Chicago Cubs getting it done

[lcbj68c]

I think clearly the focus has to shift to the Wild Card. Get this thing to .500 by Mid-June and hopefully 88 wins still. Not panicking, but the WC should be the focus right now.

[logan82]

I think clearly the focus has to shift to the Wild Card. Get this thing to .500 by Mid-June and hopefully 88 wins still. Not panicking, but the WC should be the focus right now.

I think the focus should shift to winning games and see where things end up at the end of the year. I don't think we would get 88 wins even if we still had Gallardo. That has nothing to do with our current "woahs." I didn't think we were better than 86 to begin with.

[Gopher74]

We've gone 4-2 against this invincible team in their crib

 

Our SOS has been more difficult, they've been injury-free thus far, it's still May, and bottom line we want the playoffs, which doesn't necessarily predicate winning the division.

 

This isn't over yet.

Amazing how few share this perspective. It's like the Rockies, the Phillies, the CUBS, all those teams from last year who started out slow and then played very well are long forgotten. Without Gallardo we're not in good shape, but we're also not out of it.

 

[LUKE232323]

Doesn't really matter. Brewers don't have the pitching talent to get back into the race, because they are not going to be able to string together a lot of wins consecutively when you're throwing out the starters we are.

[joepepsi]

57% of Cub games have been at home. 43% of Brewer games at home.

 

61% of Cub games have been against teams with losing records. (yes, that includes the Brewers.) 59% of Brewer games have been against teams with winning records.

 

The Cubs have played well. The Brewers, not so much. Lets wait and see what happens after some of these ratios even out a bit.

[LUKE232323]

All that matters is games back. 7.0 is quite a bit. What people really need to stop saying is "it's early". It's not that early, it's 1/3 into the season. How long do we wait before we just say, "well, this team isn't as good as we thought"?

[tosabrewfan]

All that matters is games back. 7.0 is quite a bit. What people really need to stop saying is "it's early". It's not that early, it's 1/3 into the season. How long do we wait before we just say, "well, this team isn't as good as we thought"?

To answer your question - when they are mathmatically eliminated from the playoffs - using normal math, instead of Ned's math. What's the point of giving up hope? So you can be first on the Brewers aren't that good bandwagon?

[LUKE232323]

All that matters is games back. 7.0 is quite a bit. What people really need to stop saying is "it's early". It's not that early, it's 1/3 into the season. How long do we wait before we just say, "well, this team isn't as good as we thought"?

To answer your question - when they are mathmatically eliminated from the playoffs - using normal math, instead of Ned's math. What's the point of giving up hope? So you can be first on the Brewers aren't that good bandwagon?

No. It's more just not getting hopes up for unrealistic expectations. Obviously I'll still follow the team and watch every game I can, but there is no reason to realistically think they can come back given the pitching personnel and how many games back we are.

[FVBrewerFan]

Cubs have starting pitching. Brewers do not. Any questions? Call it over-simplifying the situation, but sometimes the answer is just that simple.

[crewcrazy]

Didn't the Brewers have something like a 7 game lead on the Cubs on July 1 last year? I'd be more worried about having to jump three teams to get to first as opposed to just the games back, but that's why I think this weekend's series against Houston could go a long way in cutting down that gap a bit.

 

The Cubs are definitely an improved team over last year, but I don't think they're the best team in baseball. They'll come down a bit, but they'll still probably win 90-ish games. The wildcard probably is a more realistic goal for the Brewers, but right now they need to focus on climbing back over .500 and at least leapfrogging the Astros. As far as the Brewers not having the pitching staff to make the playoffs goes, may I remind everyone that the Phillies made the playoffs last year with a rotation that prominently featured Cole Hamels and a pile of scraps?

[datrain711]

apparently an eight run lead isn't enough for the rockies pitching staff. Its making me sick to my stomach the way the Cubs keep winning these games.

 

What a disaster at Wrigley

[datrain711]

i don't know whether to laugh or cry. The best part about this is that I'm going out to Denver for the 3 game set, and for some reason i'm expecting a competent Rockies team to give the Brewers trouble.

 

At this rate the Cubs are going to have a 10 game lead on us before long. Do they ever lose? Do they ever play on the road?

[logan82]

All I can think to say to the Cubs is, "that's our offense and we want it back."

[datrain711]

of course, leadoff walk but atkins scorches one that turns into a dp.

 

cubs up 7.5 after having one of those potential season-defining wins.

[brewmann04]

Cubs are playing Great and i really don"t think the brewers with their team is going to catch them.

See like the stars are set up just right for the Cubs.

[RyDogg66]

Wow, so that is what a team with a functional offense looks like.

[Klements Bratwurst]

What year was it that the Cubs had that amazing crash in the late 60's? I wasn't born yet, but how about that happening this year?

 

Zero significant injuries...Crazy amount of home games thus far for them. The stars must be aligned, but with 33 road games coming over the next two months of June and July and only 20 home games, lets wait till after then to annoint them as champs. ( I know it doesn't look good now).

 

We will see, but a come back from 9-1 is pretty amazing. The Brewers can't score nine runs in a week. It is like a complete reversal of the two teams from a year ago, minus the fact that we lost a dominating member of our rotation.

[datrain711]

I am going to the game tonight, and I made a major mistake in thinking that listening to the Cubs game here at work would be a good kick-off to the weekend. I thought for sure they would lose. Listenting to Ron Santo's antics while Edmonds, Derosa, and Blanco (yes that Blanco) hit homers was too much to bear.

 

Please Crew--get on a hot streak!

[stoutdude04]

A friend of mine said to me the other day, "It just seems like the Cubs are winning every 1 run game, they come from behind and win, and lock it up and win. The stars must be aligned this year." Sickening win today....

[TheCrew07]

I wasn't overly excited about the Brewer's start last year, and I'm not overly excited this year about the below .500 record. If the season is still going this way at the end of the June I'll change my tune.

 

The Cubs are playing better than I had expected, but my hate for them will not allow me to say something positive about the team.

[MickeyDavis]

Well at least there's a wildcard.

[TooLiveBrew]

The Brewers can't score nine runs in a week

 

How about the 6-run inning at Washington? I know you're going with some sarcasm there, but it seems every time the Cubs happen to win when the Brewers have just lost, the statements bandied about lean towards 'the Cubs are so much better, the Brewers might as well give up.'

 

I know they're still the favorites, but the two teams' schedules have been so flukily complimentary that I can't say either way (personally) if the Brewers are too far back or not. I think once we get through June, there will be a much better view of what's going on.

[AJAY]

I know the Cubs have had easy opponents and a lot of home games, but they seem to be sweeping teams at Wrigley rather than winning 2 out of 3 or splitting series. That's not a good sign if you are a Brewers fan.

 

Somehow I doubt we will have the same success when we play those teams at home.

[RU Rah Rah]

Yeah, that win today . . . yikes. They do seem to have some serious mojo.

 

But it's not even June yet, for crying out loud -- still many, many games to be played.

[owbc]

That game today...I felt a punch in my stomach when I saw the highlights.

 

As much as I want to argue that the season is only 1/3 over, we are in about the worst possible position at this point. They're hot, we're not. We have key injuries, they don't. They have the money to make a huge move at the deadline, we might be selling.

 

But besides that, the things that really seem to matter like home vs. road splits and strength of schedule suggest that they will give us a chance. Plus, that big offense isn't going to help them in the playoffs when the warm summer winds are gone.