Kyle Schwarber – 6: Reached on an infield single in his first at-bat. Grounded out to end the top of the ninth. Chicago Cubs Game 7 player ratingsĭexter Fowler – 7: Led off the game with a home run to dead center field. Here are the player ratings for Game 7 of the World Series, an 8-7 Cubs victory and an instant classic if there ever was one. The last time the Cubs won the World Series, Sporting News still called it the "World's Series." /jfn1lboqtK Cleveland got one back, but Mike Montgomery came out of the bullpen to record the final out, and give the Cubs their first world championship since Sporting News was 22 years old. MORE: What the championship means to the Cubsįor the Cubs, all that any of it meant was waiting a little longer. After Chapman rebounded to retire the top of the Cleveland order, 1-2-3, the rain picked up and the tarp came on for a delay, just as the 10th inning was about to start. The Cubs got the go-ahead run to third base with one out, and Bryan Shaw got out of it.
Then, in the eighth inning, with the Cubs four outs away from their first World Series win since 1908, Aroldis Chapman gave up a two-run homer to Rajai Davis, the Cleveland center fielder who'd had an awful night.Īnd in the ninth inning, the rain came. Then there was David Ross, in his last game before retirement, giving the Cubs a three-run lead with a home run off Andrew Miller, the most dominant pitcher of this entire postseason. There was Javier Baez making up for his two errors with a home run. There was Jon Lester coming out of the Chicago bullpen and throwing a wild pitch that brought home two runs. It had Cleveland ace Corey Kluber getting knocked out early, finally faltering on three days' rest. The night started with Dexter Fowler's home run. MORE: Amazing photos from a classic World Series You didn't know that it would be one of the most amazing games you ever saw. If an entire generation of new baseball fans were minted over the past ten days, that alone is enough to vault Cubs-Indians into the upper echelons of World Series classics.CLEVELAND - You knew that the Cubs and Cleveland meeting in Game 7 of the World Series would be a night to remember, as somebody won a championship for either the first time in 108 years or the first time in 68 years. Will the 2016 World Series go down in history as the series that put baseball back on the right path in popular culture? It is certainly a good start.
Seriously, will anyone ever forget comedian Bill Murray interviewing Cubs executive Theo Epstein in the clubhouse? The entertainment value may or may not have been enhanced by an adult beverage - or twelve.ĭrunk Bill Murray interviewing drunk Theo Epstein is one of the best interviews ever. Throw in the checkered histories of the Cubs and Indians, who had combined for nearly two centuries of empty postseasons, and the league had a recipe for can’t-miss television.
The Cubs and their cadre of celebrity fans like Bill Murray, Vince Vaughn, Eddie Vedder, and John Cusak were pitted against LeBron James, a shirtless JR Smith, and Charlie Sheen decked out in full Wild Thing Vaughn garb. As the action unfolded Wednesday night, it felt as if everyone, even the most casual sports fans, had their television tuned to the World Series.Įverything went right for Major League Baseball in this World Series.
That does not diminish the importance of the game, as it will likely go down as the second highest-rated Game 7 of all time.
The 2016 finale pales in comparison to the all-time highs set during the 1986 World Series, another seven-game classic. Baseball has waited years for a game like this to reconnect with the country. As many as 40 million people may have been tuned into the game, making it the second-highest rated television event of the year behind the Super Bowl. World Series Game 7 will go down as the most-watched baseball game in 15 years. This World Series may be the one that begins reversing that decades-long trend for baseball. As the NFL and NBA continue to dwarf the MLB in importance, ratings and interest in the World Series have shrunk.
When the Cubs won their last World Series title, Major League Baseball was the only major professional sports league in the country. In years past, baseball ruled over the sporting world in the United States of America. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports 5. Cleveland, OH, USA Cleveland Cavaliers players including Lebron James in attendance in game seven of the 2016 World Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field.