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Levine: Cubs' Historic Home Run Night Has Cards On The Brink

By Bruce Levine--

CHICAGO (CBS) – A Baseball Hall of Fame representative stopped by the Cubs clubhouse in the ninth inning Monday evening to pick up a piece of history.

This was the bat used by Dexter Fowler, the one that delivered the team's record-breaking sixth long ball. The historic home run barrage by the Cubs in the 8-6 win over the Cardinals put St. Louis on the brink of elimination in the best-of-five series that Chicago now leads 2-1.

The offensive avalanche by six different Cub hitters not only set a franchise postseason record, it bailed out ace pitcher Jake Arrieta, who allowed four runs in 5 2/3 innings.

Despite striking out nine batters, Arrieta wasn't the same pitcher in this outing, struggling with his control and hanging pitches at times. The Cubs' bats saved him from a sub-par performance and got him the win. The Cubs had to fight past a great Cardinals team that won a major league-best 100 games in 2015.

Kyle Schwarber started out the home run derby with a line drive shot into the left field basket off of Cardinals right-hander Michael Wacha in the second inning. Fellow rookies Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler homered, as did Starlin Castro and Anthony Rizzo.

What is the magic of this young team and the fact that five of the six home runs were hit by players 26 years old or younger?

"They are all good baseball players," Schwarber said. "That is it and what it comes down to. Plain and simple, they are good players. It is always a pleasure going out here with these guys. It's a lot of fun coming out to the ballpark."

Schwarber, Bryant and Russell were all playing either in the minor leagues, college or both for all of the 2014 season. Soler was called up in September 2014 but had so few at-bats that this is considered his rookie season. The impact of these players should be felt for many years to come. Every key player except Dexter Fowler is under contract control for 2016, and many are contract-controlled for six years.

"We have great personalities from top to bottom," Schwarber said. "This does not feel like a job. It is always fun every day."

The good times for the fan base can begin to erupt with a win on Tuesday evening. First pitch for Game 4 is set for 3:37 p.m.

"That would be awesome," Schwarber said when asked about a possible clincher at the 101-year-old ballpark. "I came out early today and sat in the stands, trying to visualize what it would be like with the fans tonight. I wanted to try to control the emotions and see what the atmosphere would be like in my own head. The fans surpassed my expectations. We are expecting even a louder crowd tomorrow. Just to be able to do it here -- these fans deserve it and this team deserves it."

For the record, the last postseason series the Cubs won on their home field was … never.

The two times the Cubs won the World Series both came against the Tigers at Bennett Park in 1907 and 1908. They also won the National League Division Series in 2003, but that happened in Atlanta.

Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.

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