Cubs Playoff Watch: Brewers' Loss Drops the Magic Number
By James Neveau •
Welcome to Cubs Playoff Watch, your daily look at the Chicago Cubs as they continue to push toward their second consecutive division title.
Cubs’ Magic Number: 8
The Cubs were unable to help their own cause on Wednesday night, as they fell in a blowout loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
Fortunately for them, the Brewers also lost, as the Pirates scored a comeback 5-4 walk-off victory in the teams’ series finale at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.
With the dual losses, the Cubs maintained their three and a half game lead over the Brewers in the Central Division. The Cardinals beat the Reds on Wednesday night, moving them back within five games of the Cubs in the divisional race.
National League Playoff Picture:
The Los Angeles Dodgers saw their lead in the best record race drop to three and a half games over the Nationals, but as of now it still seems that Washington would be on a collision course to play the Central Division winner in the first round.
The Cubs are close to losing home-field advantage in that series, as the Nationals’ magic number to clinch home-field in the first round of the postseason sits at 4 entering Thursday’s action.
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Ian Happ capped off the Cubs' homecoming party on Sept. 29 as he blasted a three run home run to give the Cubs a 5-4 win over the Reds.
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Jason Heyward and his Cubs teammates acknowledge the Wrigley Field faithful before their first home game following their Central Division clincher.
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Kyle Schwarber and the Cubs kept their eyes on the ball Sept. 28, eliminating the Cardinals from playoff contention with an extra innings victory.
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Pedro Strop gets doused with beer after the Cubs clinched the Central Division title on Sept. 27 in St. Louis.
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Jon Jay and the Chicago Cubs celebrate their Central Division title after beating the St. Louis Cardinals on Sept. 27.
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The Cubs and Jake Arrieta had a golden chance to wrap up the Central Division on Sept. 26, but they lost 8-7 to the St. Louis Cardinals to leave their magic number stuck at just one.
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Ben Zobrist smacked a solo home run in the eighth inning, but the Cubs still came up just short in a comeback effort against the Cardinals on Sept. 26.
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The Chicago Cubs eliminated the St. Louis Cardinals from the division race in style on Sept. 25, punctuated by a long home run by Javier Baez.
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The Chicago Cubs are looking to wrap up the Central Division, and Jon Lester helped the cause with a strong performance against the Cardinals on Sept. 25.
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Jose Quintana threw a complete game shutout for the Cubs as they knocked off the Brewers 5-0 and put themselves in prime position to clinch the division title.
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Jon Jay scored a big insurance run in the eighth inning as the Cubs took a giant step closer to the division title with a Sept. 24 win over the Brewers.
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The Cubs looked like they were going to notch another win on Sept. 23, but the Brewers had other ideas as Travis Shaw belted a walk-off home run to give the team the victory.
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Kris Bryant cracked a 10th inning home run to help guide the Cubs to a critical win over the Brewers on Sept. 21. The win dropped the Cubs' magic number to 6 and extended their Central lead to four and a half games.
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Eric Thames helped give the Brewers a late lead in their game against the Cubs Sept. 21, but it was short-lived as Chicago came back to win.
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Jake Arrieta came back for the Cubs on Sept. 21 and was his usual dominant self, giving up one run in five innings in a winning effort.
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The Cubs helped the Rays draw some of their biggest crowds of the season, and defending NL MVP Kris Bryant was one of the main attractions as the Cubs visited Tampa for just the second time in team history.
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The Cubs couldn't quite figure out how to slow down the Rays in the series finale, losing a blowout game. Fortunately, the Brewers also lost on Sept. 20, dropping the Cubs' magic number to 8.
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Kyle Schwarber's home run lifted the Cubs to a win over the Rays on Sept. 19.
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Mike Montgomery, making a spot start, took a no-hitter into the sixth inning as the Cubs beat the Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 on Sept. 19 and dropped their magic number to nine.
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Anthony Rizzo scored four runs and collected three hits as the Cubs swept the Cardinals in a weekend series at Wrigley Field.
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The Chicago Cubs dominated the St. Louis Cardinals in the teams' final series in Chicago, sweeping the three-game set and putting the Cards in a deep hole in the division race on Sept. 17.
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Welcome back Addison! In his first game back off the disabled list, Addison Russell blasted a home run in the eighth inning of the Cubs' win over the Cardinals Sept. 16.
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The Friendly Confines shine brightly on Sept. 12 as the Cubs battle the New York Mets.
Kris Bryant launched his 26th home run of the season and drove in four RBI in a 8-3 thrashing of the Mets at Wrigley Field on Sept. 12.
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The Cubs hit a brick wall against the Milwaukee Brewers in mid-September, dropping all three games of a series at Wrigley Field against the second place team in the NL Central.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Diamondbacks have a five and a half game lead over the Colorado Rockies in the wild card race, putting them within reach of clinching home-field advantage in the National League wild card game.
The Rockies have a one-game lead over the Brewers for the second wild card spot in the National League, and are ahead of the Cardinals by two and a half games with just 10 games to go in the regular season.
What’s Next:
For the Cubs, a four-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers is on tap for Thursday, as Jake Arrieta takes the mound for the first time since straining his hamstring against the Pittsburgh Pirates earlier this season.
The series will be a critical one, as the Cubs still hold a three and a half game lead over the Brewers in the Central Division. Winning two or three games will all but lock up the division title for the Cubs, who still have series against the Cardinals and Reds left on their schedule.
