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Chicago Cubs make it three-straight postseason appearances
In 2016, it seemed like a postseason berth was a sure-thing. From Opening Day on, minus one rough two-week stretch in the middle of the year, Chicago coasted. It seemed like on a near-daily basis, the Cubs were steamrolling opponents.
They clinched the NL Central with nearly a month left in the season and rolled into the postseason with little fanfare. This year, however, it was a very different clinch situation for the reigning World Series champs. Chicago eliminated their opponents from the division race with less than a week to go in the regular season.
But they did it in a dramatic fashion, beating the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium to punch their ticket to the postseason. For a team that entered the All-Star Break below .500 staring up at the Cardinals and Brewers, things could have gone very differently. The Cubs led the NL in wins in the second half, setting up another eventful October filled with meaningful baseball.