The Chicago Cubs have a handful of important matchups going into the last two months of the season. This is a pivotal stretch that will be a strong indicator for their potential in the postseason.
The Chicago Cubs are entering the home stretch of the season with the festivities of the All-Star Break concluded and the dog days of summer upon us. The Cubs will have to continue their torrid hot-steak from a red hot July in order to keep pace with the behemoths of the National League with some remaining important matchups for the team.
The Northside will face-off against a number of bottom-feeders whose playoff aspirations have all but vanished. The Cubs will need to heavily capitalize on their strength of schedule to leverage any losses that may come against their more important matchups.
The Cubs will have five important matchups upcoming in these last two months of the season. The club will need to come out of them relatively unscathed if the team wants a shot at the NL Central division title or at the very least earn themselves a Wild Card spot.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are currently in contention for the AL East division title, sitting seven games back from the the first-place Baltimore Orioles and four games back from the second-place Tampa Bay Rays. The Blue Jays are fourteen games above .500 and have regularly faced rigorous competition the past couple years trying to make their way into the playoffs.
The Cubs will certainly be tested in one of their more important matchups by one of the best pitching staff’s in baseball, one that only grew stronger at the trade deadline with the addition of Jordan Hicks to the bullpen.
The Blue Jays have a potent lineup from top to bottom but will be missing shortstop Bo Bichette in their matchup against the Cubs. That still will not be much reprieve for the Cubbies considering the Blue Jays possess a batting order consisting of feared hitters like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Matt Chapman, George Springer and Whit Merrifield to name a few. The Cubs will have their hands full with this bunch.
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers will be one the most important matchups for the Cubs with two series against the Brew Crew in this two-month stretch. The Brewers currently hold the NL Central lead over the Cincinnati Reds and the Cubs by a narrow margin. If the Cubs can successfully take these two series, their chances at the NL Central division title increase dramatically with the Brewers still viewed as the favorite.
The Brewers are 4-3 against the Cubs thus far this season. The team can more than matchup with the Brewers but the Cubs have to be mindful of former MVP Christian Yelich who has rounded back into form after a couple of tough years at the plate as well as 2021 Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes. The Brewers wield a balanced lineup top to bottom that will test the Cubs pitchers.
Cincinnati Reds
The Reds are another one of the important matchups for the Cubs for similar reasons to the Brewers. The Reds stand in the Cubs way currently for the final Wild Card spot in the National League and will need to surge past them for a chance at the NL Central crown. The Reds have wildly outperformed expectations this season which makes them a dangerous team to have to face later in the season.
The team doesn’t hold a glut of star-power outside of potential future Hall of Famer Joey Votto or rookie sensation Elly De La Cruz but the Reds can never be counted out of games with a number of late inning comebacks under their belts this season. The Cubs will likely have a number of close and contentious matchups with the Reds with both teams playing with house money vying and jockeying for a playoff spot in the NL.
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks will still be one of the more important matchups for the Cubs late in the season despite no direct divisional implications. The D-Backs, similar to the Reds, have well outperformed pre-season expectations and will be a team to watch potentially for a late surge into a Wild Card spot.
The Diamondbacks may pose no threat to the Cubs in the Wild Card race by the time the teams square-off however. The D-Backs will have a far more imposing strength of schedule on their docket than the Cubs. The team will have important matchups against division rivals like the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres as well as the series against the Texas Rangers, Orioles and Reds.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves, 2021 World Series champions, currently have the best record in all of the MLB this year and look to be the favorites to emerge from the National League to return to the World Series. There is no way around it, the Braves starting lineup is stacked from one to nine and own one of the better pitching rotations in baseball.
This will likely be the toughest of the Cubs most important matchups to gauge the strongest competition in their league and see if they have what it takes to compete with a potential World Series contender. The Braves boast the NL MVP favorite in Ronald Acuña Jr. and one of the NL Cy Young favorites in Spencer Strider.
That isn’t to mention the handful of All-Stars the team has on its roster. It would be an exercise in futility to cover in depth the Braves roster from head to toe. Just know that the Braves are damn good and will be a tough out for anyone. The Cubs recently took their most recent series against the Braves though so the team certainly has proof that they can be beaten.
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