NEWSLETTER
The Cubs lost last night, something they’d not done in five games, so this space becomes slightly less joyful about the distance they’ve created in the playoff race, and slightly more relieved about the distance they’ve created in the playoff race …
The Brewers did not play last night, so the Cubs’ lead in the NL Central falls to 3.0 games, which, hey, that ain’t bad. The Cubs still have a four-game cushion in the loss column.
Call it the curse of the Rally Cat. After winning a couple games in dramatic fashion following the appearance of a cat on the field, the Cardinals then lost the cat and got into a legal dispute about its ownership (yup, this is all real). Since the cat’s power wore off and the Cardinals apparently didn’t show it the right level of love, the Cardinals have lost seven of ten.
That includes last night’s ninth inning loss to the Padres, as they’re already feeling the stinging absence of Trevor Rosenthal. I’d make more fun about losing a series to the woeful Padres, but the Cubs were swept by the Padres earlier this year, so …
In any case, the Cardinals remain 4.5 games back of the Cubs, which is not going to be easy to overcome, but certainly isn’t as impossible as this odd tweet makes it sound:
The #STLCards lose 2 of 3 to #Padres at home, all but mathematically eliminating playoff hopes
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) August 25, 2017
Meanwhile, in the Wild Card race, the Diamondbacks and Rockies both managed 3-2 wins, so the Cubs can no longer claim to be the kinda-sorta leader in the Wild Card race. Pfft. Don’t want that stupid Wild Card anyway.
The Diamondbacks are on top of the Rockies by a half game, and the Rockies lead the Brewers by 3.5 games. The Cardinals are 5.0 games out of Wild Card position, and the Marlins are a half game behind the Cardinals.
