The Cubs are on the doorstep of the postseason, and Sunday’s 9-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds pushed them to the brink. Craig Counsell’s club kept the offense rolling, and mid-season pickup David Peterson delivered again, giving up just one run while striking out seven over 6.0 innings.
The win also trimmed Chicago’s magic number to one, putting the Cubs in position to clinch a second straight playoff berth with a victory over the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field. The team has not yet announced its starter for that game, but Miami will send Janson Junk to the mound. Junk faced the Cubs a couple of weeks ago and turned in 5.0 innings of one-run ball, allowing only three hits in a game Chicago still won 6-1.
That puts the Cubs exactly where they want to be: controlling their own fate. They could have celebrated earlier if the Diamondbacks had lost, but Arizona beat the Yankees and kept the race alive. Now Chicago can wrap things up at home.
There was one jarring moment in Sunday’s blowout, though. Alex Bregman was forced out mid-game after Michael Busch fouled a ball back toward the on-deck circle and it struck the third baseman in the face.
Bregman was taken to the hospital, and an image later showed significant swelling around his eye. The hope is for a quick recovery with the postseason only a couple of weeks away.
Even with a playoff spot nearly secured, the seed is still very much up for grabs. The Cubs remain locked in a tight battle for the top Wild Card position, with the Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres both in the mix. Chicago and San Diego are tied at 87-69, while Philadelphia sits just a game back at 86-70.
The Cubs have a useful edge in that race: they hold the tiebreaker over both teams. That means the Phillies and Padres would need to finish with one more win than Chicago to move ahead. Any tie would keep the Cubs in front.
The closing stretch is lined up with all three clubs still breathing down each other’s necks. Chicago finishes with the Marlins and Boston Red Sox, while San Diego gets the Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks. Philadelphia closes against the Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays.
All three teams are off Monday, and the chase resumes Tuesday night.
In Other News...
Cubs May Have Another Homegrown Bat Rising Faster Than Expected
Kane Kepley has wasted little time making his first pro season look like more than a warmup. The Cubs prospect from the 2025 draft class has put together a .914 OPS in his professional debut, and his 2026 line has been backed up by a 130 wRC+ that points to real production beyond the usual first-year noise. What stands out most is how he gets on base and keeps pressure on defenses once he does, which has made him one of the more intriguing names in the system.
Kepleys game also fits the kind of speed-and-pressure profile the Cubs have already seen work at Wrigley, with his style drawing comparisons to Pete Crow-Armstrong. He has stolen 66 bases in 121 games this year, and the appeal is not just the raw speed but the consistency behind it. If that combination holds, the Cubs may have another homegrown bat pushing his way toward meaningful playing time sooner than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Pete Crow-Armstrong Is Chasing Cubs History With One Debate Hanging Over It
Pete Crow-Armstrong is on the brink of a season that would already sit near the top of Cubs lore. With 45 home runs and 38 stolen bases, he is close to joining one of baseballs rarest clubs, the 40-40 group, while also piling up 30 doubles and 107 RBIs in a breakout year that has turned every series into another chance to watch history inch closer.
The debate hovering over it is part of the modern game, and part of what makes Crow-Armstrongs chase so interesting. Recent rule changes have helped push stolen-base totals upward across MLB, which means his power-speed blend is being measured in a different run environment than the one that defined earlier 40-40 seasons. Even so, he remains in a tiny class of players who have paired 30-plus doubles, 35-plus steals and 40-plus homers in one year, and the Cubs are left watching to see whether the final two swipes arrive before the milestone window closes. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Wild Card Path Could Bring A Brutal Wrigley Problem
The Cubs are still sorting out the shape of their postseason path, but one potential Wild Card matchup already points to a problem they would rather avoid at Wrigley Field. If Atlanta ends up coming to Chicago, the focus immediately turns to Ozzie Albies, whose track record in that ballpark has been a nuisance for the home side and a reminder that some October matchups come with built-in headaches.
Albies has hit .376 at Wrigley with eight home runs and 18 RBIs, production that makes him a dangerous fit for a short playoff series in a park the Cubs are hoping to treat as an advantage. It also adds another layer to a series that would likely hinge on matchup management and how Chicago handles a few Braves bats that have already proven they can travel well into a tough environment. [Read more 🡒]