PITTSBURGH — Jonathan Herrera walked into PNC Park’s visiting clubhouse on Tuesday afternoon wearing a homemade rally helmet with two detached hands glued on top, capturing the spontaneous celebration/inside joke the Cubs have turned into a signature move.
The Cubs are only guaranteed nine more innings this season, but this still feels like the opening of a competitive window for a core group of young players and what has been a sleeping-giant franchise.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a well-run, small-market team playing in the National League wild-card game for the third year in a row. The Pirates haven’t won a playoff series since their 1979 World Series title.