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Maddon: Chicago 'buzzing' as Game 6 looms

John Hefti / USA TODAY Sports / Reuters

For more than 70 years, Wrigley Field has been quiet in late October, Chicago wind blowing over empty seats autumn after autumn as two other teams played for baseball immortality. Since their last pennant, which came months after the allied forces defeated the axis, the Cubs have come within a win of the World Series twice - 1984 and 2003 - but both times, they fell short.

If, however, baseball's most illustrious losers can find a way to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers' indomitable Clayton Kershaw on Saturday, as the National League Championship Series shifts back to Wrigley for Game 6, the north side of Chicago will play host to the Fall Classic for the first time in two generations. The magnitude of all this isn't lost on Cubs manager Joe Maddon, who is, metaphorically speaking, getting his popcorn ready for Saturday night.

"It's going to be a formidable event," Maddon told ESPN's Jesse Rogers. "Our guys will absolutely be ready for the moment. I promise you that. It's great. The city of Chicago has got to be buzzing pretty much right now. I expect a sellout at Wrigley. It will be a lot of fun."

Well, that last part remains to be seen. It'll certainly be raucous at Wrigley, but there's no guarantee Game 6 will be fun for the 41,268 shaking the building's century-old foundation, or for Chicago's hitters. Kershaw, the three-time Cy Young award winner, held the Cubs to two hits and one walk over seven scoreless innings in Game 2. Not giving up runs is kind of his thing.

Against this group of Cubs hitters, Kershaw has been particularly stingy - collectively, they own a .550 OPS against him throughout their careers - but, according to Anthony Rizzo, Chicago may actually be in an advantageous position in Game 6, having seen him six days ago.

"I always think the advantage goes to the hitters when you're seeing a guy (in back-to-back starts)," Rizzo told Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. "But we'll have to execute and capitalize on every detail."

Of course, with a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, the Cubs don't need to win Saturday. Even if Kershaw goes full Kershaw, the Cubs will live to die another day. But, without actually saying it, Maddon essentially said: Don't let this series go to Game 7, fellas.

"It's within our reach right now,” Maddon said. "But I do want us to go after it as though it's - again, hate to say it, but - Saturday. Let's just go play our Saturday game and see how it falls."

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