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UPDATED 10-13-2019

As things stand right now...

As things stand right now.... 

Welp, the Cubs were mathematically eliminated early in the last series and appeared to be completely broken in body and spirit thereafter. Perhaps they were reserving whatever fight is left in them for this final series against the Cards. The Cubs can still play spoiler to the team that swept them at home last weekend; the Cards lead the Brewers by only one game and could even fall behind the Nats in the Wild Card should the Cubs manage to play decent ball. Nothing will compensate for this team's horrendous couple of weeks, but any chance to scuff the Cards' boots is worthwhile. Read below for the match-ups.

Having suffered a disastrous and heart-rending sweep at the hands of the Cardinals over the week, the Cubs remaining shot at the postseason is frighteningly improbable. Still, if they are to retain any hope at a Wild Card spot, the Cubs will have to take at least two out of three from the Pirates in Pittsburgh. At the same time, Nationals and/or Brewers losses to the Phillies and Reds will also be necessary. On the bright side, the Pirates have been absolutely dismal lately, combining poor baseball outcomes with horrible off-the-field news. See below for the match-ups in Western PA.

It's here, the Cubs vs. Cards series we've been waiting for. The Cubs feel to three games behind the Cardinals, remained in a tie with the Brewers for the second Wild Card spot, and fell behind the Nationals by 1.5 for the top Wild Card spot. That means, it would take a Cubs sweep of the four-game set to jump over the Cardinals in the division this weekend, right where you would want to be so that you don't have to end the season needing a sweep of the Cards on the road. The Cubs will have to continue to do their most important work without Javy, Rizzo, or even the backup Russell. In the meantime, they will continue to rely on mid-season additions (Castellanos), recent reactivations (Contreras, Zobrist), and 2019 newbies (Hoerner, Kyle Ryan, Rowan Wick, etc.). See below for how this hodge-podge will match up with the Cards.

9/17 UPDATE: 

SS Zack Short (replacing Nico Hoerner) and RHRP Scott Effross have been added to the Mesa Solar Sox roster. 

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8/28 UPDATE #2: 

One pitcher still TBA, but here are the Cubs assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox (AFL):

Miguel Amaya, C 
Nico Hoerner, INF
Jordan Minch, LHRP  
Keegan Thompson, RHSP  
Erich Uelmen, RHSP 
Jared Young, 1B-OF
TBA, P 

Jamie Vermilyea, Pitching Coach 

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8/28 UPDATE #1: 

The Cubs have assigned SS Nico Hoerner to the Mesa Solar Sox.  

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8/26 UPDATE: 

Cubs (South Bend) Pitching Coach Jamie Vermilyea has been named pitching coach for the Mesa Solar Sox. (The Cubs are responsible for providing the MSS pitching coach in 2019). .  

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7/31 ORIGINAL POST: 

The 2019 Arizona Fall Schedule has been announced.

The Cubs swept the Pirates at home and will aim to provide just that sort of treatment now to the Reds as they come into town. They'll have to continue to do their work without Javy and now Rizzo too will be unavailable. No word yet, as far as I can tell, about when Russell might become available again--but fans are generally pleased with Hoerner's first MLB stint anyway. The Cubs now trail the Cardinals by only 2.0 games in the division and the Nats by 1.5 in the Wild Card. The Brewers remain hot on their heels, despite the recent loss of Yelich, while the Mets, Phillies, and D-Backs have dropped back to likely also-ran positions. Don't expect the Reds to be a walk in the park, but the Cubs will at least dodge Luis Castillo. Continue below for the match-ups.