The Cubs have actually won a couple series in a row, and if we conveniently ignore the cesspool of suck that was most of May through July, they’ve actually been playing much better baseball and reflecting what we thought they could be in spring training. The problem, of course, is all the losses they’ve already banked, but them’s the breaks and that’s baseball and all that jazz.
Looking at the standings, the Cubs enter their off day at 57-60, with 45 games remaining. They are chasing the Brewers and pretty much the entire division, down 8.5 games in the division before everyone else plays tonight, and 5.5 games behind the final wild card spot with at least four teams to chase in front of them. 45 games is still a lot, and if they want to guarantee a postseason berth given recent results, they’ll have to get something like 84 to 88 wins, which means potentially a 30-15 record is what they should be shooting for the rest of the season. That is obviously a better pace than what they’ve shown thus far, but stranger things have happened.
Playoff odds-wise, the Cubs currently have a 6.0% chance of making the postseason in any form, which is better than zero. They also have played pretty well against the American League, and August is full of interleague games, with some scuffling National League teams towards the end of the month. If ever they were to make a run, that would be this month, but with the trade deadline having passed, any help they can ask for will have to come from within. Let’s not take them for granted since they just won a game, but at least the Cubs get the White Sox for a weird two-game set and another day off on Sunday (?!) before truly going on the road again.
Comments
We are all in different places for the Dreamcast, basically you need a video conferencing app such as Skype, Zoom, or Teams…there are free apps to record automatically for Skype, and Zoom and Teams will automatically generate recordings as well that you then have to convert to mp3 for your podcast audio.
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Ha the White Sox might lose again
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Awesome, thanks! We usually meet over Facetime but should be easy enough to use Zoom or something else. Is a microphone necessary, or can you use the mic on Airpods Pro or whatever?
PerkinsQuote Reply
Perkins,
I think given how poor a lot of podcast audio is, you can get away with just using your built in stuff (dying laughing)
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
I just use the mic built into my noise canceling headphones. From my experience most of the headphone/built in mics are about 90% as good as pro mics, but the amount of work you need to do to get that extra 10% of quality with a pro mic is kind of a pain.
berseliusQuote Reply
berselius,
Yeah unless you’re Conan O’Brien and have a fancy studio because you have millions of listeners it just isn’t worth it, the built in stuff is usually good enough
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Padres really tried to lose that game but Pirates wouldn’t have it
Rice CubeQuote Reply
I guess they’ve seen enough
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Avoided the big landmines
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
Mariners
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PerkinsQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Grady Sizemore, huh, I didn’t realize that was an anagram for Jeff Saturday.
berseliusQuote Reply
Wow it was like the whole staff that got fired 😮
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/08/white-sox-fire-pedro-grifol-manager.html
Rice CubeQuote Reply
So ATL is useless re: the division but the Cubs may inch closer to a wild card per this result if it holds
Rice CubeQuote Reply
berselius,
Thinking on this more, I think it was a real missed opportunity by Reinsdorf to not simply bring back TLR (dying laughing)
berseliusQuote Reply
Bah, Nomar
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PerkinsQuote Reply
woot
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Happ!
berseliusQuote Reply
This is good
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Cubs are clearly knitters
berseliusQuote Reply
Paredes 🥔
berseliusQuote Reply
This game is agreeable so far.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Welcome to the White Sox, Grady Sizemore
berseliusQuote Reply
Do you think Crochet is doing this to drive down trade value because he’s petty?
Rice CubeQuote Reply
berselius,
Gonna have to change his name to Sighsmore by the end of the season
berseliusQuote Reply
PCA is chaos
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Sizemore went ahead with the performative challenge, but I guess it’s a bridge too far to also get a performative ejection in your first game as manager (dying laughing)
berseliusQuote Reply
Taillon should stop giving up runs.
PerkinsQuote Reply
terrible send (dying laughing)
berseliusQuote Reply
This is a problem
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Time to get Taillon the fuck out of there.
PerkinsQuote Reply
I have a bad feeling about this.
PerkinsQuote Reply
How
Rice CubeQuote Reply
There’s no way Neris doesn’t at least give up a solo homer.
andcountingQuote Reply
Amaya cancelled out those two CS with one play.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Hold on, butts, I can’t tell you what to do, etc etc
berseliusQuote Reply
W(hew)
PerkinsQuote Reply
andcounting,
False, though he tried
Rice CubeQuote Reply
(Jesus take the) W(heel.)
andcountingQuote Reply
Embarrassing wins, the trademark of the 2024 Cubs
berseliusQuote Reply
andcountingQuote Reply
Kamka just reminded that all Cubs-White Sox games have ended in a 7-6 Cubs win thus far, I think they should win tomorrow too but more like 17-6
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Last row killed me
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
Four deadball era guys on my grid today.
