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Chicago Cubs: What’s left for the cream of the crop in the NL Central?
By Bill Quinn
Chicago Cubs: Milwaukee a team with nothing to lose, everything to prove
We know the Brewers have been hot lately, making a strong push for the Central crown. They are 6-4 in their last 10 games, and 10-6 in the month of September. Two of those losses came this past weekend against the Pirates, so they were really steamrolling heading into the weekend. They got back on track Monday night against the Reds, spanking a last place Cincinnati squad, 8-0. That momentum, however, vanished quickly with a Tuesday loss.
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The Brewers (12-6 against the Reds so far this season) finish up their series at home against the Reds with one more game tonight.
Left-hander Gio Gonzalez heads to the mound opposite Matt Harvey in the finale, so hopefully the Dark Knight can pitch as well as he has against Chicago this season.
Milwaukee then head to Pittsburgh (5-11 against the Pirates so far this season) to face the Bucs for a three-game set over the weekend where they’re scheduled to face Ivan Nova, Trevor Williams and Joe Musgrove.
The Brew Crew will counter with Zach Davies, Jhoulys Chacin and lefty Wade Miley. It would be really nice if the Buccos could take two of three again in Pittsburgh, although there are tough pitching matchups the whole weekend.
The Brewers then finish up their last road trip of the year with three games at Busch Stadium in St. Louis (8-8 so far this season against the Cards) before they head home for their last three games of the year at Miller Park against the Tigers.
They’re scheduled to face left-hander Austin Gomber, Jack Flaherty and John Gant in St. Louis and then Jordan Zimmerman and lefty Daniel Norris for the Tigers. The Tigers haven’t named a scheduled starter for the last game of the year. Here’s hoping that the Cardinals’ young arms and the Tigers experienced arms can slow down the Brewers’ offense and give them some losses to make the last week of the season a little more comfortable for the Cubs.
Also of note, the Brew Crew have two more off-days, one after the Reds series and one after the St. Louis series. They could also be adjusting and positioning their rotation in that last series to get ready for a wild card showdown, which could be an advantage over the Cards who are still in the thick of a heated race for the second Wild Card spot.