Miracle Collapse: The 1969 Chicago CubsCivil unrest at home, war abroad, and political uncertainty gripped the nation as the 1970s approached. In the summer of 1969, as a tumultuous decade of American history neared its end, Major League Baseball presented sports fans with a thrilling distraction: a pennant race that pitted the Chicago Cubs, those much loved perennial also rans, against the defending National League champs, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the upstart New York Mets. Miracle