Chicago Cubs: A dogfight in the National League Central

Over the past two seasons, the Chicago Cubs have reigned supreme in the National League Central. Now, following a flurry of moves from a division foe, the club finds themselves in a good old-fashioned dogfight.

To understand how long it has been since the Cubs have not been competitive in the N.L. Central, we need to jump into a time machine. The last time the team found themselves completely out of contention, was four years ago.

For everything this Cubs team has been through, it certainly feels like it has been longer than that. The 2015 season brought success for the Cubs. Despite finishing three games out in the division, they still found themselves making a postseason run. The following season, they made absolute child’s play of the division, winning it by 17 1/2 games.

Something changed in 2017, however. A “World Series hangover” as many refer to it as seemingly struck the Cubs. At the midway point, they found themselves in a 5 1/2 game deficit to the Milwaukee Brewers. Ultimately, despite a close race for much of the second half, the Cubs found a way to prevail, winning the division for the second year in a row. This season, they find themselves in a very similar situation as we careen toward the All-Star Break.