Only their fourth appearance ever, joining 1913, 1940, 1941, and now 1942, but this is beginning to feel like a golden era on the North Side.
Series MVP Justin Hopson didn't drive in a run today, but he was on base, doubled, and set the tone all series long. Katsukuni Sato reached base three times. Paul Bader scored twice. Josh Lewis delivered the biggest hit of the afternoon with those insurance runs in the eighth.
And now...
Get ready, baseball fans!
The Chicago Cubs...
The Los Angeles Dodgers...
The National League Championship Series!
"Holy cow! Wrigley's gonna be buzzin', Brooklyn—well, Los Angeles—is gonna be buzzin', and I can't wait! So long, everybody!"
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