Cubs will turn to their ace Lester tonight
One more loss and Cubs fans will yet again be forced to hear the some of the most dreaded words in all of sports: "Wait till next year."
That's the stone-cold reality for millions of die-hards as the North Siders are now down 3-1 in the World Series after suffering a 7-2 loss to the Indians in Game 4 at Wrigley Field on Saturday.
Amid the gloom and doom, though, there is a ray of hope - and it comes in the $25 million left arm of Jon Lester, who will start Game 5 against Cleveland's Trevor Bauer tonight.
While it's true Lester lost his first start to the Indians in Game 1 after allowing 3 runs on 6 hits in 5⅔ innings, he was nearly flawless in 3 previous starts this postseason with a 0.86 ERA.
So there's that.
And then there's this: Lester's previous history in the World Series - 1 run allowed in 21 innings with Boston in 2007 and 2013 - is pretty darn incredible.
So there's that, too.
And then there's another ray of hope for Cubs fans and it comes in the form of Bauer, who was 12-8 with a 4.26 ERA this season and allowed 2 runs on 6 hits in 3⅔ innings in Game 2 of the World Series.
Lester obviously didn't know the Cubs' fate when he met with the media before Game 4, but said his approach to a do-or-die Game 5 wouldn't be any different from if the series was knotted at two games apiece.
"It's hard enough to pitch this time of year … and be successful," Lester said. "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 and stay alive, I think you've already been beaten, you know?"
One thing that concerns Lester is the fact that Cleveland's hitters make pitchers work so hard for outs. Look no further than Kyle Hendricks throwing 85 pitches in 4⅓ shutout innings in Game 3 for evidence of that. Or Lester throwing 97 pitches in 5⅔ innings in Game 1.
"Their at-bats, they're grinds," Lester said. "They see a lot of pitches. They foul a lot of good pitches off. You have some guys that like to swing, but they're not swing-and-miss guys."
Manager Joe Maddon is certainly glad Lester is on the mound with the Cubs facing elimination.
"He knows what it takes," Maddon said. "So it's definitely comforting to the rest of the group tomorrow."
As for Bauer, he hasn't thrown more than 5 innings in any of his 3 postseason starts and was removed after just two-thirds of an inning in Game 3 of the ALCS because his right pinkie was dripping blood.
Bauer said handling a bat "won't be an issue" and that he took batting practice and laid down some bunts Saturday.
Francona said he did not consider going with either Danny Salazar (11-6, 3.87 ERA in 25 starts) or Ryan Merritt (who threw 4⅓ scoreless innings in Game 5 of the ALCS) instead of Bauer tonight.
"Trevor's been a really good pitcher for us for four years," Francona said. "If we thought that the finger was getting in the way, I understand it.
"But he's come so far and battled this thing so much that I think his better game is ahead of him."
Cubs fans certainly hope not. Or they'll be waiting till next year once again.