Could the Cubs miss the playoffs?

After a disastrous sweep at the hands of the Brewers, things are starting to get very nervous around Cubs-ville. The Padres and Diamondbacks keep winning, and the lead over 7th place is shrinking.

And while the Cubs may be able to hold on to a spot, the chance of getting home field in the Wild Card is looking unlikely.

Today is a day for pessimism. Let us count the ways

• The big surprise of the season in the bullpen, Jacob Webb, has had a historic run of blown saves.
• The two big starting pitching acquisitions that looked lined up to be #1 and #2 in a playoff series have laid consecutive eggs in their stars.
• The whole bullpen, save Aaron Civale, have looked shaky.
• Chances of return for Ben Brown, Hunter Harvey, Riley Martin, and yes, even Phil Maton, are gone.
• Edward Cabrera has looked mostly bad in his conversion to a reliever in Iowa
• Time is running out for Justin Stelle and/or Shelby Miller to make an impact in the bullpen.
• The schedule continues to be tough, with a fairly hot Pirates team, a Marlins team who just won 2 out of 3 against the Cubs, a Reds team that took 2 of 3 from the Cubs, the Braves, and the Red Sox left to play.

Not making the playoffs n 2026 would be a catastrophic failure for this team, and the inability to spend effectively on the bullpen 1or acquire a reliable starter in the offseason by the front office would probably be seen as the main culprit. Sure, there have been key injuries to the pitching staff, but if the Cubs had traded for or spent more on depth, we would not be here.

I feel like every time I feel really good about this year’s team, something goes horribly wrong. So maybe this collapse is a sign things are going to get better.

Or not.