NL Central Discussion 2026

[RWeeksFan23]

14 hours ago, AdvantageSchneider said:

Elly De La Cruz to the IL with a bad hammy.  Going to miss at least 3 weeks.  They are a game above .500 right now.  I assume this is the end of the competitive portion of their season.

to be fair they will get hunter greene back at some point though which will be a huge boost to their rotation.

[umphrey]

Cubs at 48% chance to make the playoffs on fangraphs. Thought it was noteworthy they fell under 50% after their strong start to the season. 

[igor67]

I expect the Pirates stay in 2nd place to be short lived. They have Atlanta and LA back to back starting this weekend

[Fear The Chorizo]

Rest of the NL Central once again has to be having this sort of feel - thanks for putting it so eloquently, Randy!

[wiguy94]

2 hours ago, igor67 said:

I expect the Pirates stay in 2nd place to be short lived. They have Atlanta and LA back to back starting this weekend

Very possible but I think the Pirates might be our best competition for the division. Their rotation is legit and they actually have a pretty good lineup as well. I feel like they are a playoff team this year.

[RWeeksFan23]

Grand slam Matt Chapman! Cubs trail 6-0. 

Hopefully these Giants bats stay hot!

[Brian]

On 6/3/2026 at 6:41 AM, umphrey said:

Cubs at 48% chance to make the playoffs on fangraphs. Thought it was noteworthy they fell under 50% after their strong start to the season. 

Current Vegas Odds. 

https://www.vegasinsider.com/mlb/odds/playoff-prop/

[Brian]

Also, Cubs getting absolutely demolished by the Giants today, 16 to 0 in the 6th. 

Holy Cow! 

[torts]

PCA give up any homers?

[LouisEly]

Odds of Counsell filling out an unemployment claim tomorrow?

[sveumrules]

How bad has the Pirates defense been so far this year?

Team FIP
PIT (3.76 | 8th)
STL (4.20 | 17th)
CHI (4.48 | 24th)

Team ERA
PIT (4.00 | 13th)
STL (4.14 | 17th)
CHI (4.17 | 18th)

Runs Allowed per Game
CHI (4.41 | 15th)
STL (4.48 | 16th)
PIT (4.57 | 20th)

[da swedish german]

5 hours ago, LouisEly said:

Odds of Counsell filling out an unemployment claim tomorrow?

how does that work for rich people? 

I imagine like ol' dirty bas&ard rolling up in a limo for his food stamps lol

[Dragonbait]

Reds, under .500.

[Frisbee Slider]

Jamison Taillon has allowed 20 HR this season and is on pace to equal the all time single season record for HR allowed (50 by Bert Blyleven in 1986).

For context, Roger Maris hit his 17th HR on June 7, 1961. We could be witnessing something truly historic this summer.

[HarryDoyle]

10 hours ago, Dragonbait said:

Reds, under .500.

Yep, the NL Central officially has at least one team with a losing record, and it looks like the bad times for the Reds are just beginning.

[yfinn6]

Jameson Taillon just came out of the game after a few non-competitive pitches in the 2nd. Looked like as soon as he threw the pitch he was signaling to the dugout. 

[Brian]

13 hours ago, Frisbee Slider said:

Jamison Taillon has allowed 20 HR this season and is on pace to equal the all time single season record for HR allowed (50 by Bert Blyleven in 1986).

For context, Roger Maris hit his 17th HR on June 7, 1961. We could be witnessing something truly historic this summer.

From Cubs chat room on Taillon injury:  I’d be upset over this but this Taillon stinks. Leads the league in homers given up.  He eats innings but other than that dude is so washed.  Wish we could use him for spare parts. 

[Brian]

Cubs lose 2-1 in th3 10th.  Cubs tied with Pirates now.  Stl in 2nd place 5 games behind Brewers. 

[markedman5]

Meanwhile in Chicago 

 

[formerlybis]

19 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

Meanwhile in Chicago 

 

Well, the first instinct to feel a sense of schadenfreude, but it also goes to show you that things can go sideways relatively quickly. 

[HarryDoyle]

3 hours ago, markedman5 said:

Meanwhile in Chicago 

 

[Brian]

Jed Hoyer punishes Craig Counsell.  

[BruisedCrew]

Over the last 10 days the Cardinals have moved solidly into second place.

Is everyone still as sure as they were that the Cardinals are a bad team that will collapse as the season moves on.