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PerkinsQuote Reply
Still having a hard time accepting that the Cubs scored all 7 runs against Crochet and then got shutout by the bullpen that made 21 losses in a row happen.
andcountingQuote Reply
Mrs. Swanson is the difference in this gold medal match
Rice CubeQuote Reply
It’s fun being close enough to hear the fireworks from the Cell or whatever they call it these days, but also I hope I hear nothing tonight
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Wake the fuck up (or don’t, etc. etc.)
andcountingQuote Reply
bases clogged
berseliusQuote Reply
I maintain my bit that Chris Flexen is a 90s jrpg midboss made flesh
berseliusQuote Reply
Cody didn’t TOOTBLAN because the White Sox are dumb (dying laughing)
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Mr. Mallory Swanson –> 1000
Rice CubeQuote Reply
berselius,
That dude never wins.
andcountingQuote Reply
Nico atones for the unearned run, should do same on offense
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Nico sorta reads my posts
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Smart bunt
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Bunts bad but PCA bunts more palatable
berseliusQuote Reply
Hoping that it’s Merryweather in the ninth
berseliusQuote Reply
I wouldn’t enjoy having him regularly but I’ve been entertained by Pierzynski in the booth today.
berseliusQuote Reply
berselius,
Same (about Merryweather AND Pierzynsky).
andcountingQuote Reply
White Sox fans being their usual class acts
berseliusQuote Reply
At least two fans will be arrested after that Cubs win
Rice CubeQuote Reply
berseliusQuote Reply
I guess it’s just the white sox but still
berseliusQuote Reply
W(hite Sox are terrible)
andcountingQuote Reply
Why didn’t they throw home? How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie roll center of a Tootsie pop? The world may never know…
https://www.mlb.com/cubs/video/isaac-paredes-rbi-double-x2805?t=t112-default-vtp
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Fun
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rockies leading late at Coors but it’s also the Rockies
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Should the Mets and ATL lose today the Cubs would be within 3 games of a wild card spot 🤨
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Meh
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PerkinsQuote Reply
ATL and Giants have lost
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Mets are losing laughably
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Most of this is my pick for Twins MVP as I only knew three possibilities.
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PerkinsQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
berseliusQuote Reply
I chose Rod Carew
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Morneau for me. I forgot about Carew but figured Morneau would be less common than Killebrew or Mauer.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Perkins,
yeah I was trying to avoid the other three so lucky me that Rod Carew actually won (dying laughing)
Rice CubeQuote Reply
The other Washington/Minnesota guys are deadball guys
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Here’s to a leadoff bomb for the birthday boy
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Whatever is ailing Ben Brown’s neck is making it so he can’t pitch for the time being 🤨😔
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Nine up, nine down (thanks to a TOOTBLAN) for Shota.
andcountingQuote Reply
Go Reds
I guess
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Not a fan of this umpire. Nor of seeing Cleveland get a run several pitches after Shota recorded strike three to get out of the inning.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Olay now I’m pissed off.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Umps, man
berseliusQuote Reply
Hurry up ABS
berseliusQuote Reply
This game is bullshit now
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Cleveland should have zero runs and I hope the umpire bumps both shins very hard multiple times every day for some time.
PerkinsQuote Reply
This game is drunj
berseliusQuote Reply
Game is slightly less bullshit
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Tie ball game!
berseliusQuote Reply
Didn’t hear no fat lady
Rice CubeQuote Reply
This game figures to check all the emotion boxes.
andcountingQuote Reply
Too many LOB for the Cubs.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Alas, think most folks gave up after the big deficit so at least we got bonus hope tonight
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Honestly, too many runs given up by the Cubs
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Also yes, though the first four at least were bullshit.
PerkinsQuote Reply
berselius,
No longer!
berseliusQuote Reply
Made it interesting at least
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Dang it’s like the cubs just can’t win close games late in this ballpark
berseliusQuote Reply
False, obviously
Rice CubeQuote Reply
A real who’s who of aughts role players and forgotten stars today.
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PerkinsQuote Reply
https://x.com/UmpireAuditor/status/1823275468994564368
PerkinsQuote Reply
Ah, so the game WAS bullshit!
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice CubeQuote Reply
A lineup appears, but now it is time for Deadpool
https://www.mlb.com/gameday/cubs-vs-guardians/2024/08/13/746601/preview
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Ah fuck
PerkinsQuote Reply
Perkins,
Perfect game summary thus far.
andcountingQuote Reply
Pathetic
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
Anyway Deadpool was fun and I guess the Cubs were not
Rice CubeQuote Reply
A little bummed that the Cubs did not do some stunt rotation rearrangement to ensure that Cyle was once again the starter for a game on a Wednesday night in Cleveland.
berseliusQuote Reply
Fun one today.
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PerkinsQuote Reply
the 500 HR list is tough
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Rice CubeQuote Reply
to-day’s deck chair squadron
LF Happ
1B Busch
RF Suzuki
DH Belli
3B Paredes
2B Hoerner
SS Swanson
CF PCA
C Amaya
SP Taillon
berseliusQuote Reply
Would enjoy not getting swept
Rice CubeQuote Reply
I’ve been enjoying watching some other CHC-CLE games this week
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeW_MgzcdCQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot8Ilqc3yjU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CaDeppJDnU
berseliusQuote Reply
This strike zone huh
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Rice Cube,
Tonight is not enjoyable
Rice CubeQuote Reply
First time the Cubs have been swept this season, at least in a 3 game series, right?
PerkinsQuote Reply
Perkins,
Yup, but at least it was to a mysteriously good team
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Neat.
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PerkinsQuote Reply
New pitcher shit –> https://www.obstructedview.net/return-of-the-starting-pitcher/
Rice CubeQuote Reply