The Cubs bandwagon will get bigger after the sweep of the World Series champs, Giants. It was the first time in 100 years that the Cubs swept a four game series against the defending champions. The Cubs lead the Giants by 3.5 games in the last wild card spot. The Giants play their next 22 games against opponents with winning records. It is possible that the Cubs could create a substantial lead in the wild card race.
The odds are now at a 78% probability that the Cubs will make the playoffs.
Just as the fans celebrated the final weekend series victory, there was an unfounded bomb threat called into Wrigley Field. It was evacuated without incident.
The Cubs are riding high with a young team. Management is now playing this season as a championship one. Joe Maddon has benched starter and former All Star shortstop Starlin Castro in favor of Addison Russell. However, the move from Russell at second leaves an inexperienced and terrible defender in Chris Coghlan manning that position. In Sunday's game, Coghlan in back to back innings had miscues at second: first, the inability to make a good turn on a double play and second, not covering the bag on a steal attempt.
With the Cubs pitching still suspect, a stellar defense is an important component to winning. Maddon has realized this by taking out Jorge Soler in the late innings with a defensive replacement.
The Cubs continue to run with a short bench by carrying 13 pitchers on the roster. This cuts down on the manager's in-game flexibility. But the bullpen is still a major issue and the more arms the better. When your closer loads the bases with no outs, then has to pitch his way out of the jam with nearly 40 throws, you need more than one closer on the roster.
There are still major flaws in this team. There is always the lingering notion that sometime soon there will be a "Cubby occurrence" that will derail the season. Dan Haren is not the solution for the 5th starter role. The young hitters (Russell, Bryant, Soler) still have trouble adjusting to pitchers and the strike zone.
But at least this year, games in August and September will matter.
