Trade Deadline Boost Ignites The Cubs' Playoff Push

The Cubs acquired reliever Ryan Zeferjahn, starter Clay Holmes, outfielder Tyrone Taylor, and starter Braxton Garrett on trade deadline day and gave the clubhouse an immediate injection of energy.

The trade deadline boost combined with catching the Dodgers at the right time fueled a 6-1 week. Nothing could keep them down: Tarik Skubal, Dylan Cease, an early 3-R HR, a leadoff HR, an MVP showdown between Pete Crow-Armstrong and Shohei Ohtani, being down to their last strike in the 9th, or a liner off Kevin Gausman’s leg in his debut. The Cubs were resilient and found ways to win some scrappy ballgames.

The offense strung together clutch hits, and the rotation continued its pre-deadline dominance. Clay Holmes struggled in his debut, which led to their only loss of the week.

Jed Hoyer finished the anchor leg of the trade deadline with big moves that clashed with his typical risk averse methods. The Cubs beat out many other suitors across the finish line! Confidence in this year’s team concluded in a gift-wrapped deadline at the expense of Moises Ballesteros and top prospect Jefferson Rojas. High-priced rentals haven’t been on the shopping list since the 2016 core was still in Chicago. The final arms race towards a playoff run has commenced!

The Cubs will make a run in October. Any questions about trying to win or being a good team were answered at the deadline. The final and most pressing question remains: can they overcome the Brewers? Despite being 19 games over .500, going 15-8 in the 2nd half so far, and adding via trades, they are still 5.5 games back in the division. The Brewers are 30 games over .500 and reached 70 wins in the least amount of games in their history.

This 162-game marathon is on a collision course with Milwaukee. There is no championship without finally overtaking the big brother Brewers. Hopefully, the position player group is good enough that they can slug their way out of a playoff series, but if last year was a sign, that won’t be enough. The difference will be the pitching, and having more than 2 reliable starters like last October will even the playing field. Offense is volatile, but healthy pitchers can shut down any lineup at anytime. Boyd, Gausman, Holmes, Cabrera, and Imanaga should be enough to take into battle; it’s left to be seen if they can bury the Brewers.

The injury bug has invaded Halas Hall. Training camp reports generally lack any foreshadowing for the upcoming season, but a hefty pile of injuries can set the Bears back as early as Week 1. Coby Bryant hyperextended his knee and will miss the beginning of the season, so the Bryant/Thieneman duo debut will be delayed. Braxton Jones, Montez Sweat, Luther Burden, Cam Lewis, and others all suffered minor injuries. For a team that is mainly relying on coaching for improvement, especially on the defensive side of the ball, losing snaps on the practice fields will come back to bite them.

Ryan Poles’ initial 1st round draft decision as Bears GM just paid off. The Bears signed RT Darnell Wright to a 4-year, $116M contract extension. This is another sign that this era of Bears football is different. They have a star, homegrown offensive tackle who was worth paying. Wright is a powerhouse in the run game and reliable in the pass game, and he’s going to be Caleb Williams’ anchor for a long time. With left tackle in flux, center in transition, and Thuney and Jackson on shorter contract timelines, locking up their young tackle was essential for the future of the offense.

First preseason game is September 19th!

First preseason game is October 7th!

Kevin Gausman and Clay Holmes will combine for a sub-3.00 ERA the rest of the season.

Both starting pitchers will look like uncovered gems for the Cubs.

Gausman and Holmes meet every criteria for “the Cubs way”. They’re mentally tough, playoff experienced, great teammates, and they force poor contact. Their ERAs will plummet in front of an elite defense at Wrigley Field. Even though Gausman had a 4.38 ERA with Toronto before the trade and Holmes just recovered from a broken leg, both pitchers are perfect fits for the Cubs.

Thanks to a pitching hospital of injuries, the rotation has been decimated, and the reliable arms have vanished. This team has craved an every-fifth-day professional who is always available. Now they have two who will attack the strike zone and regularly pitch 6+ innings. The rotation was clicking before they arrived, and now they will collectively reach new heights leading into the playoffs.