ST. LOUIS -- John Lackey lived up to his reputation as a pitcher who craves the ball in October, helping the St. Louis Cardinals cool off the upstart Chicago Cubs. Lackey outpitched old teammate Jon Lester, allowing two hits into the eighth inning, and ...

CHICAGO -- Wrigley Field was dark and empty when a loud cheer reverberated throughout the neighborhood surrounding the iconic ballpark. While the Chicago Cubs decided to delay their party Thursday night, their long-downtrodden fans were ready to celebrate.

The two home runs by Busch, including one on Michael McGreevy’s first pitch of the game, were his eighth and ninth hit against the Cardinals in just 11 games this season. The only other two Cubs in history to hit nine homers against the Cardinals in a season were Ernie Banks in 1955 and Hack Wilson in 1929.

The Chicago Cubs seemed to have only temporarily plugged the leak on their celebration charter after a 10-3 victory over the New York Mets on Wednesday night. T

Loss assures Cardinals of a losing record for the second time in three seasons and only the third time since 2000.

A grounder hit by Cardinals second baseman Nolan Gorman remains stuck in Cubs third baseman Matt Shaw's glove web, resulting in a single for Gorman, in the ninth inning at Wrigley Field on Sept. 27, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)