After all was said and done and the Cubs had clinched their first postseason series victory since 1908, Kerry Wood, Carlos Zambrano and Mike Remlinger ran out to the stands of Turner Field and began dousing the fans with champagne.
After a 5-1 victory over Atlanta in Game 5 of their National League Division Series that delivered the Cubs into the NL Championship Series, it was time to share the glory.
Drinks were on the house.
“I’m just happy for everybody in the Cubs organization,” manager Dusty Baker said. “All the players, the people of Chicago. And I’m really happy for Billy Williams, Ernie Banks and especially Ron Santo, because he couldn’t be here.”
The rap of lovable losers has haunted the organization for years, but Sunday’s victory seemed to change it all in the blink of an eye.
“We didn’t listen to it,” Wood said, “We stayed positive, and having Dusty in that [manager’s] seat helps. Hopefully we won’t hear that too much in the future.”
Wood was the man of the hour in the series-clinching victory, his second of the series. The day started out on the wrong foot when he learned he forgot to pack his glove before leaving Chicago after Saturday’s game. He scrambled to find a new one before settling for one of Mark Prior’s.
If the glove fits, wear it.
“I figured I’d find one that knew the strike zone,” Wood said.
Wood wore it well, dominating the Braves through eight innings, allowing one run on five hits with seven strikeouts.
The Cubs will face the Florida Marlins in the best-of-seven NLCS, beginning Tuesday night at Wrigley Field.
The Cubs appeared relaxed and confident before the game. Sammy Sosa, Moises Alou and Randall Simon played pepper around the batting cage, while Baker exchanged hugs with Braves players such as Gary Sheffield and Russ Ortiz.
It was business as usual, and the Cubs made a habit of playing well on the road, which Baker often referred to as “business trips.” They made Braves starter Mike Hampton work in the first inning, showing patience at the plate and making him throw 30 pitches.
Kenny Lofton started with a double to left, advancing to third on a wild pitch with Sosa at the plate. After Sosa walked, Alou dumped a single in front of left fielder Chipper Jones to bring Lofton home, giving the Cubs a quick lead.
Alex Gonzalez made it 2-0 in the second with a leadoff homer to center field, only the Cubs’ third of the series.
The Braves didn’t threaten until Javy Lopez doubled with two outs in the fourth, but Wood reared back and struck out Andruw Jones on a 97-m.p.h. fastball. Alou’s infield hit in the sixth preceded a two-run homer by Aramis Ramirez, making it a 4-0 game and giving Wood some room to breathe.
The Braves finally got to Wood in the sixth after a leadoff walk to Rafael Furcal and Marcus Giles’ sharp single. Gary Sheffield, who sat out Game 4 after being hit in the left hand with a Mark Prior pitch in Game 3, followed with a liner into short-center field that forced Lofton to make a sliding catch.
But second-base umpire Bruce Froemming ruled Lofton trapped the ball, allowing Furcal to score from second to make it 4-1. Froemming is famous in Cubs history for ending Milt Pappas’ perfect game on Sept. 2, 1972, calling a ball on a close 3-2 pitch with two outs in the ninth, leaving Pappas with a no-hitter.
Fortunately for the Cubs, Giles was confused about the call and Lofton was able to get a force at second before he and Baker began arguing with Froemming. Replays backed Lofton’s argument.
Just as it looked like the worm was about to turn, Wood induced Chipper Jones to ground into an inning-ending double play, and the energy level at Turner Field dropped in a nano-second. The next inning, after Gonzalez let a Vinny Castilla liner glance off his glove, Mark Grudzielanek was in perfect position to scoop it up and throw Castilla out, ending the threat.
It was that kind of a night for Wood. It has been that kind of a season for the Cubs.
Baker thought Wood was spent after 117 pitches, and sent Tom Goodwin to pinch-hit with runners on the corners and two outs in the eighth. Goodwin doubled to right off ex-Cub Will Cunnane to score Karros.
