163

Four postseasons in a row. Let's make it five. See you all next season!

Dear Cubs Fans,

"Everybody In." This simple declaration holds great meaning. While our roster is 25 players strong, it's the millions of committed teammates that make what we do special. You bring our beloved ballpark to life and make road games feel like home games. We cannot say it enough ... you are the best fans in sports.

While we fell short of our ultimate goal in 2018, our team earned 95 wins for the third time in the past four seasons. We are just the fifth NL club in the divisional era to make the postseason four years in a row. This level of sustained success doesn't happen often and it certainly doesn't happen without your support.

The memorable moments of 2018 - some of the best ever at Wrigley Field - underscore why our ballpark is so magical. Together, we enjoyed dramatic comeback wins, electric grand slams, shutdown pitching performances and spectacular defensive plays. And, who will ever forget El Mago stealing home? In addition to countless team accomplishments, we also witnessed tremendous individual efforts. Veterans Jon Lester and Ben Zobrist were among the best at their craft, Anthony Rizzo continues to provide the heartbeat for our team, and Javy Báez, who delivered an MVP-caliber season, is perhaps the most exciting player in baseball. 

Unfortunately, a thrilling summer at Wrigley Field gave way to a disappointing October. Falling one game short in the NL Central and making an early postseason exit, while both unfamiliar and uncomfortable, will motivate us. We will spend the winter working hard to give Joe Maddon and our team the support they need to reclaim our division.

In addition, we continue to restore and modernize the Friendly Confines. Inside the ballpark, we introduced new premier experiences and a variety of concessions for fans to enjoy. We will continue to deliver new fan amenities this coming season, especially in the upper level. Outside the ballpark, Hotel Zachary opened to great success and added several new retail and restaurant options. We also doubled the number of community events offered at Gallagher Way, helping make Wrigley Field and the surrounding area a year-round destination for families and fans. This award-winning community asset has transformed Wrigleyville and improved the overall gameday experience.

From our own backyard to neighborhoods all across Chicago, we're delivering on our goal of being a good neighbor. We are proud to be one of the most philanthropic franchises in sports. Our team and Cubs Charities continue to raise record funds, deliver meaningful programming and increase access to diamond sports. Through Cubs Jr. All-Stars, Diamond Project, Cubs Scholars and Cubs Care grants, we positively impacted more than 135,000 youth this year alone. 

Despite our abrupt ending on the field, our team is in no way defined by one Wild Card loss. The overwhelming sentiment, from our front office to the clubhouse, is that we have a lot of work to do and will be back stronger than ever. The talented core that fueled this unprecedented run of success is still in place. Our players are young and hungry. Our fans are committed like no other fan base. We are ready to write the next chapter of our amazing story.

Go Cubs,

Tom Ricketts

12

DG's Rizzo Shrine.

Welcome to the post season! It's not how we wanted to get to the dance, but we are dancing! First step is to defeat the Rockies  tomorrow at Wrigley at 7pm CST.

Every time the number drops it moves us closer to being World Champions. When the number hits 0, we will have the trophy!

Until then...

1

The Cubs defeated the Cardinals 10-5 in the final game of the season, and the Brewers defeated a little league team to tie up the Central. For the first time since 1908 (when the Cubs beat the NY Giants in a tiebreaker for the NL pennant (thanks Merkle)), the Cubs will play a tiebreaker to decide who wins the Central Division.

Anthony Rizzo did his part by making this his fourth season in a row with 100 or more RBIs!

Game 163 will be tomorrow at 12:05 CST at Wrigley. The winner will be the NL Central Champions and go on to host the NLDS on Thursday. The loser will host the Wild Card game on Tuesday against either the Rockies or the Dodgers (also tied).

The magic number currently tracks the Division, so a win for the Cubs would drop it to 0. In either case, after tomorrow, the number will reset to countdown the wins needed to be World Champions!

Fasten your seat belts, it's playoffs time!

Photo Credit: Chicago Cubs

For Today:

2

ALERT: All games are free to stream on mlb.tv today. It must be out of your market of course. GO CUBS!!!

Kyle Hendricks went 8 innings giving up two runs on seven hits.  The Cubs struck in the first against Adam Wainwright likely making the last start of his career as they scored two runs thanks to Murphy and Rizzo singling and Zobrist walking in between them.

Kris Bryant hit his 13th HR of the year a 448 foot shot to dead CF and Rizzo then collected his 99th RBI on the season with a sacrifice fly.  Murphy then followed with a sacrifice fly in the 7th that scored Hendricks who walked to start the inning.

The Cubs added three runs in the 8th off of Jordan Hicks to make 8-2 and Jorge De La Rosa came in to get the last three outs.

3

Hey hey! The boys in blue came out swinging in tonight's must win final game against the Pirates 3-0! They take the Pirates season series 10-9. The Cubs now lead the Brewers by one game in the Central with three games to go.

Jon Lester took his 18th win with the help of 10 hits including a triple from David Bote that scored two!

The Cubs now have a final three game series against the Cardinals at Wrigley. At the same time, the Brewers have a three game set against the Tigers at Wrigley North.

Any combination of three Cubs victories and/or Brewers losses would crown the North Siders champions of the NL Central Division for the third consecutive season!

Fasten your seat belts, and stay with us as the Cubs prepare for their fourth consecutive trip to the playoffs!

4

Holy cow! The first place, NL-best Chicago Cubs beat the Pirates 7-6 in extras on Wednesday night, lowering their magic number to win the NL Central Division to 4! Earlier, the Cards lost, guaranteeing the Cubs a playoff berth for the fourth consecutive season!

