CLEVELAND — The 112th World Series kind of had to end this way, didn’t it?

After all, it was a matchup featuring the two longest droughts in the sport without a title.

It could end only with a Game 7.

And so, after the Cubs thrashed the Indians, 9-3, in Game 6 on Tuesday night at Progressive Field, franchises that have gone a combined 174 seasons without a World Series championship will decide the 2016 season in a deciding seventh game.

The Cubs, who haven’t won since 1908, send right-hander Kyle Hendricks, 1-1 with a 1.31 ERA this postseason, to the mound.

The Indians, without a baseball crown since 1948, counter with right-hander Corey Kluber, 4-1 with a 0.89 ERA this postseason. He will be starting for the third time this Series and will be going on three days’ rest for the second time.

The Cubs are trying to become the first team since the 1985 Royals (against the Cardinals) to win a World Series after trailing three games to one, and the first since the 1979 Pirates (against the Orioles) to win a Series down 3-1 by winning Games 6 and 7 on the road.

A Chicago offense that has struggled much of this postseason erupted Tuesday night, accumulating 13 hits, including four by previously struggling Kris Bryant. The unit drove Cleveland starter Josh Tomlin, starting on three days’ rest, from the game after 2 1/3 innings.

Bryant, 2-for-17 the first five games, crushed a solo homer in what turned out to be a three-run first — a botched outfield play by the Indians brought in two of the runs — and Addison Russell hit a third-inning grand slam off Dan Otero to put it away, part of a six-RBI night for the shortstop.

Anthony Rizzo’s third hit of the night, a two-run homer in the ninth, made it 9-2.

Jake Arrieta, who earned the victory in Game 2, allowed two runs, three hits and three walks in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out nine, five in the first three innings.

Cubs manager Joe Maddon did feel the need to use closer Aroldis Chapman, who threw a career-high 2 2/3 innings in Game 5, with two on and two out in the seventh. The lefty got Francisco Lindor to ground into a 3-1 force and appeared to tweak something covering first base but he came back out to pitch a scoreless eighth and was pulled after walking Brandon Guyer to start the ninth.

Tomlin, 2-0 with a 1.76 ERA in three starts this postseason coming in, allowed six runs and six hits.

Arrieta did not allow a hit until Jason Kipnis’ leadoff double in the fourth. Kipnis scored on Mike Napoli’s single, which made it 7-1. Arrieta loaded the bases with two outs after consecutive walks, but he struck out Tyler Naquin on three pitches to end the threat.

Kipnis’ second homer of the series, a solo shot in the fifth, made it 7-2.

In the first Tomlin retired leadoff man Dexter Fowler and Kyle Schwarber and got ahead of Bryant 0-and-2. But the third baseman, an NL MVP candidate launched the next pitch, a hanging curveball, into the bleachers in left to make it 1-0.

Rizzo and Ben Zobrist followed with singles, putting runners at the corners. Russell came next and lifted a lazy fly ball to right-center. The ball should have been handled by rookie center fielder Naquin, but he never called for it as right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall also converged. The ball hit the ground allowing Rizzo and Ben Zobrist to score, making it 3-0.

Arrieta walked Lindor with two outs in the bottom half but stranded him, striking out Napoli.

Tomlin retired the Cubs in order in the second but he did not make it out of the third.

He walked Schwarber to start the inning and, after Bryant flied to right, allowed back-to-back singles to Rizzo and Zobrist.

Tomlin was replaced by Otero, who served a 2-and-0 sinker that came in flat.

The blast, the first grand slam hit in World Series play since Paul Konerko of the White Sox did it in Game 2 against the Astros in 2005, made it 7-0 and pretty much removed any doubt there would be a seventh game.