
The Chicago Cubs are on the verge of a significant moment, potentially making their second World Series appearance in a decade. Their offense is showing promising signs of improvement as they prepare for the upcoming challenges.
Todayâs Reflections
I was just wrapping up Cub Tracks for you good folks, checking for mistakes and broken links, giving the news feed one last refreshâ
I (and probably a lot of Cub fans) feel like they are standing on the precipice of either the second World Series appearance in a decade (the Dodgers just moved to the AL, the Angels moved to the NL) âŠ.. or utter devastation. Standing on that cliff, we look behind us and see an offense, mostly starting to click really well, foaming at the mouth, waiting for their chance to SMASH BASEBALL!
Then we look over the edge of the cliff and see the pitching staff â anybody that stands 10 inches above the height of home plate â and they are just âŠ.. foaming, and decaying, period.
We turn back to the hitters and tell them:
Hereâs an interesting quote from below: âThis is the most unlucky and unfortunate injury-impacted season in recent Chicago Cubs memoryâ. Obviously, Mr. Cerami isnât anywhere near old enough to recall 1985. This is where we call upon Al: Wrigley Field History, April 16, 1985:
Everything looked great for the Cubs that year, even into June; they won on June 11, running their record to 35-19, four games in first place. But then the starting pitchers began to get injured. Every. Single. One. Of. Them. All five starters â Sutcliffe, Eckersley, Scott Sanderson, Steve Trout and Dick Ruthven â spent time on the DL.
Itâs not a mirror image and we still have Shota. And weâre used to a couple dozen bullpen injuries at a time. But, yeah. PLEASE be careful, ShĆta! Let someone brush your teeth for you, for Godâs sake! You, too, Colin Rea! I donât want to see another 37 stories in a row about YOUR injury. Or xxxxxâs, or xxxxxâs, etc.
(Sigh) Letâs at least start the links with what yesterday was SUPPOSED to be about â recollection and celebration:
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Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib): Cubs hit with crippling surprise Matthew Boyd injury news (with bizarre origin story). âA meniscus trim would likely have Boyd back in the rotation by the end of July. A meniscus repair would sideline Boyd for the remainder of the season âŠ.. No, it wasnât anything Boyd was doing on the field that caused the injury. Instead, he was sitting down to play with his kids.â
Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): No, Freakinâ Way: Now Matthew Boyd Is Getting Surgery (UPDATE). âYou have GOT to be kidding me. According to Taylor McGregor, Matthew Boyd is getting surgery on his meniscus (knee) and âwill be out for the foreseeable future.â I donât even know what to say, other than this seals it: This is the most unlucky and unfortunate injury-impacted season in recent Chicago Cubs memory.â
Tommy Erbe (SportsNetOnTap): Chicago Cubs Trade Target Emerges In Wake Of Matthew Boyd News. âAfter the Chicago Cubs announced Matthew Boyd would be on the shelf for âforeseeable future,â a possible trade target has come forward.â
Matthew Trueblood (North Side Baseball): How Ryan Rolison Explains the Universe (Kind of) (For Now). âThe Cubs have won back-to-back games in walkoff fashion, and each time, the win has gone to an unlikely pitcher. Lefty reliever Ryan Rolison is an emergency fill-in for a bullpen with higher-octane arms. Heâs also what makes the Cubs great in 2026, in microcosm.â
Nick Hudson (SportsNetOnTap): Carson Kelly Proves Knowing The ABS Zone Is A Game Changer. âChicago Cubs catcher Carson Kellyâs use of ABS is ridiculously good. The system is improving games and creating real momentum swings.â
Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): Alex Bregmanâs Power Is Coming Back and in a Really Encouraging Way. âIn the first year of a $175M deal, yeah, weâre justified in expecting more. But hereâs the thing, I actually do think thatâs coming. In fact, itâs already started, and in a sustainable way.â
N.B. Linberg (Fangraphs.com): Which Young Player Will Your Favorite MLB Team Extend Next? âFranchises have never been more aggressive in extending their top prospects. These are who could be next.â
Steve Greenberg (Chicago Sun-Times{$}): Nico Hoerner, MVP of smoking-hot Cubs so far, has more and more people talking. âGiven the Cubsâ 13-game Wrigley Field winning streak entering Wednesday, it seemed like a fine time to ask around about who is âthe manâ on a team with a long list of guys playing well.â
Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Winning Is Fun, Which Means Cubs Baseball Is Very Fun Right Now. âItâs like experiencing the Platonic ideal of a chair, only to then be forced to go back and use highly imperfect recreations in perpetuity.â
Max Ralph (MLB.com): Rojas, Cubs No. 4 prospect, hits 4th homer to continue strong Double-A start. âJefferson Rojas had a shaky start to his time in Double-A as a 20-year-old last season. Now with another trip around the sun under his belt, the Cubsâ No. 4 prospect is raking at the level.â
Tommy Erbe (SportsNetOnTap): Numbers Suggest Michael Busch Is Climbing Back Up To Normalcy. âMichael Busch is heating up offensively; the numbers prove it. When Busch is on, so too are the Chicago Cubs.â
Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): With Wrigley Field rocking, the Cubs are setting the stage for a big trade deadline. âAll things considered, the first-place Cubs (24-12) are in excellent shape.â
Food For Thought:
Muddy Waters was, in many ways, the archetypal bluesman. He was raised as a sharecropper in the Mississippi Delta, where he learned to play an acoustic guitar. He went to Chicago in 1943, and the band he assembled established the electric blues sound. Over the next three and a half-decades, his band became a springboard for many of his sidemen, launching a prominent school of blues performers.
Muddy Waters was born McKinley A. Morganfield on April 4, 1913 at a small enclave in Issaquena County, Mississippi known as Jugâs Corner. Muddy usually cited Rolling Fork as his home. The area, near the Mississippi River, was wet, and his grandmother nicknamed him because of the mud puddles in which he played. Muddyâs mother died when he was very young, and her mother raised him. She moved north to the Stovall Plantation outside of Clarksdale before Muddy was three years old. He stayed there, for the most part, until he was thirty years old.
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The Cubs' offense is reportedly starting to click well, showing signs of improvement as they prepare for the postseason.
The Chicago Cubs have made one World Series appearance in the last decade, with the potential for a second this season.
The recent realignment of teams, with the Dodgers moving to the AL and the Angels to the NL, has changed the competitive landscape for the Cubs.
Expectations are high for the Cubs as they aim for a strong postseason run, with fans feeling a mix of hope and anxiety about their chances.

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Zachary Cariola (Sporting News): National League Central labeled one of the most âchaoticâ by MLB expert. âAccording to MLB.comâs Will Leitch, the National League Central is considered the third-most chaotic division in Major League Baseball, with a score of 7/10.â
Randy Holt (North Side Baseball): Alex Bregman Has Been Fine for the Cubs So Far. Is âFineâ Good Enough? âIn many ways, Alex Bregman has been exactly who the Cubs thought he was when they signed him to a five-year deal this winter. In other ways, theyâre still waiting for him to get going.â
Nick Hudson (SportsNetOnTap.com): Carson Kelly Proves Knowing The ABS Zone Is A Game Changer. âChicago Cubs catcher Carson Kellyâs use of ABS is ridiculously good. The system is improving games and creating real momentum swings.â
Anthony Laurila (Fangraphs.com): Cubs Prospect Jonathon Long Has a Long Swing That Pairs Power and Contact. âRanked 17th on our recently released 2026 Cubs Top Prospects list with a 40 FV, the 24-year-old first baseman has a profile that is promising, yet in some ways concerning.â
Zachary Draves (ClutchPoints): What Pete Crow-Armstrong said about Michael Confortoâs clutch walk-off home run.
Meghan Montemurro (Chicago Tribune {$}): Chicago Cubsâ MoisĂ©s Ballesteros is always on the attack: âHeâs just incredibly confidentâ. âMoisĂ©s Ballesteros carries a mantra with him into the batterâs box.â
Joe Maddon (The Athletic {$}): Joe Maddon: These are the 3 best leaders I managed in MLB. âIn a dugout during the game, if someone screwed up on the field, I never had to walk down and tell the player on the bench.â
Patrick Mooney (The Athletic{$}): As MoisĂ©s Ballesteros navigates breakout season, Cubs have clear vision for rookie. âAs yet another line drive rocketed off MoisĂ©s Ballesterosâ bat during spring training, Cubs manager Craig Counsell was business as usual as he turned to the clubâs hitting coaches assembled in the dugout: We need to talk.â