Quantifying Hope: Clinch-tastic Sweep Puts Postseason Odds at 100%

Famed bartender Brian Flanagan told us way back in 1988 that champagne was “perfume going in, sewage coming out,” and that was certainly the case for the Cubs on Thursday. It didn’t help that they were facing Hunter Greene, and it ended up not hurting because the Padres lost as well. That means the Cubs maintained their commanding five-game lead on the top Wild Card spot with only nine left to play.

Their playoff odds are obviously at 100% now, which means this will be the last installment of our weekly series. And since I just knocked out all four Disney parks in one day, my physical and mental faculties are reduced beyond their already-mediocre capacities.

Craig Counsell’s task now turns to setting up his rotation and strategically resting players ahead of what looks like a matchup against the Padres at Wrigley. No player is in greater need of a break/reset than Matthew Boyd, who appears to have hit a wall a while back. Even worse, it looks like he’s been stepping back and running headlong into it every five days or so for a month. I know Bruce Levine is bullish on the lefty’s potential based on previous playoff performances, but I share none of that optimism.

Cade Horton, on the other hand, looks as strong as ever after out-dueling Paul Skenes in Pittsburgh. We should know by this time next week exactly how things will stack up as far as matchups, so it’s just a matter of sitting back and enjoying the brief ride to Game 162.