It might seem as though the Death Star is fully operational after two-time Cy Young Award-winning left-hander Tarik Skubal was added to the most talent-rich team in baseball.
Is a Dodgers three-peat truly inevitable?
The Cubs, trailing in their own division, aren’t expected to enter October as the sort of World Series favorites the Dodgers are. But on back-to-back nights at an electrified Wrigley Field, they showed they have the ability to mount a challenge to the juggernaut.
After a 10-5 victory Monday, the Cubs were 5-1 winners Tuesday, besting the Dodgers and spoiling Skubal’s first outing for his new team.
‘‘That’s kind of just who we are,’’ shortstop Dansby Swanson said. ‘‘That’s how this team is built. That’s how this team is wired and really what we expect out of ourselves — to be able to play complete games, whether it’s on the bases, in the field, on the mound, in the batter’s box. There’s so many ways to be good at this game, and we take pride in being able to do all of it.
‘‘We’ve showcased that a lot of the year but especially over these last couple of days.’’
Swanson smashed a tying home run against Skubal in the third inning, the loudest of the two runs the Cubs scored against him. Nico Hoerner’s high chopper in the sixth broke a 1-all tie, and the Cubs scored a trio of insurance runs after Skubal’s exit.
More impressively, perhaps, the Cubs managed to outpitch Skubal and the Dodgers, with right-hander Javier Assad turning in his latest stellar effort and the bullpen pitching 3⅓ perfect innings.
Throw in a critical stolen base by Pete Crow-Armstrong and a second highlight-reel defensive play in as many nights by Pedro Ramirez, and it was another all-around performance, the type of game these Cubs were built to play and one that could make them a true championship challenger to the dynasty-seeking Dodgers.
‘‘They play the game the right way,’’ newly acquired reliever Ryan Zeferjahn said of his new team. ‘‘They do every little thing right.’’
It’s only early August, but there was a distinct ‘‘October preview’’ vibe on the North Side.
‘‘I don’t want to say, ‘This is why we play,’ but come on,’’ Swanson said. ‘‘It’s kind of what you dream about as a kid: two of the better teams in the league . . . being able to go compete against each other in this atmosphere and environment, nighttime at Wrigley with a ton of fans.
‘‘That’s like the thing you do in the backyard when you’re a kid.’’
Happ sits again
Left fielder Ian Happ was out of the Cubs’ starting lineup for a second consecutive night against a left-handed starter, with manager Craig Counsell acknowledging Happ’s struggles against southpaws.
He entered play Tuesday with a .530 OPS against lefties versus his .820 number against right-handers.
Newly acquired outfielder Tyrone Taylor started instead. He went 0-for-3 but brought a .301 batting average and a .900 OPS in his 77 previous plate appearances against lefties.
Counsell didn’t make it sound like a permanent banishment for Happ, one of the mainstays of the Cubs’ lineup.
‘‘Ian’s still going to play against some lefties,’’ Counsell said. ‘‘But Tyrone gives us somebody — he’s going to get at-bats against left-handed pitching, for sure.’’
Tough on Tucker
Fans let former Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker know how they felt about his decision to sign a $240 million offseason deal with the Dodgers, booing him at every turn.
Whether they felt spurned or just booed him for joining the best team in baseball, they let Tucker have it.
Then Tucker let them have it with a homer in the second inning.