The Cubs barely escaped the Crosstown Classic without getting swept, and now they immediately walk into a division series against the one team most capable of making the NL Central uncomfortable. Milwaukee enters Wrigley playing better baseball lately, and this series suddenly carries far more weight than a random May matchup.
Whatever may happen, this could serve as an indication of what's to come from these two respective teams. The NL Central has come down to the Brewers and Cubs, with the occasional voice heard from St. Louis. The Cubs haven't won the NL Central since the 2020 season, and since that season was cut short due to Covid, the Cubs haven't effectively won the division since 2017. In the decade since, Milwaukee has spent plenty of time showing Chicago who's boss.
The Cubs cannot let the Brewers control the division again
Milwaukee has been the victor of the NL Central repeatedly, while the Cubs have fallen back into not-so-forgotten habits of being the lovable losers. Now that the Cubs are finally equipped to push back, it's time. The Cubs have a better looking offense when it comes to depth, and when their bats get going, they really get going.
The Crosstown Classic may have exposed plenty of cracks in the Cubs foundation, but you don't get two separate ten-game win streaks in a season by being a bad team, and you don't get it via luck either. The primary concern for the Cubs in this series should be to minimize mistakes and to take advantage of every opportunity. Obviously that's the goal of every game, but those traits are how the Brewers exploit and win, and by minimizing those opportunities, it drastically increases the Cubs ability to win this series.
By relying on the spectacular defensive abilities of players like Nico Hoerner and Pete Crow-Armstrong, and leaning into big bats like Suzuki and Ian Happ, the Cubs have a real chance to win this series. The Cubs are at their best when the pressure is coming from all different angles. The Cubs may be in a difficult spot right now, but that also means that when they're low, there's only up to go. For the Brewers, who have won eight of their last ten and still remain 1.5 games behind Chicago, the taller you are, the harder you fall.
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