PITTSBURGH (AP) \u2014 The wait was five years. It seemed longer.<\/p>\n
In the middle of a darkened visitors clubhouse at PNC Park, the Chicago Cubs embraced each other. Champagne flowed and flew. They clinched a postseason berth for the first time since 2020, but celebrated for the first time since 2017.<\/p>\n
Everything was muted during the coronavirus pandemic when the Cubs last qualified. They held off after making it in 2018, hoping to win the NL Central, just to finish second to the Milwaukee Brewers.<\/p>\n
After defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-4<\/a> on Wednesday, Chicago finally decided to let loose.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you\u2019re in it, you think it\u2019s going to happen every year,\u201d pitcher Matthew Boyd said. \u201cThe fact and the reality is this is really hard to do. … This means so much to all of us. We\u2019re not done yet. That\u2019s the most important thing. We still know where we want to go.\u201d<\/p>\n The Cubs (88-64) seemed destined for the playoffs since going 18-9 in May. Still, this hasn\u2019t been straightforward. They lead the NL Wild Card and are 4 1\/2 games back of the first-place Brewers in the Central, having surrendered the division lead on July 28 after sitting alone at the top through July 19.<\/p>\n After Milwaukee took over, Chicago could have folded. Instead, it’s surging with four straight wins and seven victories in eight games.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a grind of a season. You celebrate the first goal you accomplished,\u201d manager Craig Counsell said. \u201cWe\u2019ve made it to our first goal and that\u2019s exciting. For everybody that\u2019s been a part of the grind the whole year, for everybody that\u2019s worked so hard to put us in this position, it\u2019s a fun thing to do.<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t get to do this in regular jobs \u2014 get to celebrate and throw champagne on each other. You just don\u2019t get to do it, right?\u201d<\/p>\n Ian Happ popped the cork \u2014 in the clubhouse and on the field. He drove in three runs against the Pirates, belting a two-run home run in the first inning.<\/p>\n The Pittsburgh native has played nine years with the Cubs. He was a rookie in 2017, when Chicago took the Central one year after ending a 107-year drought without winning the World Series.<\/p>\n Happ was there with Anthony Rizzo<\/a>, Kyle Schwarber, Kris Bryant, Javier B\u00e1ez and others. This time, it was Pete Crow-Armstrong by his side, pulled into a tight hug for a simple message.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was definitely a mention of, \u2018This is not the last,\u2019\u201d Crow-Armstrong said. \u201cI mean, Ian learned from some of the best. Ian is one of the best at passing that on. Ian has meant a lot to me, just as a person. I\u2019ll follow his lead. … I\u2019ve got full trust in Ian Happ as a leader.\u201d<\/p>\n Crow-Armstrong was dynamic with 25 home runs and 71 RBIs through in 95 games through the All-Star Break. The 23-year-old has cooled considerably, having four homers and driving in 19 runs since, and is looking forward to starting fresh in the playoffs.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know. I\u2019ve never done this,\u201d Crow-Armstrong said. \u201cI\u2019m just excited to keep doing what we\u2019re doing, doing what we\u2019ve done all year. I\u2019ve never experienced October baseball. I\u2019m just ready to go all in.\u201d<\/p>\n It might be necessary.<\/p>\n Kyle Tucker<\/a>, an All-Star right fielder, has been on the IL since Sept. 9 with a left calf injury. He will visit with a physical therapy group in Florida used in his recovery from a right leg injury while with the Astros last season.<\/p>\n