Jake Arrieta was on the mound, so one run was good enough for the Cubs, right?
Of course, things didn't play out that way, and Game 3 of the National League Divison Series turned into something of a slugfest with the win blowing out at 17 mph at Wrigley Field.
The Cubs came away winners over the Cardinals in a hard-fought, 8-6 ballgame in front of 42,411 fans, playing the first playoff game on Chicago's North Side since 2008.
Arrieta failed to rack up a quality start for the first time since June 16, allowing four runs on five hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out nine but exited the game after hitting Brandon Moss on the toe with his 97th pitch.
[MORE CUBS: Jake Arrieta is human against Cardinals, but Cubs are that good]
"Big time [team win]," Anthony Rizzo said. "[Arrieta] going and competing like he did, us just keep scoring runs, the bullpen coming in and doing their job. It's a good overall win for sure."
Luckily for the Cubs, the offense bailed him out, with a homer coming from each of the top six spots in the batting order (Dexter Fowler, Jorge Soler, Kris Bryant, Rizzo, Starlin Castro, Kyle Schwarber).
MLB
It was the most homers the Cubs have ever hit in a playoff game as well as a major league playoff record, topping the five hit in Game 1 of the 1984 NLCS.
"Pretty impressive," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "I know the wind was blowing out - we'll conecede that - but most of them were properly struck. We are definitely capable of that."
A collection of relievers — Clayton Richard, Trevor Cahill, Travis Wood, Pedro Strop, Hector Rondon — shut down the Cardinals to close out the win for Arrieta, allowing just a two-run homer to Stephen Piscotty with two outs in the ninth.
[MORE CUBS: Joe Maddon's playoff vision for Cubs comes to life at Wrigley]
"That was a fun game," Rizzo said. "We would hit home runs, they would come back and tie it. It was a seesaw game.
"Probably the best [game] I've been a part of, especially against those guys. They don't let up."
The Cubs will send out Jason Hammel on Tuesday with a chance to eliminate the Cardinals in Game 4 at Wrigley Field.