World Series Titles

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Lore & Background

The Cubs finished with the best record in Major League Baseball at 103–58 (and 1 tie), and won their first National League Central title since the 2008 season, winning by 17½ games. The team also reached the 100-win mark for the first time since 1935 and won 103 total games, the most wins for the franchise since 1910. The Cubs defeated the San Francisco Giants in the NLDS and returned to the NLCS for the second year in a row, where they defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games. The Cubs defeated the Cleveland Indians in seven games in the World Series, their first appearance since the 1945 World Series and first win since the 1908 World Series. In the World Series, the Cubs came back from a three-games-to-one deficit, winning the final three games. The last time a team came back from a three-games-to-one deficit to win the World Series was the Kansas City Royals in 1985. The Cubs were also the first team to win Games 6 and 7 on the road in a World Series since the Pittsburgh Pirates did it against the Baltimore Orioles in 1979. The World Series victory put an end to the so-called Curse of the Billy Goat and the longest World Series championship drought in history.

In Their Own Story

The deciding seventh game on November 2 ended slightly after 12:00 am local time on November 3. Chicago won 8–7 in ten innings, marking the fifth World Series Game 7 to go into extra innings and the first since 1997. It was also the first Game 7 to have a rain delay, which occurred as the 10th inning was about to start. The Cubs became the sixth team to come back from a 3–1 deficit to win a best-of-seven World Series. In Game 1, Roberto Pérez hit two home runs, and Dexter Fowler became the first African-American to play for the Cubs in a World Series. Kyle Schwarber returned from a season-ending ACL injury, striking out twice but also doubling and drawing a walk. The series concluded with the Indians' last championship having come in 1948.

Reader's Guide

The Cubs began the season on April 4, 2016 at the Los Angeles Angels and finished the regular season on October 2, 2016 at the Cincinnati Reds. They finished the month of April with an MLB-best record of 17–5.

Did You Know?

• The Cubs won 103 total games, the most wins for the franchise since 1910.
• The Cubs came back from a three-games-to-one deficit to win the World Series, the first team to do so since the Kansas City Royals in 1985.
• The Cubs were the first team to win Games 6 and 7 on the road in a World Series since the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1979.