Win-or-go-home games are old hat for the Pirates. Pittsburgh has hosted the NL Wild Card in each of the past two seasons. In 2013, they ousted Cincinnati as chants of “Cue-to, Cue-to” echoed down from the boisterous black-clad crowd. Last October, Madison Bumgarner quieted PNC Park by blanking the Bucs.

Tonight represents new territory for the Cubs. Joe Maddon’s squad is as young and talented as any in the game, but given the pressure cooker they’re about to encounter, could “young” prove to be the operative word in that description? Especially if Clint Hurdle’s team jumps out to an early lead and PNC becomes a cacophony. Will Chicago’s kiddie-corp be able to handle it?

Needless to say, jumping out against Jake Arrieta is a momentous task. The right-hander has been on a Bumgarner-like run, and if it continues into October, Pittsburgh is probably toast. Of course, Arrieta has never pitched in the postseason. There’s no reason to believe he won’t perform on the big stage, but just like his younger teammates, he hasn’t had a chance to prove that he can.

Arrieta feels ready to handle the pressure. Yesterday, the 29-year-old said that he’s “already processed and visualized the scenarios.” He also noted that “if you allow the noise to to affect you mentally… it’s going to be a negative for anybody.”

Addison Russell, confident in his 21-year-old’s shoes, is of the opinion that he and his precocious teammates will remain undaunted.

“There have been many times where the young guys have had to prove that they’re able to slow the game down,” said the Chicago shortstop. “ We’ve been able to come up with the big hit, or the big play, in tough situations. That’s one of the reasons we’re here.”

Kris Bryant has supplied some of those big hits, but while the 23-year-old star-in-the-making is equally confident, he does own up to some jitters.

“Nerves isn’t the right word, but in an important game, I maybe get a little anxious, probably excited,” said Bryant. “It doesn’t show, but I calm myself down a little bit.”

Bryant has never played in a game this important. Nor have the vast majority of players on the Cubs roster. Believing that you can stay composed when everything is on the line is one thing; doing so can be another story.

“In an atmosphere like this, the game can speed up you a little bit,” said Pirates second baseman Neil Walker. “Having played in two of these Wild Card games, we know what to expect. Experience makes it easier to slow yourself down, and some guys do it better than others. Look at Andrew McCutchen. We call Tony Watson ‘The Ice Man,’ because no matter what the situation is, he doesn’t deviate from his mindset. We have a bunch of guys like that.”

The Cubs likely do as well – they simply haven’t had an opportunity to prove it in a game of this magnitude. They will tonight.