Some other stuff

And now we take a break from that baseball deal, in which the Cubs kept the dream alive because Kris Bryant finally showed up and Aroldis Chapman kept the flamethrower going for twice the customary number of outs (plus two!). A 3-2 win in Game 5 sends the World Series back to Cleveland now, where there are two possible scenarios:

1. 2015 Jake Arrieta shows up again in Game 6 and 2016 Corey Kluber, in his third start in a week, finally runs out of magic, and the Cubs come back from 3-1 down to make the fairy tale October of all fairy tale Octobers even more fairy tale-ish.

2. The Indians wrap it up in front of their long-suffering home fans, which is the way it should have been all along.

And now, in other news ...

Remember NASCAR?

Yes, they're still racing. I know, it's ridiculous.

But good news for Jimmie Johnson haters: By winning at Martinsville yesterday, he vaulted into the Chase final four, thereby guaranteeing he'll be racing for a seventh Cup title in the season finale at Homestead.

(And if you're wondering right now, "How is this good news for Jimmie Johnson haters?", the answer is, it's not. I was just stringing you along because it's Halloween, and playing mean tricks on people is part of the tradition. Consider yourselves tricked.)

Over in the NBA, meanwhile, the Superfriends have not been Super so far at Golden State, prompting consternation and concern from those who periodically forget that the NBA season stretches across entire epochs. Relax, people. Steph 'n' KD 'n' Draymond 'n' them will be fine, even if they won't be what the Warriors were last year. This is because adding one Kevin Durant does not equal subtracting all your rim protectors, which is what the Warriors did. The result is a net loss -- which is why the Warriors will likely make the NBA Finals again, but just as likely won't win 70 games again or maybe even be the favorites to win it all come June.

You heard it here first. OK, so 1,247th.