Chicago Cubs beat St. Louis Cardinals 8-6 in NLDS Game 3; Fans celebrate in Wrigleyville
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-6 in Game 3 of the National League Division Series at Wrigley Field Monday night. The Cubs now lead the series 2-1, setting Chicago up for a possible clincher at home on Tuesday.
Jake Arrieta struck out nine before departing in the sixth inning, and the bullpen finished the job in the first postseason game at Wrigley Field in seven years.
A third straight win for the Cubs on Tuesday afternoon, and the once woebegone franchise will advance to the NLCS for the first time in 12 years. The Cardinals, who led the majors with 100 wins this season, have won at least one playoff series in each of the last four years.
"This team is really special and I think they're going to close it out tomorrow," said Lydell Smith, a Cubs fan.
Jason Heyward and Stephen Piscotty homered for St. Louis, which got to Arrieta for four runs in his worst start in four months. But the Cardinals were unable to keep the Cubs in the ballpark.
The six homers for Chicago set a franchise record for a playoff game, one more than its five long balls in Game 1 of the 1984 NLCS against San Diego.
FANS CELEBRATE WIN IN CHICAGO
Police were on hand as fans - some of them singing "Go Cubs Go!" - poured out of Wrigley Field Monday night. Before the first pitch, the city had its own game plan: street closures, parking restrictions and designated areas for taxi and ride-share pickups.
Several Wrigleyville bars said they have beefed up staffing, barred backpacks and were monitoring capacity.
"We're kind of keeping an eye on the crowd. We've emptied out the room, taken a lot of the tables out. Making sure everybody has enough room to be safe," said David Strauss, Sluggers co-owner.
Many fans are in Chicago from out-of-state, including the Radomski family from Indianapolis.
"I said, hey, we've never been around for the playoffs, so let's drive up and be part of the atmosphere, so here we are!" said John Charles Radomski.
VIDEO: Fan shows off Cubs-themed RV
Cubs fans may be everywhere in Wrigleyville, but one stands out from the rest. Joe Hansen is the proud owner of Bear Cub RV. It's got Cubs seating, Cubs pillows, and of course, Cubbie bears everywhere.
VIDEO: Ball hits window across from Wrigley Field
CUBS WARN OF COUNTERFEIT TICKETS
Cubs officials said more than 1,000 standing room-only seats were sold for Monday night's game at $140 apiece. Prime seats at Wrigley Field went several hundred to several thousand dollars, depending on the vendor.
Julian Green, Cubs spokesperson, encouraged people to stay away from scalpers. If they don't, they could end up both without a seat and without their money.
"Be careful of counterfeit tickets. It's not uncommon for folks to try to take advantage of big fans trying to get to the game. We don't want anyone to have a really bad time," Green said.
Randy Lawmaster, of Tulsa, Okla., paid more than $1,000 for what he thought were three legitimate tickets on Craigslist.
"We came up to get our tickets scanned in, and they said they wouldn't scan. And when we took them to the office, they said they were counterfeit tickets," Lawmaster said.
Game 4 will be at 3:07 p.m. Tuesday at Wrigley Field. If necessary, Game 5 will be back in St. Louis on Thursday. First pitch will be at 3:37 p.m. or 7:07 p.m.
PARKING RESTRICTIONS AND SAFETY
The Chicago Office of Emergency Management and Communications asked fans to be mindful of the community surrounding Wrigley Field and to celebrate the playoff series safely.
OEMC officials reminded fans of full-day parking restrictions in the city's Wrigleyville neighborhood on Monday and Tuesday.
-Clark from Belmont to Irving Park Road, both sides of the street
-Sheffield from Belmont to Irving Park Road, both sides of the street
-Addison from Halsted to Southport, both sides of the street
-Racine Ave. from Grace to Belmont, both sides of the street
-Cornelia Ave. from Halsted to Sheffield, both sides of the street
-Wilton Ave. from Cornelia to Addison, both sides of the street
If vehicles are towed, fans should call 311 for help.
Fans who need to hail taxis should head to the corner of West Addison Street and North Racine Avenue or to the corner of Addison and North Halsted Street. Limos and car services should pick up passengers along West Irving Park Road between North Clark Street and North Seminary Avenue.
The Cubs are offering free remote parking at 3900 North Rockwell Street during the postseason. Free shuttle service is available to and from Wrigley Field, which begins 3.5 hours before the game begins and ends about one hour after the game ends.
OEMC officials also recommended using public transportation to get to and from the game.
CTA Red Line trains will run more frequently on Monday. The Addison station is the closest to Wrigley Field. Officials said Loop-bound Purple Line Express trains will stop at Addison and Sheridan stations during the Monday evening rush. The Sheridan station is just north of the ballpark. The CTA will provide extra service on the #80 Irving Park and #152 Addison route on Monday and Tuesday. Fans may also take the #8 Halsted and #22 Clark buses to get to Wrigley.
Fans can get the latest CTA updates online at www.transitchicago.com or by phone at 1-888-YOUR-CTA. The latest Metra updates can be found online at www.metrarail.com or by phone at 836-7000.
Chicago police said open alcohol is prohibited on the street and sidewalk. Fines can reach $1,000. In case of extreme weather, fans can subscribe to alerts at www.notifychicago.org.
Officials also said if anyone sees anything suspicious, they should report it. Call 911 for emergencies or 855-RPRT- 2S4 (855-777-8274), the toll-free number for "If You See Something, Say Something" in Chicago, for non-emergencies.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
