Why the Cubs believe they still control their own destiny: ‘Great opportunity ahead'

New York Times

4 days ago

CHICAGO — The end-of-summer rituals are in full swing. Neighborhood block parties and back-to-school shopping. The roaring sights and sounds from the Chicago Air and Water Show. Construction and bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Kennedy Expressway. Overanalysis of how the Chicago Bears look during practices. Another season of Chicago Cubs baseball teetering on the brink of collapse.
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This collective offensive slump — headlined by Kyle Tucker, Seiya Suzuki and Pete Crow-Armstrong — has been that bad. Those struggles have created questions about whether Craig Counsell's team is too tightly wound, while amplifying concerns that Jed Hoyer's front office acted too conservatively at the trade deadline.
There was already a long-held perception that this big-market franchise is primarily focused on just being in the hunt rather than obsessively chasing World Series trophies. The crowds of 40,000-plus will simply keep showing up at Wrigley Field.
Saturday afternoon's rapt audience was treated to a 3-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates that served as a reminder that the Cubs still have some elite talent, a lot of muscle memory and a finite amount of time to turn this season around.
'It's hard every day,' Counsell said. 'That's the game of baseball. You get frustrated by a loss, you go home, you turn the page. And you're excited to come out tomorrow with an incredible opportunity for this team in front of us.
'That opportunity requires us to go beat the other guy. But we've earned a great opportunity. That's how I'm looking at this. That's a great way to see it. It's a great opportunity ahead of us. We've got 40 (games remaining). We've got it in our hands. And we're going to have to earn it. No doubt.'
Seiya drives in Tuck for the lead! pic.twitter.com/JP4K1uiJRR
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 16, 2025
With the Air and Water Show jets buzzing overhead, Shota Imanaga kept his team in the game for seven innings, making only one mistake pitch that Tommy Pham blasted an estimated 428 feet onto Waveland Avenue. Imanaga's steady performance (one run, one walk and just three hits allowed) put the Cubs in position to snap their 35-game streak without a comeback victory, which, according to team historian Ed Hartig, was the longest such streak in franchise history.
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The lack of resiliency became even more pronounced as the Milwaukee Brewers won 13 consecutive games since losing to the Cubs on July 30, the day before the trade deadline.
Now the goal posts appear to be moving from winning the National League Central to hosting a three-game series in the wild-card round. If the Cubs qualify, Imanaga or Matthew Boyd would be an interesting debate around who should be the Game 1 starter in the playoffs.
'As a pitcher, my job is always the same,' Imanaga said through an interpreter. 'It doesn't matter if it's a 10-run lead or we're down by 10 or if it's a tie game, I go out to the mound having the same confidence.'
Rather than worrying about the out-of-town scoreboard, the Cubs are trying to focus on their process and maintain a consistent attitude. That has not come as easily for Tucker, whose normally unflappable demeanor has given way to moments of slamming his bat or helmet in frustration.
The all-around skills, though, have not disappeared. Tucker led off the eighth inning with a single, took a calculated risk in stealing second base and then scored the go-ahead run on Suzuki's single up the middle. Suzuki added an insurance run on Nico Hoerner's two-out double, a rare display of clutch hitting and manufactured offense during this recent lull.
That instinct to want to do more for the team has impacted other phases of the game. Instead of pressing, the Cubs need to get back to the adaptability and attention to detail that turned them into a first-place club for 111 days.
'We hit all the home runs and things were flying around at points early in the year,' Hoerner said. 'Regardless of the team, that's not going to be the case for every part of a season. But you can hold yourself to a really high standard when it comes to defense and base running and all those in-between moments. We've had some moments slip that are uncharacteristic for us and should never waver.
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'I believe in this group a lot. I got confidence in every single one of us. But it's up to us. We have to make it happen.'
Beginning with Monday's doubleheader at the Friendly Confines, the Cubs are scheduled to play the Brewers five times in four days, an important stretch that will end their season series against Counsell's old club and recalibrate expectations. But the big idea is to remain as consistent as possible — in terms of preparation and approach — and not completely abandon what made Chicago one of baseball's best teams for the vast majority of this season.
'This group knows we can play better baseball than we have over the last few weeks,' Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said. 'You see a lot of guys frustrated. You probably see it watching on TV when hits don't fall. With guys in scoring position, when you have a tough at-bat, you feel like you're letting the group down. That's a frustrating feeling. It's on us to pick each other up and continue to push forward.
'This season's far from over. There's a lot of baseball left to play. To this point, we've put ourselves in a good spot. We got to capitalize on that and see it through.'
(Photo of Pete Crow-Armstrong: Zoe Davis / Getty Images)
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