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5 Things Cubs Should Do to Make the Playoffs

Here are five things that the Cubs could do to make the playoffs this year after ending the first half of the season on a high note.

By Larry Goldman

Ian Happ has been unstoppable in the last two months.
Ian Happ has been unstoppable in the last two months. / Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports
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2. Keep the Top Rolling

When 2B Nico Hoerner and 1B Michael Busch get on base, the Cubs figure out how to score. Hoerner batted .354 over the stretch (compared to his season .256) and Busch batted .324 (.271 for the season). These hits led to each of them leading the team in runs scored with 6.

Hoerner and Busch's numbers would not matter as much if RF Seiya Suzuki and LF Ian Happ were not rolling as well. Happ is on a horrid tear beyond the most recent two series. He slashed .244/.387/.500 in June for a .887 OPS and so far, has a .326/.392/.458 line in July for a .850 OPS. Not to be outdone, Suzuki slashed .258/.345/.505 in June for a .850 OPS and so far in July, has .321/.357/.585 for a .942 OPS. Suzuki had nine RBIs in the Baltimore and St. Louis series.

The Cubs don't have a .900+ OPS hitter, but Suzuki (.813), Happ (.810), and Busch (.823) are .800+ for the season. If this type of slugging and run production continues, the Cubs will continue to be competitive against good teams.

3. Get the Bottom Rolling

The bottom of the order has seemed like automatic outs at times this season. Though 3B Chris Morel leads the Cubs with 18 home runs, he is batting .202 with an OPS of .690. SS Dansby Swanson is hanging out with a .212 average, 3B Miles Mastrobuoni is at .197, C Tomas Nido is .202, and CF Pete Crow-Armstrong is at .203.

Again, their numbers look extremely different in the last two series before the All-Star Game.
- Morel .291 with three home runs
- Swanson .296
- Mastrobuoni .333

Armstrong continued to struggle during the last couple of series hitting .188, even though he did have two home runs in the last game. The confounding thing is that when they send him down to the minors, he lights things up. He has a .509 slugging and an .808. This performance compares to his .582 OPS in the majors. Crow-Armstrong is known as a phenomenal defender and has made highlight-reel plays this year. But he has also missed difficult plays, especially when retreating to the wall. If you are hitting .203 on the year, you need to make incredible plays on defense.

This type of hitting and on-base percentage by the bottom drove Hoerner to have five RBIs over the stretch and Busch had four. Those players also scored 18 runs. These are winning recipes.

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