Any combination of four Cubs victories and/or Brewers losses would crown the North Siders champions of the NL Central Division for the third consecutive season!

The Cubs-Pirates series wraps up Thursday night at Wrigley, and the Cardinals head to the Friendly Confines Friday to kick off a three-game set. 158 regular season games down, 4 to go.

Go Cubs go!

5

The first place, NL-best Chicago Cubs got shut out at Wrigley on Tuesday night, dropping the game to the Pirates 6-0. Meanwhile, the Brewers beat the Cards to keep the Cubs' magic number at five.

Any combination of five Cubs victories and/or Brewers losses would make the North Siders the NL Central Division champs for the third consecutive season!

One more Cubs victory – their 92nd – would clinch at least a Wild Card berth, as the only other teams that can reach 92 wins are the Brewers, Dodgers, and Rockies. One of the latter two will be NL West champs, leaving four teams in the mix for the final three playoff spots (NL Central champs and two Wild Card teams): the Cubs, Dodgers or Rockies, Brewers, and Cardinals. Since a 92nd win would guarantee the Cubs a better record than the Cards, they'd slot into one of those three playoff spots ahead of the Cards.

How about we stick to simpler math and focus on winning a division title?!? The Cubs-Pirates series continues Wednesday at the Friendly Confines. 157 regular season games down, 5 to go.

Go Cubs go!

Image Credit:  Chicago Cubs

 Clark & Addison with Mac at Wrigley!

 The man, the myth, the legend:  Mac!

Mac's kids at the Friendly Confines

5

Tough night at Wrigley on Monday, as the Cubs dropped the series opener to the Bucs 5-1 despite a quality start -- and a solo homer -- from Cole Hamels (6 IP, 2 ER, 7 K).

Meanwhile, the Cards blew a 4-3 lead and lost to the Brewers in a back-and-forth affair, shaving the Cubs' lead in the division to 1.5 games.

Any combination of five Cubs wins and/or Brewers losses would clinch the North Siders' third consecutive NL Central title!

The Cubs-Pirates series continues Tuesday at Wrigley. 156 regular season games down, 6 to go. 

Go Cubs go!

5

All nine Cubs hitters had at least one hit and Kyle Hendricks the Professor was stellar over 7 and 2/3 innings giving up four hits and a run while striking out five and walking none.  The Cubs offense struck early putting up a three run spot in the first and kept adding on with one in the second and two in the third.

Ben Zobrist was 3-6 to bring his batting average to .314 on the year, Anthony Rizzo had a first inning RBI double, his 96th RBI on the season and Javy Baez had a double, his 81st extra base hit of the season, the most by a Cub since Derek Lee in 2005.  Kyle Schwarber also hit his 26th HR of the year and first off a LHP this season.

With the 6-1 win against the White Sox they clinch the season series 4-2 and will now play their last seven games at home at Wrigley field as the Pirates will come to town next for four.  Tomorrow Cole Hamels will face off against Jameson Tallion at 7:05 CST.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BoFSa-0nvdm/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

6

Huge night on the Southside! The Cubs defeat the Sox 8-3, and the Brewers fall to the Pirates 3-0. The number drops twice!

The 90th season win came by way of a Baez two run homer bringing the future MVP to 34 home runs and 110 RBIs! Ben Zobrist put the Southsiders to bed with a two run base hit. Lester took his 17th win.

The Cubs finish the Crosstown Classic tomorrow before starting the final week of the season at the Friendly Confines!

We are three wins away from the post season and six away from being NL Central Champs!

7

Brewers fall to the Pirates. Chances are this number won't stay for long. Stay tuned!

8

Holy cow! The Cubs crushed the Diamondbacks 9-1 in Phoenix on Tuesday night behind a quality start from Mike Montgomery (6 IP, 1 ER, 8 K) and some serious offensive efficiency -- 9 runs on their first 9 hits -- highlighted by two-run homers from Javy Baez and Daniel Murphy. El Mago's homer, his 33rd of the season, raised his NL-best RBI total to 107 and was immediately preceded by a 17-pitch at bat by Rizzo. That's Cub.

Meanwhile, the Brewers dropped their game to the Reds, lowering the CMN by two in one day!

The Cubs wrap up their series Wednesday against the Diamondbacks before enjoying a long-overdue off day Thursday in Chicago, where they'll head to the South Side for three games against the White Sox starting Friday.  151 regular season games down, 11 to go.

Go Cubs go!

 Image Credits:  Chicago Cubs / MLB

Photo Credit:  Jonathan Daniel

9

Brewers fall to the Reds! Cubs are up against the Diamondbacks, so stay tuned...

10

Cubs win! Cubs win! Cubs win! The first place, NL-best Chicago Cubs beat the Diamondbacks 5-1 on Monday night in Phoenix behind a dominant start from Kyle Hendricks (8.2 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 8 K) and homers from Baez & Bryant.

Albert Almora had a 2-for-5 night with two runs scored, KB went 2-for-3, Zobrist raised his season average to .314 (3rd best in the NL) with a 2-for-4 night, Rizzo scored and drove in a run, and El Mago's HR was his 32nd of the season. He leads the NL with 105 RBI.

The series continues tomorrow in Phoenix. 150 regular season games down, 12 to go!

Go Cubs go!

Image Credits:  Chicago Cubs

Photo Credit:  Chicago Magazine