Chicago Cubs: Ranking the top five greatest Anthony Rizzo moments

2. Rizzo breaks Kershaw – CHC v. LAD NLCS Game 6, 2016

Hader wasn’t the only tricky lefty Rizzo was able to beat for a big home run. The most famous incident in which he overcame an unfavorable matchup came in arguably the biggest game in Wrigley Field history against one of the greatest lefties to play the game.

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The Chicago Cubs had a chance to close out the Dodgers early in the 2016 NLCS, but they had to do it against future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw. The team had already put up four runs off of the lefty by the time Rizzo came to the plate, but it was his home run that had a different feel to it.

Rizzo taking Kershaw deep was one of those classic, thrill of victory, agony of defeat moments and, despite the previous runs put up, it had the feel of a killing blow. This was the moment that Cubs fans began to truly feel that it was all real and that the 2016 team was going to be the one to go all the way.

Rizzo had managed to beat arguably the game’s best pitcher at the time and the face of the franchise they would soon eliminate from the postseason. It was a symbolic victory for Chicago having their franchise icon beat the icon of the last team standing in between them and a World Series appearance.

I’ll always look to Rizzo’s home run as the moment this all became real. If we can dominate Kershaw and the Dodgers, we can beat anybody.