Can the Chicago Cubs Win The NL Central?

The Chicago Cubs find themselves in an interesting place as the All-Star break nears. Currently, the team sits three games back in the NL Central and five-and-a-half games back in the Wild Card race.

Chicago seems to be heading in the right direction, winning eight of their last 10 games. This includes a split in the London Series against the rival St. Louis Cardinals.

Without question, the Cubs have great starting pitching and some powerful bats. Firstly, Marcus Stroman and Justin Steele have been the anchors of the starting rotation. Stroman is tied for the National League lead with nine wins and second with a 2.47 ERA.

The former Toronto Blue Jays ace is one of five pitchers in the National League with a shutout. Steele has made the case to win the Cy Young award as he has eight wins with a 2.62 ERA. Moreover, Steele is second in home runs allowed per nine innings at 0.342.

Shifting to the batting, Christopher Morel is hitting .285 with 30 RBIs and 13 home runs. The utility player has played in just 36 games this season. Patrick Wisdom, who’s on the 10-day IL, leads the team with 14 homers. Also, Nico Hoerner has been one of the top base stealers in the National League.

He is in the top five with 17 stolen bases with a fielding percentage at second base of 98.6 percent. All things considered, it has been a team effort to still be a contender at this point in the season.

Which teams are ahead of the Cubs in the NL Central?

The Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers are the two teams ahead of Chicago in the division. However, manager David Ross and the Chicago Cubs have a combined record of 2 – 6 against both teams. It’s important to note the Cubs have faced the Reds five times and the Brewers just three times.

In this case, getting wins in the second half of the season versus both teams will be the key to winning the NL Central for the seventh time.