Windy City Wrap Up: Cubs Crack Postseason, Bears Win Second Straight

This week in Chicago sports, the White Sox and Cubs finished up their regular season, with the Cubs advancing to the playoffs. The Chicago Fire were successful, but the Stars weren’t. The Bears also won their second consecutive game this Sunday.

An East Coast versus Midwest showdown went down, as both Chicago baseball teams played against New York’s, but Chicago failed to come out as winners on both fronts. 

At Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs played their first game of a three-game series against the New York Mets and ended up losing 9-7. To end a five-game losing streak, the Cubs came back with a 10-3 win for the second game of the series. 

In the third game of the series, the Mets beat the Cubs 8-5. Outfielders Seiya Suzuki and Pete Crow-Armstrong set the record for most multi-home run games by one player since Derrek Lee in 2005, with five each. Nolan McLean of the Mets set a career high of 11 strikeouts — previously eight — helping the Mets secure the win. 

At Yankee Stadium, the Chicago White Sox went 0-3 against the New York Yankees. In the first game, the White Sox lost 3-2. In the second, they took a bigger loss of 8-1 and finished the series with a loss of 5-3. 

In their final game of the series, White Sox pitcher Tyler Gilbert’s glove was confiscated for being too sticky from sweat and rosin build-up before eventually earning the loss for the Sox. 

Friday through Sunday looked better for the Cubs and the White Sox as they entered their next three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Nationals, respectively. 

Going 3-0 against the Cardinals at Wrigley Field,  the Cubs won the first game 12-1 and the second 7-3. In their last game, they beat the Cardinals 2-0. The wins secured them a long-awaited spot in the playoffs as the second National League Wild Card teamThe spot is the Cubs first appearance in the playoffs since 2020.

At Nationals Park, the White Sox broke a five-game losing streak with a close 10-9 win over the Cardinals. Shortstop Colson Montgomery hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to secure the win. The second game, the White Sox let up the win, losing 6-5, but came back in the next game with a big win of 8-0. 

This win ended the Sox’s season with an overall record of 60-102, last in the American League Central Division. 

The Chicago Bears won their second game of the season in a close 25-24 game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. 

Down by five in the third quarter, the Bears came back in the fourth as Cairo Santos kicked a 51-yard field goal. While they were still down, D’Andre Swift ran in a two-yard touchdown with just over a minute left in the game to put them in the lead. 

The true highlight of the game was a blocked field goal from Josh Blackwell with 38 seconds left in the game to secure the win. Hopefully, the Bears will keep the momentum in their next few games, regardless of them having a bye-week.  

The Chicago Fire played the Columbus Crew at Soldier Field and won 2-0. In the first half, midfielder Andrew Gutman scored a goal in the 25th minute, while another goal was called off due to offsides.

In the second half, striker Hugo Cuypers scored a goal in the 70th minute. Sam Rogers of the Fire received a yellow card for poor sportsmanship. 

The Chicago Stars FC played against Kansas City Current FC Sept. 26 at Canadian Pacific Kansas City Stadium. Unfortunately, they lost the match 4-1. Nádia Gomes scored their lone goal in the 58th minute. 

Coming up, the Cubs will be starting their playoff against the San Diego Padres Tuesday, Sept. 30. The Bears aren’t playing until Oct. 13 when they play against the Washington Commanders. The Chicago Fire are playing Sept. 30 against Inter Miami. The Chicago Stars are playing Sunday, Oct. 5, against Utah Royals FC.