Chicago Cubs Baseball

Two-and-a-half weeks and 16 games.  That’s what remains of the 2008 Chicago Cubs baseball regular season.

As Cub fans know, all bets are off on whatever happens after that.  Assuming of course, Chicago returns to the post season for the second consecutive year.

With a six-game lead over division rival Milwaukee and an eight-game advantage in the overall wild card standings, the Chicago Cubs look to be assured of at least an appearance in the NLDS.  Unless the Cubs, even with their storied history as baseball’s lovable losers, manage to surpass last year’s New York Mets in an unimaginable meltdown.

As improbable as it sounds, September has not been a good month for the Cubs.   With a 3-6 record and losers of seven of its last 10 games, Chicago’s vulnerabilities have been cast in full light:

• Health issues in the starting pitching staff
• An offense that is either hot or not
• Lapses of concentration in the field
• A bullpen that has suddenly lost its mojo and a closer who makes every save opportunity an adventure

These are the types of characteristics of a team supposedly heading into the post season.  Heck, these are the traits that have marked Chicago Cubs baseball for the better part of a century.

There couldn’t a worst time to develop bad habits as the major league baseball playoffs have proven over the past few years.  The team entering the post season the hottest makes it the furthest.

Both Colorado and the Cubs were perfect examples of that last season.  The Rockies turned red hot in September and carried that momentum all the way into the World Series before being swept by Boston.  The Cubs, on the other hand, didn’t exactly limp into the playoffs, but they didn’t exactly gallop either.

We all remember the result of that short-lived showing.

This year promises the same with the Los Angeles Dodgers playing as well as anyone.   And don’t look now, but Houston could be this year’s Rockies as they continue to close the gap on Milwaukee for the wild card.

These last 16 games are critical to the Cubs.  They can either tune up, tune in or give themselves and Cubdom another dose of last year - and just tune out.