Chicago Cubs expecting 'energy' boost from Wrigley Field crowd
The Chicago Cubs are looking forward to some home cooking.
They had a breakfast brunch at Wrigley Field Sunday morning before going through a very light workout. But after playing the first two games of the National League division series at Washington, the Cubs are saving their appetites for Monday, when they host the Nationals in Game 3.
After a stinging loss to the Nats in Game 2 of the NLDS Saturday, the Cubs are expecting to get a momentum boost from the home crowd the next two games.
"We know are fans are going to have fun," catcher Willson Contreras said. "We know our fans are the best."
The Cubs were 48-33 at Wrigley Field during the regular season. In the NL, only the Dodgers (57-24) and Diamondbacks (52-29) were better at home.
"We've always got this energy (at Wrigley)," manager Joe Maddon said. "To not take advantage of the energy, well, you do. You just have to. You've got this fanatical fan base that is awesome, and you just respond to that.
"We should win nearly 50 games annually in this ballpark. We came close this year. We should win around 50-plus, because we are good and it's a great place and a great building and a great place to come to work every day. It shouldn't be a surprise that we've done well here based on those factors."
Washington can counter the Cubs' home success with an ability to play well away from Nationals Park. The Nats had the best road record (50-31) in the league this season.
"The one thing I ask the team is that I want it to be a very good road team," Washington manager Dusty Baker said. "I don't know if I remember I said I wanted to be the best, but since we are, you might as well be the best.
"I always used to like playing on the road because there are less distractions. You don't have to go to the bank. You don't have to go to the laundry. You don't have to do anything but just get up, eat and go to the ballpark. You don't have to take the kids to school. You don't have to do anything."
Comeback kids:
The Cubs said they immediately "flushed" Saturday's Game 2 loss at Washington, and they'll be ready to compete in Game 3 Monday afternoon at Wrigley Field.
But don't discount the Nationals' comeback win. Trailing 3-1 in the eighth inning and dangerously close to going down 2-0 in the NLDS, they rallied for 5 runs and beat the Cubs 6-3.
"When you come back and win a game late, that gives you more, I think, positive energy than crushing the team," Dusty Baker said. "When you come back, you're going to have to lean on that power of coming back again and again. And most of the World Series champs that I've seen, they have had their backs to the wall a few times and end up coming back and winning. You've just got to have a never-say-die attitude."
Shadow game:
First pitch for Game 3 is set for 3:08 p.m., and Game 4 at Wrigley Field is tentatively scheduled to start at 4:38 p.m.
Day games in the playoffs are typically good for pitchers, but not so much for hitters.
"My biggest concern is always shadows, but it's the same for both sides," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "If you're a hitter it's never fun going up there when you can't see the baseball. As a hitter, it's difficult to see. That's the awkward times, based on television, it makes it difficult. It just is. From a hitter's perspective it's difficult to see at certain times of the day. That's the part about it I don't like the most."