The pitch that sealed the National League Central race zipped out of A’s closer Mason Miller’s hand, recorded at 99.6 mph, and Cubs rookie Pete Crow Armstrong’s bat met it near the bottom of the strike zone.
Outside of a fifth-inning rally, the Cubs offense hadn’t put up much of a fight. But with a runner on and one out in the ninth, this was their last chance to close the gap.
Crow-Armstrong’s hard-hit ground ball, however, was just a step away from A’s second baseman Zack Gelof, who slung the ball to second to start a double play.
The 5-3 loss Wednesday put the Cubs an insurmountable 10.5 games back of the first-place Brewers, even before Milwaukee played an evening game against the Phillies.
The way the season has played out, the result wasn’t surprising. But when it happened – with a week and a half to go – reflected just how lopsided the contest was. The Brewers were the first team to clinch a playoff berth.
“We would obviously love to be winning the division or leading the wild card – obviously, in a different position,” said Justin Steele, who pitched 2 ⅔ scoreless innings Wednesday in his first game back from the injured list. “But, the cards have fallen where they may, and we’ve put ourselves in this position.
“But, I feel like there’s some people in the locker room that have some good things to hang their hats on. So at this point, it’s all about building off what you’ve done and continuing to improve as a player.”
The wild card had been a more realistic route into the playoff. But the Cubs are essentially out of that race, too. That much was clear after the Cubs lost a three-game series in Colorado to the Rockies, who sit in last place in the NL West.
Then the Cubs returned to Wrigley Field and lost two of three to the A’s, who have had the lowest payroll in MLB the last two years, according to Spotrac.
The Cubs slid to 6 ½ games back of the last NL wild-card spot, pending the conclusion of the Mets’ game Wednesday against the Nationals.
“We don’t have room to lose two out of three, there’s no question about it,” manager Craig Counsell said. “That puts us in a nearly impossible situation.”
The Brewers, on the other hand, were already the clear division favorites by June and have held a commanding lead since.
“We didn’t win,” said Counsell, who managed the Brewers for nine seasons before signing a record-setting contract with the Cubs this past offseason. “So, they earned it, they deserve it, they beat us,”
Recent successful Brewers teams were built on strong pitching. So, this 2024 version was naturally expected to take a step back after trading Corbin Burnes to the Orioles over the offseason and losing Brandon Woodruff to shoulder surgery. Instead, their offense helped carry the team to an impressive year, with Counsell’s former college coach and bench coach Pat Murphy at the helm.
“They’ve always had a good team,” Swanson said. “They’ve always been able to pitch really well. They’ve always been able to play defense and really not hurt themselves, and they’ve obviously done that at a very high level this year. Then you combine that with, the production they’ve got offensively from different guys has been a good recipe for success for them.”
So, what now for the Cubs?
“Obviously early in the year, I thought we had a different expectation,” Swanson said. “That’s just the reality of the situation right now. And still got 10 games left to hopefully make something happen.”