Today’s Reflections
It feels SOOOO good to put Dansby Swanson’s name first on the Cub Tracks page! Tuesday night, he had a two-run home run and an RBI double, followed by a three-run homer and a grand slam in Game 1 Wednesday afternoon. In his last five games (through Game 1 of the doubleheader), Swanson is 8-for-18 with four homers, 14 RBI and only two strikeouts. Here’s hoping that Swanson has found some magic in that bat.
In Tuesday’s game, PCA hit his 17th HR, extending his on-base streak to 24
games and his hitting streak to 11.
Michael Busch’s two-run home run Wednesday increased his team-leading RBI to 44.
I don’t want to gripe and worry about injuries at this moment — that’s done below. The Cubs have won eight of their last 11 games, so I’m just going to enjoy this mini-offensive resurgence.
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Wednesday’s Game 1 stories (Game 2 will be in the next Cub Tracks):
- Jerry Beach (Chicago Tribune {$}): Dansby Swanson’s 2 HRs and 7 RBIs fuel Chicago Cubs to 10-3 rout of New York Mets in Game 1 of doubleheader. “Dansby Swanson hit a tiebreaking three-run home run and added a grand slam Wednesday.”
- Bill Ladsen (MLB.com): Swanson slams Mets with 2-HR, 7-RBI outburst, “Shortstop Dansby Swanson continues to show signs of life at the plate.”
Tuesday night’s stories:
- AP (ESPN): Crow-Armstrong and Swanson homer off an ineffective Senga to power Cubs past Mets 9-6. “Coming off consecutive rainouts, Chicago scored five times in the second against Kodai Senga.”
- Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib): Ridiculous Cubs replay review that screwed Pete Crow-Armstrong raises questions. “Naturally, PCA is at the center of the drama.”
- Mike Fitzpatrick (Chicago Sun-Times): Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell perplexed by rainout and irked by ‘terrible rule’.
The gamut of Cubs injury woes:
- Matthew Trueblood (North Side Baseball): Cubs’ Avalanche of Pitching Injuries Reaches Insurmountable Status. Are They Stuck? “Correcting a previous post of mine: you do, in fact, gotta hand it to the injury gods. Those jerks are vicious, but a little bit hilarious, too.”
- Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Ben Brown, Edward Cabrera to IL as Cubs Make Several Roster Moves. “Thursday’s presumed starter (Brown) has a neck strain, and Cabrera is dealing with a hamstring strain. No word yet on a timeframe for either to return.”
- Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): Edward Cabrera’s hamstring injury tests Cubs already tenuous pitching depth: ‘We’re in a rough spot’. “The sight of Edward Cabrera writhing on the ground in pain was not one Craig Counsell needed to see Tuesday night.”
- Bill Ladsen (MLB.com): Boyd ready to return from IL Thursday after shrugging off ailments. “Weather permitting, he hopes to pitch in a big league game on Thursday against the Mets.”
- Josh Davis (Clutch Points): Cubs LHP returns to mound for 1st time since setback. “Chicago Cubs left-handed pitcher Justin Steele started throwing activities on Monday for the first time since his UCL injury setback.”
- Tommy Erbe (OnTapSportsNet): Jed Hoyer Provides Pivotal Update On Justin Steele, Plans For 2026. “As Justin Steele continues to progress in health, Jed Hoyer provides a tentative plan for getting him back on the mound.”
Trade talk (including conflicting opinions):
- Paul Magno (Yardbarker): Chicago Cubs reality check: Is a big trade for pitching even worth making anymore? “The Chicago Cubs are absolutely not where they thought they would be at this point of the season.”
- Tyler Courtney (LastWordOnSports.com): Should the Chicago Cubs Consider Trading Seiya Suzuki? “Losing a player of his caliber is never easy, but there are plenty of reasons to consider it.”
- Matt Sullivan (Just Baseball): Why Would the Chicago Cubs Trade Seiya Suzuki? “The right fielder is a top offensive weapon for the Cubs, so why even think of moving him to a different team?”
- Alexis Farinacci (Diamond Centric): Early Trade Deadline Relief Candidates: Aroldis Chapman, Luke Weaver, & More. “In terms of relief pitchers, the Astros, Tigers, Red Sox, Royals, and Mets could be teams to monitor for dealing away relief pitchers ahead of the August MLB trade deadline.”
Assorted stories:
- Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): PETE CROW-ARMSTRONG CANNOT HELP HIMSELF. “This behavior cannot be stopped.”
- Matt Sullivan (Sporting News): Cubs select contract of former Phillies, Pirates righty starter amid Edward Cabrera injury. “Cubs select contract of ex-Phillies righty pitcher Vince Velasquez.”
- Tyler Courtney (LastWordOnSports.com): Should the Cubs Move to a Six-Man Rotation in 2026? “A Chicago Cubs’ six-man rotation continues to be a common discussion as the 2026 season progresses.” (This was before Brown and Cabrera went on IL, but an interesting topic nevertheless.)
- Vinnie Duber (Chicago Sun-Times): After bullpen bruising, Cubs pitchers need to get ready for next call: ‘That’s your job as a reliever’. “In the wake of Cubs relievers giving up eight runs and blowing a 5-0 lead Saturday, it’s on the hurlers to get back on the horse.”
Food For Thought:
Lemon Henry “Blind Lemon” Jefferson was an American blues and gospel singer-songwriter and musician. He was one of the most popular and successful blues singers of the 1920s and has been called the “Father of the Texas blues”.
Due mainly to his high-pitched voice and the originality of his guitar playing, Jefferson’s performances were distinctive. His recordings sold well, but he was not a strong influence on younger blues singers of his generation, who could not imitate him as easily as they could other commercially successful artists. Later blues and rock and roll musicians, however, did attempt to imitate both his songs and his musical style.
Jefferson had an intricate and fast style of guitar playing and a particularly high-pitched voice. He was a founder of the Texas blues sound and an important influence on other blues singers and guitarists, including Lead Belly and Lightnin’ Hopkins.
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