The Chicago Cubs are going again to the postseason. Wednesday afternoon’s win over the Pittsburgh Pirates (CHC 8, PIT 4) clinched Chicago’s first postseason berth since 2020, and their first in a full 162-game season since 2018.

Supervisor Craig Counsell’s group is the third Nationwide League group to clinch a postseason spot, becoming a member of the Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies. The Brewers will quickly clinch the NL Central title and the Phillies have already clinched the NL East, and each groups have comfy leads over the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers. They’re effectively positioned to complete with the Nationwide League’s high two data and thus safe Wild Card Sequence byes.

The Cubbies are 5 video games up on the San Diego Padres for the highest wild card spot, so, whereas none of that is official but, we have now a reasonably good thought what the NL postseason subject will appear to be with 12 days remaining within the common season:

• BYE: Brewers (NL Central) and Phillies (NL East)
• WC: WC3 at Dodgers (NL West)
• WC: Padres (WC2) at Cubs (WC1)

The New York Mets presently sit within the third wild card spot with the D-backs, Giants, and Cincinnati Reds kinda sorta possibly making them sweat a bit. That actually is the one thriller left within the NL. Can a type of groups catch the Mets? In any other case we’re simply speaking about seeding, and the Brewers, Cubs, Dodgers, and Phillies are fairly effectively locked into their slots.

Outfielder Ian Happ is the one participant on Chicago’s roster who has appeared in a postseason sport for the Cubs. (Second baseman Nico Hoerner was on the 2020 Wild Card Sequence roster however didn’t play.) The roster has turned over considerably since then and so too has the entrance workplace. Theo Epstein left the Cubs in November 2020, when present POBO Jed Hoyer was elevated to interchange him.

Inside the previous couple of years, Hoyer has added first baseman Michael Busch and outfielders Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker in vital trades, and the latter two might obtain MVP votes this 12 months. He additionally signed lefties Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga, and drafted righty Cade Horton. These three may very well be Chicago’s three Wild Card Sequence beginning pitchers.

The Cubs rank eighth in runs scored per sport and are fractions of a run away from being within the high 5. They’ve additionally allowed the fifth fewest runs per sport. Counsell’s group is excellent at scoring runs and superb at stopping them. Chicago’s plus-129 run differential is second greatest in baseball behind solely the Brewers (plus-180).

Tucker (calf) and nearer Daniel Palencia (shoulder) are nursing accidents. As soon as the Cubs lock up the highest wild card spot and thus dwelling subject benefit within the Wild Card Sequence, they’ll take their foot off the gasoline a bit, and relaxation core gamers earlier than October and audition others for postseason roles.

With the Cubs in, the Toronto Blue Jays are more likely to be the following group to clinch a postseason berth. That ought to occur inside a day or two.