Levine: Cubs' Kyle Hendricks Has Chance To Make History
By Bruce Levine--
CLEVELAND (CBS) -- For one of the long-suffering fan bases of the Cubs and the Indians, their World Series drought will end Wednesday night. Holding fate in the palm of his hand for Chicago in Game 7 will be unassuming right-hander Kyle Hendricks, who once again will have a date with baseball history.
It was the mild-mannered, 26-year-old Hendricks who fired a gem to lead the Cubs in the National League pennant clincher against the Dodgers on Oct. 22. This time around, the stakes will involve bringing a championship to a franchise with a 108-year title drought.
"This is the ultimate dream," Hendricks said. "You dream of getting into the World Series and winning a World Series."
Hendricks is living out this fantasy that's now a possible reality for millions of Cubs fans who have dealt with goats, black cats and curses for decades.
"When you're a kid and you're in your backyard or playing Little League, this is the moment you dream about," Hendricks said. "Game 7, 3-2 two outs in the ninth inning. It's always Game 7."
Indians ace right-hander Corey Kluber and star reliever Andrew Miller will be the road blocks in the path of the Cubs writing new history. Kluber is 4-1 in this postseason with a 0.89 ERA and has beaten the Cubs twice in this series. He's looking to become the first pitcher since Mickey Lolich of the Tigers in 1968 to win three games as a starter in the World Series.
"I have been doing all of my work in between starts to be ready," Kluber said. "I think first and foremost, this whole postseason has been a blast. We all can take away a lot of how we approached each game and took them one at a time. We have gotten tremendous value out of this throughout the course of this season."
Hendricks is a candidate for the National League Cy Young award after winning the MLB ERA title with a 2.13 mark in the regular season. Nothing would be more fitting than for him to lead the Cubs into the baseball record books as the winning pitcher in the most historic game in Chicago sports history.
"When I get to the mound, I am going to embrace the opportunity," Hendricks said. "I will look at it just like I have done the entire postseason. Approach it like any other game -- simple thoughts, the same old thing."
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
