2016 World Series Game 3

Lore & Background

The Cubs defeated the Indians 4–3 to capture their first World Series championship since 1908, and their first while playing at Wrigley Field. The deciding seventh game, won by Chicago 8–7 in ten innings, was the fifth World Series Game 7 to go into extra innings, and the first since 1997 (which, coincidentally, the Indians also lost). 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. The Cubs, playing in their 11th World Series overall and their first since 1945, won their third championship and first since 1908, ending the longest championship drought in North American professional sports history.

In Their Own Story

The air in Progressive Field was thick with humidity and tension as the bottom of the fifth inning arrived. The Cubs trailed 1-0, but the dugout began vibrating with a new energy. A ground ball found a hole, then another. By the time Kris Bryant stepped to the plate for his second at-bat, the pressure had flipped. He connected, sending the ball soaring into the right-field seats, and the roar that followed wasn't just from Chicago fans; it was a collective release of tension that had built up since 1908. As the ninth inning approached with an insurmountable cushion, the realization settled over the team: this time, they wouldn't let it slip away.

Reader's Guide

The Cubs made their 11th appearance in the World Series; their only previous two championships were in 1907 and 1908. They lost their eight other appearances, in 1906, 1910, 1918, 1929, 1932, 1935, 1938, and 1945. The Cubs' 107 season World Series victory drought was the longest league title drought in the history of the major American professional sports leagues. The Cubs qualified for the postseason by winning the National League Central, ending the regular season with the best record in all of MLB (103–58) for the first time since 1945. The Cubs entered the postseason as the overall #1 seed, and they defeated the 5th-seeded San Francisco Giants 3–1 of the NL Division Series before clinching their first NL pennant since 1945 with a 4–2 series win over the 3rd-seeded Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series. For Cubs manager Joe Maddon, it was his second appearance in the World Series as manager – in 2008, he managed the Tampa Bay Rays, who lost 4–1 to the Philadelphia Phillies. The Cubs returned star Kyle Schwarber for the World Series, who was previously thought to have a season ending ACL injury.

Did You Know?

• The Cubs' 107 season World Series victory drought was the longest league title drought in the history of the major American professional sports leagues.
• The deciding seventh game was the first Game 7 to have a rain delay, which occurred as the 10th inning was about to start.
• Kyle Schwarber, who had missed nearly all of the 2016 season after tearing ligaments in his left leg in the season's third game, was added to the Cubs' World Series roster and started as their designated hitter in Game 1