1998 National League Wild Card tie-breaker game
1998 Major League Baseball playoff game
The 1998 National League Wild Card tie-breaker game was a one-game extension to Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1998 regular season, played between the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants, to determine the National League (NL) wild card winner. The game occurred at Wrigley Field in Chicago, on September 28, 1998. The Cubs won the game 5–3, holding the Giants scoreless for most of the game until the Giants threatened heavily in the ninth inning and scored all three runs. As a result of the game, the Cubs qualified for the postseason, and the Giants did not.
The game was necessary after both teams finished the season with identical win-loss records of 89–73. The Cubs won a coin flip late in the season, which, by rule at the time, awarded them home field for the game. This victory advanced the Cubs to the 1998 NL Division Series (NLDS), where they were swept by the Atlanta Braves, ending the Cubs' season. Michael Jordan, a popular Chicago sportsman who had just led the Chicago Bulls to a sixth championship in eight years, threw the game's ceremonial first pitch. In baseball statistics, the tiebreaker counted as the 163rd regular season game for both teams, with all events in the game added to regular season statistics.
Background
The Cubs finished the previous season at the bottom of the NL Central Division with a 68–94 record, while the Giants won the NL West at 90–72; however, they were defeated by the eventual World Series champion Florida Marlins in the NLDS. The Giants' Barry Bonds drew criticism for his postseason performance, which had been a recurring criticism dating back to his time with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
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