The Bernstein Brief: Wrigley Field's A Different Place Today
By Dan Bernstein--
CBSChicago.com senior columnist
(CBS) Anthony Rizzo said it Monday, in the giddy aftermath of the Cubs' 8-6 win over the Cardinals that put them up 2-1 in the NLDS, giving them the chance to wrap it up with a win Tuesday afternoon.
"It's either the smallest park in baseball or plays as the biggest park," Rizzo said.
Indeed, their record-setting barrage of six home runs was aided by warm air and brisk wind Monday night, in a Wrigley Field game that felt more like mid-August than mid-October. They showed they could win a playoff game on a small-park night.
To close it out, however, Joe Maddon's team will need to put its noted versatility on display once more, now in big-park conditions. Winds have shifted WNW, and temperatures are expected to fall into the 50s during the game as more appropriate autumn weather rolls into Chicago for Tuesday. It's part of the challenge of constructing a winning team here, finding a roster capable of playing whatever game is needed.
Newly elevated bleachers and massive video boards may have altered the effect some, but this is now uncharted territory for the reconstructed ballpark. Two playoff games, two entirely different environments.
Dan Bernstein is a co-host of 670 The Score's "Boers and Bernstein Show" in afternoon drive. Follow him on Twitter @dan_bernstein and read more of his columns here.
