THE SIDELINES : ’69 Cubs Win Series in a Dream

PHOENIX — It took 21 years, but the 1969 Chicago Cubs finally have something to brag about.

Ken Rudolph hit a two-run double in the bottom of the seventh and final inning to give the Cubs a 3-2 victory over the 1969 Baltimore Orioles in Sunday’s fifth annual Dream Game, billed as “the World Series that never was but should have been.”

The Cubs, with an eight-game lead in the National League East standings on Aug. 28, 1969, finished eight games behind the pennant-winning New York Mets that year. The Miracle Mets then went on to upset the favored Baltimore Orioles in five games, winning the last four straight.

“We waited a long time to beat these guys,” said Cubs third baseman Ron Santo, who also served as manager in place of the ailing Leo Durocher. “It’s great to finally get a victory.”