Some Cubs observations
It's been a really long time since I've had reason to pay attention to a certain baseball team, and I still believe (as I concluded after 2008) that the likelihood of said team ever getting off its century-long schneid is vanishingly small, because of the enormous pressure that would come with any close approach. Still, I can't deny that Ricketts money and Epstein-Hoyer vision have accomplished something. Just when getting swept at home by the woebegone Phillies seemed to force reality into the clubhouse, there has followed an unlikely 21-5 stretch with a mind-boggling three four-game sweeps. So I find myself suddenly in late season mode, facing what has dashed my hopes so many times over the past several decades: The last West Coast road trip. I've warned Lisa that I might be a bit hard to live with this week, and maybe thereafter.
I guess manager Joe Maddon knows what he's doing, especially if he was able to set things up so that Jake Arrieta, far and away the Cubs' best pitcher, will be the one who gets two starts in the six games (three each against the Giants and Dodgers). Among those who equate pitching matchups to Sun Tzu's Ancient Art of War, the Cubs might have the edge tonight, while the Giants get it from their pitcher tomorrow (Madison Bumgarner, last year's World Series hero). The third game may be a toss-up. I would be very happy with two out of three in each series.
What's odd about the way the divisions and playoffs work now is that while the Cubs are trying to stay ahead of the Giants, the Giants are trying to catch the Dodgers. There are now two wild cards in each league, and this makes it possible for the Cubs to be a playoff team while sitting in third place. The National League Central has three of the four best records in baseball (Cardinals first, Pirates second in the division; Kansas City, in the AL Central, has a record about the same as the Pirates' and better than the Cubs'.) What the second wild card gets you is a single game against the first wild card, in first's park, and if you lose that game, you're done. In the other NL divisions, the chases are really for first place, a much better playoff situation, where you can wait for the wild cards to finish, and then play an actual series. So, while the Giants are six games behind the Cubs for the second wild card, they're a game and a half behind the Dodgers for first place in the division. Thus, it behooves the Cubs to beat both teams, because before long the Giants might be in first and the Dodgers are in second (although they'd still probably be closer to the Giants for first).
As a result of this format, magic numbers are a bit fuzzy. Technically, the Cubs' number going into tonight's game is 33, but because the Giants and Dodgers still have games left against each other, the magic number against whoever will finish in second place in the West is already down to 31. In the NL East, the Mets lead the Nationals by a fair amount, and the Cubs magic number against the underachieving Nats is 30. All of which means I should probably lighten up a little. This, of course, won't happen.
I guess manager Joe Maddon knows what he's doing, especially if he was able to set things up so that Jake Arrieta, far and away the Cubs' best pitcher, will be the one who gets two starts in the six games (three each against the Giants and Dodgers). Among those who equate pitching matchups to Sun Tzu's Ancient Art of War, the Cubs might have the edge tonight, while the Giants get it from their pitcher tomorrow (Madison Bumgarner, last year's World Series hero). The third game may be a toss-up. I would be very happy with two out of three in each series.
What's odd about the way the divisions and playoffs work now is that while the Cubs are trying to stay ahead of the Giants, the Giants are trying to catch the Dodgers. There are now two wild cards in each league, and this makes it possible for the Cubs to be a playoff team while sitting in third place. The National League Central has three of the four best records in baseball (Cardinals first, Pirates second in the division; Kansas City, in the AL Central, has a record about the same as the Pirates' and better than the Cubs'.) What the second wild card gets you is a single game against the first wild card, in first's park, and if you lose that game, you're done. In the other NL divisions, the chases are really for first place, a much better playoff situation, where you can wait for the wild cards to finish, and then play an actual series. So, while the Giants are six games behind the Cubs for the second wild card, they're a game and a half behind the Dodgers for first place in the division. Thus, it behooves the Cubs to beat both teams, because before long the Giants might be in first and the Dodgers are in second (although they'd still probably be closer to the Giants for first).
As a result of this format, magic numbers are a bit fuzzy. Technically, the Cubs' number going into tonight's game is 33, but because the Giants and Dodgers still have games left against each other, the magic number against whoever will finish in second place in the West is already down to 31. In the NL East, the Mets lead the Nationals by a fair amount, and the Cubs magic number against the underachieving Nats is 30. All of which means I should probably lighten up a little. This, of course, won't happen.