CubsPS+ - A North Side Numbers Game

It has not been the best or most enjoyable week of Cubs baseball. The Cubs’ position as the 2nd Wild Card team is gone and the Cubs are barely hanging on to a tie for the 3rd wild card, having lost 9 of their last 12. Can the Cubs hang on and get into the post season? Why are the Cubs struggling?
In this episode I talk about what I see as the problems with the Cubs season, opine on David Ross as manager and on Jed Hoyer & the front office. Can the Cubs do this thing? Let’s find out!

CHGO’s Brendan Miller joined me this week for a great conversation about all things Cubs - Pete Crow Armstrong and his impact on the Cubs up-the-middle defense, as well as the state of Cubs pitching development with all the baseball nerd breakdown you’d expect from Brendan. As he put it, “the car is driving itself at this point” and we’re all just along for the ride as the Cubs sprint to the finish, hoping to lock up their first playoff bid in 3 years.
In this episode, we talk about the debuts of PCA & Luke Little and Brendan breaks down a variety of pitchers, including Justin Steele, Jamison Taillon, Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks, Kyle Hendricks, Jose Cuas, Julian Merryweather, Mark Leiter, Jr., and others.
Brendan (@brendan_cubs) does a weekly Sunday podcast with long-time co-host Corey Freedman (@corey_cubs) as part of the CHGO Cubs podcast. 
You can find CHGO’s Cubs content at https://allchgo.com and on Twitter/X @CHGO_Cubs

This week I’m thrilled to be joined by Bryan Smith, who provides prospect coverage for Bleacher Nation. Bryan and I talk about how the Cubs are handling September roster expansion and what to expect from Alexander Canario and Luke Little now that they’re up and have debuted. We also talk about a variety of other prospects like Jordan Wicks, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Cade Horton, among others. Who else might the Cubs look at this month in a pennant race? Let’s find out.

It’s an off day today, but for a day off, there’s a lot going on. In this episode I talk about the Cubs ongoing surge, all the waiver activity today and the Cubs announced roster expansion for September. We’re going to get to see at least one really exciting young player. Want more? What more could you want than to watch a contending team as we head into September???

The Cubs are in the dog days right now – the bullpen is tired and the starting rotation is going through injuries and struggles, but the team continues to win baseball games. There are some big questions as the Cubs move forward towards September, but they’re moving up in the Wild Card race and staying on the Brewers’ heels in the division. What do the Cubs need to do to stay in the race and get over the hump? Let’s discuss. Are you ready? I’m ready. Here. We. Go.

All we asked for before the season was to play meaningful baseball after the trade deadline, and here the Cubs are. It’s all about the sense of urgency - fans feel it in ways they haven’t in years game by game, David Ross is showing more of it in his lineup decisions and Jed Hoyer is showing more of it in his roster construction.
It’s winning time and this week I talk about that increasing sense of urgency and what it means as the Cubs continue to fight for a spot in the post-season.

This week, I talk about the Cubs decision to be buyers and what that means for this season and beyond. I get into the trades made themselves, talk about the last week of Cubs baseball and how the Cubs are looking for the post-season. With Jeimer Candelario once again a Cub, it’s a 53-game sprint to the post season – what are their chances? What does their run differential mean? Let’s discuss.

This is a busy episode. I open with my tribute to the legendary Pat Hughes, then talk about how the Cubs have been playing lately and what that means for the trade deadline. After walking through what I think the Cubs should do and might do at the deadline, I close out with a brief bit on what I saw on a trip to Myrtle Beach last weekend to see the Pelicans. There’s a lot to do and the Cardinals series starts in just about an hour and the Cubs need to do damage.

Welcome in to Episode 45 – the Billy Jurges episode of this podcast. This is the 2nd time Billy Jurges has been a part of these episodes – in Episode 11 “October 6: The Ghosts (and Goats) of Baseball Past” I talked about Billy Jurges missed the 1932 season (and World Series) after being shot by a Chicago showgirl – which may have played into both Babe Ruth’s famed Called Shot and been part of the inspiration for Roy Hobbs in The Natural. It was one of my favorite episodes to do, so if you haven’t checked it out, I recommend it.
 
Since I last recorded, we got to see a series win in the Bronx, a thrilling Home Run Derby, Justin Steele pitch well in the All Star Game and the Cubs open the 2nd half in very “meh” fashion. This weekend against the Cardinals will go a long way towards determining whether the Cubs are buyers or sellers. For today, though, I have a very special guest – Greg Zumach from Northside Bound and the Cubs on Deck podcast. He and I had a really enjoyable conversation about all things MLB Draft – we talk about the Cubs picks, overall draft strategy and how he approaches getting to know so many players and breaking it all down for his audience. It’s a look behind the curtain today, beyond which Cub draftees might contribute down the line.

I joined the Son Ranto show Thursday night to discuss the Cubs first half performance and the outlook going forward as they head toward the trade deadline. I was on for the first 2 segments and participated the most in the first segment.
The Cubs are just beyond the mid-point in the 2023 Season. Do they have what it takes to make the playoffs? The Son Rant Show welcomes the best baseball brains in the biz. Join Cuppa Cubbie Blue's Sara Sanchez, Cubs PS+'s Mike Waller, CHGO's Cody Delmendo, Wrigleyville Nation's Jeremy Diemer, Swerski Sports Alex Patt, Pinwheels and Ivy's K Fidds, Comedians Joe Kilgallon, Billy Devore and Zach Funk, Mistaken Identity's Frank Walker, and Crawly from Fly the W.