In recent years, it’s been the dog days in Chicago for Cubs fans. From excitement to heartbreak, fans have watched their team rebuild from the ground up after blowing up their championship-winning team in 2021. But on Thursday, Oct. 2, eight years since their last playoff series win, Cubs fans got to sing their team off to the next round.
The Cubs’ next playoff matchup will be against the best-in-MLB Milwaukee Brewers (97-65) — the same team that hunted down and overtook the then division-leading Cubs in late July. This will be the first time the NL Central rivals face each other in the playoffs, and it’s gearing up to be a classic.
“They’re going to be fired up,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Thursday night as his team celebrated at Wrigley Field. “They’ve had the best team in baseball this year. They feel like they have a chance to play in the World Series with this team. They’re rested, so it’s going to be a great atmosphere. It’s Cubs-Brewers — that’s going to be as good as it gets. It’s always a great atmosphere when the two teams play each other. We’ll try to get as many Cubs fans in there as we can. They won’t like that.”
While the Brewers were better in both hitting (third vs. 13th) and pitching (fifth vs. 27th), the Cubs outpowered them by 57 home runs and squeaked out a regular-season series win, seven games to six. The key for the Cubs will be their bats. Throughout the season, the Cubs have shown glimpses of greatness, but they failed at consistency. Even in their postseason series win against the San Diego Padres, they failed to capitalize on several scoring opportunities. They left 25 baserunners on throughout the series, which limited the amount of breathing room the pitching staff had to work with.
Another important piece to the Cubs’ goal of advancing to the NLCS will be the glove of Dansby Swanson. Padres manager Mike Shildt said, “We play great defense, but Dansby Swanson absolutely beat us with his glove this series.” The Gold Glover put on a masterclass in the art of fielding — making incredible plays and allowing Cubs pitchers to trust their infield. His defense will be key to helping the Cubs triumph over the Brewers.
Both teams want to continue their road to the World Series, and it will kick off at American Family Field on Saturday, Oct. 4, at 1:08 p.m. CT.
