Good morning, my friends. How are you? Feeling well? Rested? Refreshed? An extra spring in your step for reasons you can’t quite explain?
Well, perhaps I can explain with a picture:
Thanks to their win yesterday over the Giants, coupled with an evening loss by the Brewers and a late-night loss by the Cardinals, the Cubs are currently in sole possession of first place in the NL Central.
Sure, that’s been the expectation for this season, but it hasn’t been the case since May 5, when that Yankees series started, Hector Rondon gave up that homer to Brett Gardner, and the skid kicked in. The Cubs have, of course, been aided in their quest to get back on top by the fact that the rest of the NL Central has kind of meandered around, but the team has still won seven of their last nine. Not like the Cubs are not doing their part.
At 25-21, the Cubs have the fifth best record in the totally uneven NL, where the Central is all smushed up together, the West has three of the current top teams (Rockies, Diamondbacks, Dodgers), and the East is so lopsided (Nationals) that the second place Braves are five games under .500.