Kerry Wood couldn't resist a 5 Outs joke.
The iconic Cubs pitcher was a huge part of that 2003 team that famously came just five outs from the World Series before a Game 6 meltdown in the National League Championship Series.
As if to toy with history and laugh in its face, Joe Maddon made the five outs drama last even longer Saturday night.
Kyle Hendricks gave up a one-out single in the eighth inning with the Cubs up five and Maddon came out to make a pitching change.
Of course, it all turned out just fine. The Cubs went on to win and silence any talk of curses or jinxes and made Steve Bartman and that 2003 just another chapter in history.
"I was good once we got past five outs away," Wood joked with reporters outside the champagne-soaked Cubs clubhouse about 90 minutes after the Cubs clinched a trip to the World Series for the first time in 71 years.
"These guys got to experience what we didn't get to experience. We got to play in this game, we just didn't get to celebrate after. Obviously extremely happy for the city. These guys have cemented themselves in history and they're gonna be linked forever.
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"It's just great. We got four more to go and it's the right group to go with."
Wood said he "felt" it coming to the game, predicting with his buddies that the Cubs would jump on Clayton Kershaw and score on him early in the game.
The Cubs scored twice in the first, once in the second and then added on with solo tallies in the fourth and fifth innings off Kershaw.
"They don't listen to the history," Wood said. "It doesn't bother them. These guys come out and seem unaffected by the history. So, obviously, we're in a good place we haven't been in a long time. It's a great night.
"It's mind-blowing. Being out there with the crowd, it's such a cool experience."
Wood pitched 12 seasons for the Cubs, but if you include the year he missed for injury (1999) and the time he's worked for the organization since retirement in 2012, he's spent nearly two decades on the North Side of Chicago.
So when he saw the Cubs record their final out and put history in the rearview mirror, Wood was overcome with emotion.
"Surprisingly a bit more than I was expecting," he said. "Just watching the guys do their thing on the field and celebrate. [MLB chief baseball officer] Joe Torre's talking and tryin to do his thing and the guys just split up and spread out and went and saw the fans - which is exactly what they should've done.
"It's a little more emotional than I thought it was gonna be."
Wood said he really started believing it was all possible when Addison Russell and Anthony Rizzo woke up with the bats in Game 4 in Los Angeles and the Cubs looked like they got their mojo back.
He also marveled at the team's youth and how poised they were throughout the entire season, especially in the face of adversity.
"I don't think [the weight of history affected them]," Wood said. "That's the key. And not saying it affected us. I don't think it affected us either. We'd go out there and play the game.
"S--t, half these guys weren't born when this stuff was going on. It's great. They got a young group and I think Joe leads them in the right direction and doesn't let them get caught up in the off-the-field stuff. It's just a great combination top to bottom."
Wood threw out the first pitch before the historic Game 6 Saturday night, wearing a Ron Santo jersey.
Three hours later, he was still wearing the jersey, even celebrating with fans:
And he plans right on wearing the No. 10 jersey for at least another week.
"Ronnie didn't get to see this," Wood said of Santo, who died in 2010. "He didn't get to witness this night. Definitely going to wear it all the way through. Hopefully that will let him experience it a little bit with me.
"I expect big things and I'll see you guys in Cleveland."