I’ve written about more than a thousand Cubs games in my years doing this. Never before has this felt more like Groundhog Day. For 23 games, this team overachieved. They caught a lot of breaks and came through in what felt like every big situation. It felt like every single day I was writing that we should soak it all in because the worm would turn, so to speak. Now they’ve lost 13 of 15, including nine straight. Now I’m writing every day that it isn’t as bad as all of this feels.
The big difference?
We have so many decades of Cub fandom. We had no trouble accepting that the good times were a mirage. Taking on faith that this shall past? Another question all together. Unless we are talking in general about former Cub first round picks that didn’t pan out, Jordan Wicks isn’t particularly likely to be the answer to any questions. Things look so bleak right now.
There haven’t been a lot of quality starts in this stretch for Cubs starters, but this is the second one now in three games. But neither was enough to stop the skid. The Cub offense has scored 24 runs in the nine losses. Without doing any math, that’s fewer than three runs per game. The worst part of an extended offensive slump, the manager almost universally has to give days off to his struggling offensive players. The thought obviously makes complete sense. Also, any Cub lineup without Nico Hoerner in it is less than. I’d have said that earlier about a game that Ian Happ sat. I understand the frustration. This team will start stacking wins again when those guys and a handful of other regulars start consistently producing again.
The Cubs managed six hits and three walks. They had one runner caught stealing. They sent only 35 men to the plate. Quite simply, not good enough.
Three Positives:
- Ben Brown allowed one run over six and struck out seven. That should win the overwhelming majority of time, even on a team much less skilled on offense.
- Moisés Ballesteros had two singles and a walk in three trips to the plate.
- Michael Busch had a solo homer for the only Cub run.
Game 54, May 25: Pirates 2, Cubs 1 (29-25)
Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.
THREE HEROES:
- Superhero: Ben Brown (.225). 6 IP, 24 BF, 4 H, 2 BB, ER, 7 K
- Hero: Moisés Ballesteros (.078). 2-2, BB
- Sidekick: Michael Busch (.042). 1-4, HR, RBI, R
THREE GOATS:
- Billy Goat: Trent Thornton (-.154). IP, 5 BF, 2 H, ER (L 2-1)
- Goat: Dansby Swanson (-.145). 0-3
- Kid: Michael Conforto (-.126). 0-4
WPA Play of the Game: Henry Davis’s solo homer in the seventh with two outs. Broke the tie. (.232)
Cubs Play of the Game: Michael Busch’s solo homer with two outs in the fifth. Tied the game at one. (.140)
Cubs Player of the Game:
Game 53 Winner: Michael Busch 31-24 over Pedro Ramirez (79 total votes).
Rizzo Award Standings: (Top 5/Bottom 5)
The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.
- Michael Busch +18
- Nico Hoerner +13
- Michael Conforto +9
- Shōta Imanaga +7
- Trent Thornton/Carson Kelly +5.5
- Ryan Rolison -8
- Phil Maton -9
- Matt Shaw -10
- Dansby Swanson -12
- Seiya Suzuki -23.5
Current Win Pace: 87 wins
Up Next: Game two of the four-game set Tuesday night. Jordan Wicks makes his 2026 MLB debut. In his career, he has a 5.21 ERA in 95 MLB innings. To be fair to him, that’s a pretty small sample size and he’s only 26. It isn’t entirely unprecedented for a guy to have a success as a late starter. It’s just that the Cubs had high hopes after grabbing him with the 21st pick in the first round in 2021 out of Kansas State.
He’ll face another 26-year-old in Braxton Ashcraft. Ashcraft was the 2nd round pick of the Pirates all of the way back in 2018 (51st overall). He’s 2-3, 2.89 in 62.1 innings over his 10 starts this year. Last time out, he held the Cardinals to one run on four hits in seven innings of work. He struck out nine and walked only two.
The possibility of a 10-game losing streak in the same month as a 10-game winning streak is looming ominously.
Maybe this is the one, though? The one that stops the bleeding? This team desperately needs someone to step up and deliver an over the top performance and lead the way.
