On Your Mark: The Chicago Cubs will win the World Series, per Marty McFly

UPDATE

After finishing off a 6-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday, the column to follow now works even better.

Also, I stand in solidarity with Joe Maddon in this shameless Twitter plug:

My stance on suicide squeezes remains. #cubs

— Jeff Nowak (@JNowakTSN) October 14, 2015

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It’s beginning to seem like Marty McFly may have been onto something.

The Cubs sure are an interesting team to watch. Nothing demonstrates that point more effectively than mad-hatter manager Joe Maddon calling for two suicide squeezes in the second inning on Saturday, en route to a 6-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Now, if you’re like me, you wonder why this isn’t always the play with a runner on third and fewer than two outs. I’ve almost never seen it played correctly by opposing defenses, and isn’t it more reliable than a fly ball to the outfield? But hey, there’s a reason I’m not an MLB manager – at least one.

That said, when Marty jumped ahead to the year 2015 in “Back to the Future Part II,” he spied a billboard congratulating the Cubs on a World Series victory. And after watching this plucky Cubs squad grab momentum, hitting six home runs and holding on for an 8-6 win over St. Louis in Game 3, that scene is beginning to look more like foresight than fantasy.

If that’s the case, we may want to watch out for the Marlins to somehow find their way into the American League, oh and maybe place a few bets if you really believe in that clairvoyance stuff.

The Cubs host the Cardinals at 4:37 p.m. Tuesday (TBS) with the chance to close out the series. Stay tuned.

Pelicans connect

While it doesn’t offer any 107-year droughts or the base intrigue of some of the other series, don’t miss out on the hometown connection being offered by the Texas Rangers of late.

The parent club of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans from 2011-‘14, the Rangers roster is littered with former Pelicans as they take the air out of the Toronto Blue Jays’ steamroll through the second half of the season.

And the impact has been easy to spot. Infielder Rougned Odor, who spent the first half of 2013 in Myrtle Beach, has been a spark plug for the Rangers. He’s gone just 2-for-10 with a home run, but also scored five runs. He’s also added some stellar defense and scored the go-ahead run in the top of the 14th on Friday. Hanser Alberto, another former Pelican who spent parts of 2012, ‘13 and ‘14 in Myrtle Beach, drove Odor in. The Rangers fell 5-1 in Game 3, but have another a chance to close out the series at home on Monday.

Oh, and Keone Kela earned the win in Game 2 – along with some extra jawing from Toronto’s Josh Donaldson. Kela was a reliever in Myrtle Beach in 2014.

Golf ... already?

Jimmy Walker season … erm, I mean golf’s fall slate, is upon us. That wraparound schedule really creeps up on you, doesn’t it?

There really isn’t much downtime in the PGA season anymore, and the Frys.com open will kick off the new slate on Thursday.

Walker may not be in the 2015 field in Napa, Calif., but his first career win came in 2013 at this very event, and in the past few seasons he’s done significant damage in this portion of the schedule, aiding his cause later in the year. Because many of the tour’s top players opt to take downtime in these early events, they offer prime opportunities for new names to break through.

Sangmoon Bae earned his second career victory at the Frys.com Open last year, and will return to defend his title.

Of note

The Chase for the Sprint cup continues with the second race of the Contender Round. NASCAR’s best hit up the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway at 2:15 p.m. Sunday (NBC). … Last week’s storms have made for some wacky scheduling for area high school football teams, including Monday and Tuesday games. Green Sea Floyds at Carvers Bay will be played on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., and the Bears will then turn around immediately to play their normally scheduled game with Lake View on Friday. Region play also continues throughout the area, highlighted by Carolina Forest traveling to South Florence. The Panthers are looking to build on a strong Region VI-AAAA start and 55-6 victory over rival Socastee last Friday.

This story was originally published October 12, 2015 at 2:00 AM with the headline "On Your Mark: The Chicago Cubs will win the World Series, per Marty McFly."