When Chipper Jones sent a long fly ball to the wall in right leading off the ninth against Joe Borowski, Sammy Sosa leaped to make the catch. Borowski promptly struck out Lopez and Andruw Jones, closing out the victory in style.
“It was explosive out there,” Borowski said of the band of traveling Cubs fans. “When you’re in the visiting park, you don’t expect to hear what we heard tonight.”
It was deja vu for Baker, whose San Francisco Giants beat Atlanta in Game 5 of the division series in 2002.
“Hopefully, history will repeat itself,” Baker said before the game.
Baker’s team lost in the seventh game of the World Series, but now he’s hoping to rewrite history, with a Hollywood ending for the ages.
Play-by-play
CUBS FIRST: Lofton doubled to deep right. Grudzielanek struck out swinging. Lofton to third on wild pitch by Hampton. Sosa walked. Alou singled to left, scoring Lofton, Sosa to second. Ramirez grounded into fielder’s choice to third, Alou out at second, Sosa to third. Karros struck out swinging.
1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 1-0
BRAVES FIRST: Furcal grounded out to second. Giles struck out swinging. Sheffield singled to center. C. Jones struck out looking.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 1-0
CUBS SECOND: Gonzalez homered to center. Miller grounded out to shortstop. Wood struck out swinging. Lofton grounded out to third.
1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
BRAVES SECOND: Lopez grounded out to short. A. Jones grounded out to shortstop. Franco walked. Castilla struck out swinging.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
CUBS THIRD: Grudzielanek singled to left. Sosa struck out swinging. Alou struck out swinging. Ramirez grounded into fielder’s choice to third, Grudzielanek out at second.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
BRAVES THIRD: Hampton struck out looking. Furcal grounded out to third. Giles flied out to left.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
CUBS FOURTH: Karros grounded out to third. Gonzalez struck out swinging. Miller grounded out to pitcher.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
BRAVES FOURTH: Sheffield popped out to shortstop. C. Jones struck out swinging. Lopez doubled to left. A. Jones struck out swinging.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
CUBS FIFTH: Wood grounded out to shortstop. Lofton grounded out to shortstop. Grudzielanek grounded out to pitcher.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
BRAVES FIFTH: Franco lined out to center. Castilla lined out to left. Hampton struck out swinging.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 2-0
CUBS SIXTH: Sosa struck out swinging. Alou reached on infield single to second. Ramirez homered to center, scoring Alou. Karros grounded out to third. Gonzalez flied out to left.2 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 4-0
BRAVES SIXTH: Furcal walked. Giles singled to left, Furcal to second. Sheffield reached on fielder’s choice to center, scoring Furcal, Giles out at second. C. Jones grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Sheffield out at second. 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 4-1
CUBS SEVENTH: Miller grounded out to third. Wood grounded out to third. Lofton singled to right. Gryboski relieved Hampton. Lofton caught stealing second, catcher to shortstop. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 4-1
BRAVES SEVENTH: Lopez grounded out to third. A. Jones grounded out to shortstop. Franco doubled to deep center. Castilla grounded out to shortstop.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 4-1
CUBS EIGHTH: Wright relieved Gryboski. Grudzielanek flied out to right. Sosa grounded out to shortstop. Alou struck out swinging.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 4-1
BRAVES EIGHTH: DeRosa hit for Wright. DeRosa popped out to second. Furcal reached on bunt single to catcher. Giles flied out to center. Sheffield grounded into fielder’s choice to shortstop, Furcal out at second.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors. Cubs 4-1
CUBS NINTH: Cunnane relieved Wright. Ramirez popped out to second. Karros safe at first on throwing error by third baseman Castilla. Gonzalez singled to left, Karros to third. Miller struck out looking. Goodwin hit for Wood. Goodwin doubled to right, scoring Karros, Gonzalez to third. King relieved Cunnane. Gonzalez out at home on runner’s fielder’s choice.
1 run, 2 hits, 1 error. Cubs 5-1
BRAVES NINTH: Borowski relieved Wood. C. Jones flied out to right. Lopez struck out swinging. A. Jones struck out swinging.0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors. Cubs 5-1
