Nebraska’s 1908 World Series Connection

Whether you’re happy the Cubs won the 2016 World Series or disgruntled your team missed out on glory, you’ll enjoy this trivia about how Nebraska was connected to the last time the Cubs won the World Series  on October 14, 1908. Nebraskan William Jennings Bryan accepted the Democratic presidential nomination in Lincoln, Nebraska, on August 12, 1908. Bryan was in the latter stages of his unsuccessful campaign against Republican nominee William Howard Taft when the Chicago Cubs won the World Series on October 14—a title they would not win again until last night. The Chicago Cubs were up 2-0 in Game 5 of the 1908 World Series when the Detroit Tigers threatened to score in the bottom of the fifth. With two outs and runners on second and third, Wahoo, Nebraska, native Sam Crawford stepped up to the plate. Crawford was a future Hall of Famer, and like his teammate (and rival) Ty Cobb, was one of the best hitters in baseball. But Crawford struck out, and Detroit didn’t threaten the Cubs again. The Cubs won the game and with it the World Series—the last they would win until last night.