As we head down the final 4 games of the season, here is what the Cubs, and their competitors for playoff positioning are facing.
Another brutal loss has dropped the Cubs from the top spot in the NL Wild Card race. Now they need to win, and get some help to host a series. Plus, every day they don’t clinch a playoff spot add anxiety to everyone.
Meanwhile, the Padres beat Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and their reward is getting the top spot in the NL Wild Card standings.
Current Wild Card Standings
| Team | W | L | GB | Magic # | Elim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Padres | 88 | 70 | – | 1 | – |
| Cubs | 87 | 71 | 1 | 1 | – |
| Phillies | 87 | 71 | 1 | 2 | – |
| Diamondbacks | 84 | 74 | 4 | – | 2 |
| Team | Proj W | Proj L | ROS W% | SoS | Make Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Padres | 89.8 | 72.2 | .462 | .548 | 95.4% |
| Cubs | 89.1 | 72.9 | .529 | .523 | 99.6% |
| Phillies | 89.0 | 73.0 | .501 | .536 | 97.0% |
| Diamondbacks | 86.2 | 75.8 | .541 | .492 | 8.1% |
Tiebreakers:
Cubs over Padres
Cubs over Phillies
Cubs over Diamondbacks
Phillies over Padres
Diamondbacks over Phillies
Padres / Diamondbacks TBD (5-5 with 3 games left)
Padres Schedule
At Dodgers (1)
Opponent something to play for: Yes (1st seed in NL)
Pitching Matchups:
9/24 -Pivetta vs Glasnow
Notes: With the Padres win on Wednesday, they are in a much better spot to host the Wild Card series. Meanwhile, the Dodgers are now effectively 3 games behind the Brewers to the overall top seed.
Vs Diamondbacks (3)
Opponent something to play for: Maybe
Possible Pitching Matchups
9/25 – TBD (Mize) vs TBD (Pfaadt)
9/26 – TBD (Buehler) vs TBD (Burnes)
9/27 – TBD vs TBD
Notes: If the Padres win one more, it makes this series much less stressful.
Cubs schedule
Vs Marlins (1)
Opponent something to play for: No
Pitching matchups:
9/24 – Boyd vs Phillips
Notes: The Cubs are going with Boyd against the Marlins today, instead of Clay Holmes. The Marlins are bad against lefties, and the Cubs really need this game – plus Homes got knocked around in his last start against Miami.
At Red Sox (3)
Opponent something to play for: No (locked into 5th spot in AL)
Possible pitching matchups:
9/25 (Game 1) – TBD (Holmes) vs TBD (Bello)
9/25 (Game 2) – TBD (Peterson) vs TBD (Sandoval)
9/26 – TBD vs TBD
Notes: Due to weather in Boston, there will be a day-night double-header on Friday, and no game on Sunday. This messes up the Cubs rotation in several ways, but I still think it allows Clay Holmes to go in Game 2 of the Wild Card.
Phillies Schedule
Vs Brewers (1)
Opponent something to play for: Yes (1st seed in NL)
Possible Pitching Matchups:
9/24 – Painter vs TBD
Notes: The Brewers have not announced a starter, so I’d guess newly promoted Lyon Richardson will get most of the work.
Vs Rays (3)
Opponent something to play for: No
Possible Pitching Matchups
9/25 – Sanchez vs Peralta
9/26 – TBD vs Jax
9/27 – TBD vs TBD
Notes: The Phillies miss out on seeing Drew Rasmussen, and with the Rays having already clinched the top AL spot, they will not push their starters too hard.
Diamondbacks Schedule
At Rockies (1)
Opponent something to play for: Not even close
Pitching Matchups:
9/24 – Rodriguez vs Gordon
Notes: Staying Alive…but they really need a win and at least one loss from the other Wild Card teams for the next series to mean anything,
At Padres (3)
Opponent something to play for: Yes
Possible Pitching Matchups:
9/25 – TBD (Pfaadt) vs TBD (Mize)
9/26 – TBD (Burnes) vs TBD (Buehler)
9/27 – TBD vs TBD
Notes: It would be cool if the DBacks had something to play for here.
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