Windy City Wrap Up: Chicago Fans ‘Fly the W’ as Cubs Clinch Wild Card Seed

Well Chicago fans, it’s officially the best time of the year. We get to witness a mix of “October Baseball” while football starts ramping up. With the Cubs and White Sox both finishing up regular season play and locking in Wild Card seeds, the postseason will take off to determine who makes a deep playoff run.

The Chicago Cubs started off the week with a three-game series against the Miami Marlins Sept. 22-24. They conceded the set 2-1.

Game one started out with minimal action, neither team able to produce a solid run until the top of the fourth when Miami first-baseman Kyle Stowers notched the first lead for the Marlins.

To widen the gap, Stowers smashed a homer in the sixth, but the Cubs negated the stretch with two runs of their own, tying Miami. MVP front runner centerfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong scored first with a single to get on base. A single from right-fielder Seiya Suzuki and a fielder-choice reach from first-baseman Michael Bush allowed Crow-Armstrong to cross the plate. Suzuki followed closely after.

The teams sat in a stalemate, leading to extra innings until the 12th when the Marlins suddenly gained momentum to add six more runs to the board. The Cubs continued to falter at the plate, allowing Miami to take the game 8-2.

Going into game two, both teams struggled to generate runs until the sixth inning when Miami took the first lead with a two-run homer from Stowers. The Cubs promptly responded in the bottom with runs from second-baseman Nico Hoerner and left-fielder Ian Happ.

One last run from the Marlins in the seventh broke the tie as designated hitter Agustin Ramirez took the score 3-2 from the Cubs.

Things were finally looking up for Chicago in game three as Crow-Armstrong stole second-base in the first inning, making history as the first Cubs player to enter the 40-40 club and only the seventh in Major League Baseball to do so. As of Sept. 29, he sits at 45 home runs and 41 stolen bases with fans wondering if he’ll make it to 50-50 by the end of the playoff season.

The Marlins were unable to score more than one run from catcher Brian Navarreto. With a homer from Suzuki and a run from Happ, the Cubs took the final game 2-1. The win allowed Chicago to punch their ticket to the postseason as they now sit in the wildcard spot.

The Cubs started their series against the Boston Red Sox Sept. 25-27, where they yet again lost the set 2-1.

Game one of the doubleheader on Sept. 25 started out positive for the Cubs as they were able to notch a 3-0 lead early on with Suzuki scoring in the first inning. The Cubs kept the momentum going with their next at-bat as shortstop Dansby Swanson and infielder Michael Busch scored two more runs to widen the lead against the Red Sox.

Boston battled back in the third to get on the board 3-1, then tied the game in the fifth. The Red Sox broke the tie going 4-3 after left-fielder Roman Anthony tripled and scored off a double from catcher Connor Wong.

By game two, the Cubs only saw seven hits and were unable to capitalize off any opportunities as the Red Sox took the game 2-0.

Chicago entered the final game with determination as they took a two-run lead in the top of the first. Third-baseman Alex Bregman’s bat was on fire as he notched two homers to secure the lead. Chicago generated four more runs against Boston’s two to take the game 6-2.

Game one of the North League Wild Card series started Sept. 29 against No. 4 seed San Diego Padres. The best of three series will determine whether the Cubs make it to the divisional round against the Milwaukee Brewers for a five-game series.

On the other side of the city, the White Sox went 2-1 in a series against the Kansas City Royals Sept. 22-24.

Game one was a battle as the White Sox won the game 14-11 with four homers tallied by center fielder Brenton Doyle, second-baseman Chase Meidroth, designated hitter Randal Grichuk and first-baseman Munetaka Murakami.

The Royals went into game two with early momentum as they scored four runs in the bottom of the first. The White Sox didn’t take long to match their energy as they notched four of their own in the third to tie the game. Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. broke the stalemate in the seventh to take the game 5-4.

The White Sox quickly snuffed out the Royals’ excitement as they scored nine in game three — six in the first two innings — over Kansas City’s lone run to win the series. The win locked the Chicago team into the American League wild card seed.

Back on their home turf, the White Sox faced the Colorado Rockies Sept. 25-27, dominating the series 2-1.

Chicago’s Southside team took an early lead in the first with a run from catcher Kyle Teel and a homer from Murakami, who smashed two during the game. The Rockies’ single run came from TJ Rumfield, who knocked a homer that didn’t amount to much as the White Sox won 6-1.

