When the Chicago Cubs are good, you can feel it, and this season, the energy is palpable because the Cubs have been one of baseball’s best teams. The atmosphere around Wrigley Field has reached playoff levels as the calendar gets close to August — a sign that good baseball is being played at the Friendly Confines.
It had been some time since Cubs fans enjoyed a team that was one of the best in baseball. The last time the Cubs were in the postseason in a full season was 2018, when they lost to the Brewers in Game 163 before also losing in the one-game wild card.
But this year, the Cubs, 60-42 entering play Friday, are in position to get back to the postseason and make a run once there. Not only that, but they are one of a few teams in baseball with a legitimate shot to win the World Series.
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The first half was full of challenges for the Cubs, the biggest of which were the hits their rotation took with the loss of Justin Steele to a torn UCL and the absence of Shota Imanaga for more than a month due to a hamstring strain. Yet the Cubs have continued to play well and asserted their dominance in the National League; they’ve already finished their season series against many of the best teams in the NL, including the Dodgers, Mets, Padres and Phillies.
In fact, because the Cubs had one of the most challenging schedules before the All-Star break, they have one of the easiest schedules in the sport in the second half.
“Our goal is to win as many games as possible,” Cubs president Jed Hoyer said this week. “I think that’s the focus. We’re not gonna actually play a lot of teams the rest of the way that are in that mix. So to me, how do we focus on the Cubs winning as many games as possible? Of course, you look at playoff odds, but ultimately, we know those things change quickly based on tonight’s game and tomorrow’s game.”
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Speaking of things that change quickly, the one team that could ruin the Cubs’ summer fun and plans for an NL Central title is the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers, who entered the All-Star break on a seven-game winning streak and extended it to 11 before a loss Tuesday to the Mariners, have erased what was once a 6.5-game Cubs lead in the division. The Cubs have been ahead in the Central for most of the season, but with 60 games to play, Milwaukee is one game up.
“They’re a really good team,” Hoyer said. “They’ve played really well, especially over the last 30 games or so. They’ve played excellent baseball and changed their calculus. But certainly, I don’t expect that to change.
“I expect us to play well. I expect them to play well.”
Since May 1, the Cubs are 42-29. The Brewers are 45-26 over the same span. It previously looked like the Cubs could pull away from the division early, but at this point, Milwaukee — which has the second-best run differential in the NL, behind only Chicago — doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon.
What does the Cubs’ clubhouse make of the Brewers’ having toppled them from their comfortable perch?
“Look, they’re playing great,” manager Craig Counsell said. “But we can control the [eight] other games we have with them. That’s it.”
“I think there’s something about having a sense of urgency,” Hoyer added. “I don’t think this group lacks urgency ever. But I do think that there is something potentially good about having someone at your heels that’s really good, that’s been playing great baseball for over a month.”
That urgency applies to the clubhouse and also the front office. The Cubs have put themselves in position to be aggressive buyers at the trade deadline, and while their offense is solidified as their biggest strength, their starting rotation could use some reinforcements. Imanaga and fellow left-hander Matthew Boyd have been one of baseball’s best duos and are both penciled into Chicago’s postseason rotation. Right-hander Jameson Taillon could be a solution once he returns in late August, but right now, behind the lefty duo is a void.
Who is starting Game 3 come October? That’s the biggest question for Hoyer to answer ahead of the deadline.
The good news is Chicago has options when it comes to what additions the team could make. If they want to go the route of a rental, Arizona starters Zac Gallen or Merrill Kelly could fill the void. Longer-term solutions such as Miami’s Sandy Alcántara and Edward Cabrera or Pittsburgh’s Mitch Keller could be answers, though they would all come at a higher cost, with additional years of club control attached. Adding another high-leverage relief arm and possibly depth at third base are also possible for the Cubs, but the main priority has to be starting pitching.
The Cubs and Brewers can both be expected to be active before next Thursday’s trade deadline, and what will make the next week even more intense is that the two teams face off in a three-game series in Milwaukee starting Monday. Whichever team is able to win that series will not only take control of the division but also gain a big boost going into the deadline and the final two months of the season.
“We’re gonna take care of what we can take care of — that’s today’s game,” Counsell said. “At this point, the standings are not at a point where it really gives us any benefit to worry about them. Just got to go out and keep playing good games and keep stacking up wins.”
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