Emma: Cubs Have Gone Missing In The World Series
By Chris Emma--
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Such a season can't end like this, right?
The Cubs dominated the regular season to the tune of 103 victories and looked from the start to be the best team in baseball. Their lineup, rotation and bullpen was loaded up for this, the chance to win a championship.
For all the remarkable moments along the way, the Cubs were supposed to cap off their World Series pursuit with big hits, clutch pitching performances and a champagne celebration. Could you imagine the parade?
Where has that team gone? After the Cubs' 7-2 loss to the Indians in Game 4 on Saturday night, one more game at Wrigley Field could bring it all to an end.
"We got to get a one-game winning streak tomorrow," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said after the second straight loss. "If we do that, I'll feel really good about going back to Cleveland."
The World Series fanfare has been sucked away from Wrigleyville after a miserable Cubs loss. Game 4 saw the best team in baseball look like a shell of itself. The Cubs had poor pitching, sloppy play in the field and continued their trend of chasing pitches.
Perhaps the most fitting moments of the Cubs' World Series funk came in the bottom of the sixth inning, when rookie catcher Willson Contreras chased three Corey Kluber curveballs well out of the zone and in the dirt. It was the same pitch each time, yet he failed to hold back and struck out in three pitches.
Credit the Indians, who got another gem from Kluber and more dominance from their relentless bullpen. Meanwhile, the Tribe bats won with more than just small ball, blasting home runs into a steep wind the Cubs couldn't beat. Cleveland's team is the real deal, but Chicago just isn't itself.
Ever dream of going to the World Series? Ticket prices for Game 5 are plummeting to the rate of only one month of rent. Fans can maybe even watch at a neighborhood bar without cover.
Friday in Wrigleyville saw unparalleled excitement for the neighborhood as it welcomed the Fall Classic in for the first time since 1945. By Saturday night, the Cubs' dream of making history was on the verge of being dashed.
Baseball can be a funny game sometimes. The Wrigley wind was gusting out in Friday's Game 4, a 1-0 loss for the Cubs in which they hardly came close to getting one in the jet stream. One night later, they had three balls crushed into the night, only to be carried back by the wind blowing in.
Nothing about this is funny to Cubs fans, many of whom stormed out of Wrigley Field well before the final out. Sometimes, the best team loses to the hotter team. The Indians are certainly better when it matters most.
What's worse is the Cubs are a much better team than this, which makes the World Series even more disappointing.
"We've won three games in a row before," outfielder Jason Heyward said. "We're not trying to do anything impossible."
Maddon expressed his frustration Friday to see the Cubs' bats swinging at pitches out of the strike zone. That trend mostly continued in Game 5, parlayed with poor play in the field, too.
Likely National League MVP Kris Bryant committed two errors in the second inning, which helped the Indians take a 2-1 lead. In the seventh inning, Dexter Fowler misplayed a fly ball that turned into a lead-off double. That was Cleveland's catalyst to put the game away.
Local product Jason Kipnis dreamed of seeing the Cubs one day win a World Series growing up as a diehard fan. His three-run home run for the Indians in the seventh inning didn't help that cause. Maybe he'll get an invitation to Thanksgiving in Northeast Ohio instead of Northbrook.
"For lack of better terms, it was a dream come true," Kipnis said of his home run.
And for the rest of the night, Wrigley Field felt like a morgue.
Even after a deflating loss dug the Cubs' hole deeper, Maddon expressed confidence in his team's chances. Oddly enough, he has a case. Jon Lester is slated to pitch Game 5, then Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks are due up to follow.
A comeback starts with Lester on the mound.
"You have to have the same mindset going into it," Lester said. "It's hard enough to pitch this time of year or play this time of year and be successful. I think if you're down 3-1 and you're going in there saying you have to do this, you have to do that to try to stay alive, I think you've kind of already been beaten, you know?"
Most importantly, the Cubs' bats must show up. The gloves must also show up and protect the pitching staff. The bullpen must show up and keep the game in check.
The Cubs play their caliber of baseball on the biggest stage in Game 5. If they get that one-game winning streak, they'll have to hop on a plane to Cleveland and do it again twice more to become champions.
Gone is the World Series buzz from Wrigley Field, and lost is the Cubs team that brought so many memories.
If the best version of the Cubs doesn't show up, this special season will come to a disappointing conclusion.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670 and like his Facebook page.