Game two went to the Rockies, who battled for a 9-6 win. After notching three in the first inning, the White Sox fell behind on the board and couldn’t quite catch up. Standing 5-3 by the ninth, the Rockies added four more to widen their lead. This lit a fire under the White Sox, who fought to add three more runs in the bottom but inevitably fell.

Despite Colorado taking the first lead in the final matchup, two homers and two runs from Chicago in the fourth were enough to dominate the game. The Rockies scored one more and the White Sox went 4-2 in their final regular season game.

Now, Colorado begins postseason play against the Houston Astros Sept. 29 where the two will match up on Houston’s home turf for a best of three series. The winner will go on to play a five-game set against the Cleveland Guardians.

Heading into the realm of Major League Soccer, the Fire went up against Charlotte FC Sept. 26 in Charlotte, N.C.

The aggressive match saw three yellow cards issued against Charlotte in the first half. When play started up again, midfielder Luca De La Torre scored the lone goal of the match, allowing Chicago to take the lead 1-0.

The Fire was given its first and only yellow card while Charlotte FC saw three more yellow cards — one issued toward defender Tim Ream who, after being given the warning, was ejected with a red card.

In the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), the Stars traveled to New Jersey where they went head-to-head with Gotham FC Sept. 25.

The Stars fell 3-1 with defender Tessa Dellarose scoring the only goal for Chicago. Gotham FC was led by forward Sam Kerr and midfielder Jaedyn Shaw, who scored two.

Off the field, Olympic champion and Stars’ forward Mallory Swanson has been invited to join the United States Women’s National Team to play in friendly games against Spain as she works toward the 2027 Women’s World Cup team.

Chicago’s NWSL team will take on Denver Summit FC Oct. 4 at 6 p.m. in the Stars’ territory. As for the city’s MLS team, the Fire will welcome Vancouver Whitecaps FC Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m.

For Monday Night Football fans, the Bears came away with a 27-7 domination over the Philadelphia Eagles to serve them their first loss.

With quarterback Caleb Williams still out on a hamstring injury and second-string quarterback Tyson Bagent suffering from a concussion, third-string quarterback Case Keenum stepped in. The veteran player, in his 16th season, shocked fans as he led the team to a three-touchdown final. The 38-year-old Keenum, who finished with 247 passing yards, made Bears history as the oldest player to score a rushing touchdown for the team.

The Bears will stay at home for week five against the New York Jets. The game is set for Oct. 4 at 12 p.m.

The National Hockey League preseason has ramped up, with several teams naming fresh, new captains — including the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Center Connor Bedard was named the 37th captain of the Blackhawks Sept. 15, making him — at 21 years and 60 days old — the second-youngest captain in franchise history behind Jonathan Toews, who was 20 years and 79 days old when he was named captain in 2008. 

The Blackhawks faced off against the Minnesota Wild Sept. 19, losing their first preseason game 3-2 in overtime. 

Wild’s Rieger Lorenz and Blackhawks’ Dominic Toninato scored for their respective teams in the first period, while Chicago’s Dillon Boucher scored in the second period. 

Wild’s Nico Sturm tied the game at two in the third period, and Wild’s Tyler Pitlick scored four minutes into overtime, securing the win for Minnesota. 

The Blackhawks’ first home game of the preseason was against the Wild Sept. 21, where they won 4-3 in overtime. 

15 seconds into the first period, Wild’s Bobby Brink scored a goal off an assist from David Spacek. Blackhawks’ Nick Lardis scored unassisted seven minutes later. In the second period, Bowen Byram scored for Chicago. 

The third period saw three goals — another from Bryam and Brink each, and one by Wild’s Maxim Shabanov. Thirty seconds into overtime, Byram secured the win for the Blackhawks. 

The Blackhawks traveled to St. Louis, Mo. to take on the St. Louis Blues Sept. 24, losing 1-0. Blue’s Calle Rosen scored the lone goal in the third period. 

The Blues then traveled to Chicago Sept. 26, where the Blackhawks won 3-2. Blackhawks’ Anton Frondell scored seven minutes into the first period, while Chicago’s Ian Cole scored in the second. Roman Kantserov scored off a power play ten minutes into the second period, but St. Louis’ Jonatan Berggren scored an unassisted goal ten minutes later. 

Blues’ Colton Parayko scored 19 minutes into the third period, and Chicago secured their second preseason win. 

The Blackhawks begin regular season games on a long road trip. They travel to face off against the Las Vegas Golden Knights Sept. 29, then over to the Utah Mammoth Oct. 1 and the Buffalo Sabres Oct. 3. The Blackhawks return to the United Center Oct. 6 to once again compete against the Blues.