- [Wood] Oh, this was a good one.
- [Interviewer] You remember this?
- Oh, yeah.
- Tell us what happened.
- I get to swing with bases loaded.
I want to hit a grand slam.
Every pitcher wants to be a hitter and every hitter wants to be a pitcher.
So yes, I dream about hitting homers.
♪ [music] ♪
- [Announcer 1] Chicago Cubs baseball is on the air.
It's the Chicago Cubs against the Chicago White Sox.
- It's a rivalry.
So the fans are just as much into it as you.
And you've got Sox fans and Cubs fans and they end up getting unruly in the stands
and you hear people yelling at each other and everybody is just grinding.
And it makes for a fun series.
- It's a warm day. It's humid.
The temperature is near 80.
Wind is blowing out.
- Wrigley Field is right on the water and so driving into the stadium I'm like,
"Ooh, we got to keep it down because you know it's blowing out."
- The flags blowing out.
It is a hitter's day today.
- Now we're into the game and we're up one but, you know, there's never enough runs.
And there was a lot riding for me on the game itself because Samardzija,
he hunts with me, so we've been talking about it.
And he just said, "Hey, if you beat Peavy or hit a home run,
I'll buy you a bow.
You do one or the other and I'll get it for you."
And I said, "Sold." That's how bad he wanted to win.
- Welington Castillo leads off for the Cubs in the fourth inning.
Get something elevated in this wind.
Got it elevated. Look at that thing blow.
- [Announcer 2] How about that?
- Oh, that was fun.
- [Barney] Oh, boy.
There's a Wrigley pop-up.
Wind's going left. Wind's going right.
You just don't know.
You see looks in guys' eyes when pop-ups go up where all that confidence they
had is gone.
They're almost hoping that someone else calls them off.
- When big leaguers fail to even get a glove on a pop fly that's got to be a very
treacherous wind, but that's what we've got today.
- I loved Luis because the swing was so perfect and looked so smooth.
- He cracks one into the air, deep right field, back is Rios,
near the wall. It's off the vines.
Going to third is Castillo on a long single by Valbuena.
- If you just read a stat line, you're like, "Oh, he got a single."
You can bunt one and it goes six feet and that's the same as hitting that one
off the wall. That's why the game is crazy.
- Cubs at first and third with nobody out and the batter is Barney.
- It was definitely a strange inning, but I mean, that's the game.
Things happen like that and even more so at Wrigley Field for sure.
- Darwin gets hit by the pitch. And they're going to be loaded.
- I'll take a hit by a pitch any day.
I didn't care how bad it hurt.
One thing I couldn't do very well when I played was walk.
So hit by a pitch was a win in my book.
- And it's Travis Wood.
- Yes, load them up so I can't bunt but it's not often times with no outs
and men on base that you even get to hit.
Normally, you're bunting.
That's every pitcher's dream to walk up and be like, "I've got a chance to hit
a grand slam."
- Last Cub pitcher to hit a grand slam was Jason Marquis in 2008.
- I mean the word was out on Travis that he could hit, you know,
he was pretty good. I'll give him that.
- I took BP a lot and I talked to the hitting coach a lot because I felt
like that's part of my game.
I'm going to try to be as best as I can at it.
- And Wood has decent pop.
He put one onto Waveland Avenue in a game against the Mets about two weeks ago.
- Wood steps in.
- Two starts before my White Sox game Dillon Gee tries to sneak cheese
past the rat and it doesn't work out.
- Travis Wood, deep to left, onto Waveland.
- And then the lady pours a beer on her husband's head.
I was always a big fan of the underdog and I felt like most of the time I'm always
the underdog because of my size.
You're 5'11'', little guy, and you just took me onto Waveland.
You're not supposed to do that.
- Bases full of Cubs. Nobody out.
Cubs lead 2-1, 4th inning.
- Peavy, he was a very intense pitcher out on the mound, like he cares and he's
out there grinding.
And he knows that I can hit so he's coming at me with everything.
- Pitch to Travis, low for a ball.
It's 1-0.
- I mean, bases loaded to a pitcher you're throwing a get me over breaking ball.
That's not normal.
And he's got the arm guard, you know, he's turning out, spitting, look at signs.
This guy looks like a hitter.
- 2-0.
- Right now he's trying to just calm down.
- So I was going to swing out of my shoes 2-0 if it was anywhere where I wanted it.
- The pitch to Travis.
- And he paints one.
- And he takes a strike.
- It's not one you want to swing at.
I feel like he's got to come back at me either with his little cutter that he
throws a lot or with a fastball.
And I was ready for it.
- 2-1 pitch.
- I wasn't quite sure because it didn't have the best launch angle.
I couldn't tell if it was actually going to make it over.
And so I just took off out of the box.
As soon as I saw it go in the basket, I said, "I just hit a grand slam."
- A swing and a drive, left field.
This ball's got a chance.
Grand slam.
A grand slam for Travis Wood.
- Travis looks dead-red and pulls.
- Fly ball well hit to left.
It is gone.
A granny.
Travis Wood.
- Loving life. There he is.
That was a proud moment for him.
- It was just awesome. Awesome feeling.
I can't wait to start the high fives because I'll probably say
something to Samardzija.
I might've said bow or something right there.
He got me the bow, of course.
It's a great bow. I loved it.
- Cubs win. 8-3 the final today.
- It wouldn't have been as cool if we didn't win.
But we won the game, and I'm still playing the homer back in my head.
♪ [music] ♪