Remember when it looked like the Chicago Cubs would run away with the National League Central this year? It definitely looked like the Cubs would take the Central after a couple of seasons of being out of postseason contention in the final weekend. The Cubs started falling off during the late summer months, allowing the Milwaukee Brewers to return to their routine position of leading and eventually winning the NL Central. At least the Cubs did get something this time. The Cubs did get in as one of the National League’s three Wild Cards; in fact, they finished as the best of the three Wild Cards, meaning that they had the Wild Card Series at home.
The series against the Padres was a close one; it went the full three games, but the Cubs won and advanced. Cubs went up against the Brewers, who entered as the overall #1 seed in MLB. Cubs struck early in Games One and Two on the road, but the Brewers answered back early as well. Cubs homered in the first inning in both games. Brewers struck back in the bottom half of that inning, never looked back. Games Three and Four in Wrigley did go the Cubs’ way, especially the dominant Game Four win. The “W” was flown in both games, and it looked like the Cubs would have a chance to steal Game Five. Seiya Suzuki tied the game with a solo HR in the 2nd inning, but that would be it.
The whole team was full of a talented hitters. The three most known members of that lineup are Seiya Suzuki, Nico Hoerner, and Pete Crow-Armstrong, though PCA’s postseason was not frutiful. PCA went 5-for-27 with only three RBIs in this postseason. Hoerner had 13 hits, hitting over .400 in the postseason, but only homered once and drove in two runs. Suzuki had seven hits, three of them went yard, and he drove in five runs. The most power came from Michael Busch, who had eight hits, but half of them were home runs.
So the answer the titular question could be any number of things. The Cubs definitely stopped hitting when it counted. The pitching definitely didn’t help, either. Pitching-wise, they only came though in Game Four. The hitting bailed out the Cubs in Game Three. When it comes to the pitching, maybe they needed this guy:
I just wanted to used this overdue story to mention a classic baseball film: 1993’s Rookie of the Year. I remember seeing trailers to this film when I was eight, and I finally watched this film a few months ago. The film starred Thomas Ian Nicholas as Henry Rowengartner, a 12-year-old Little Leaguer whose improperly healed broken arm suddenly turns him into a pitching dynamo throwing fastballs that, by today’s standards, would make Paul Skenes jealous. The film boasted a stellar cast that included Amy Morton (from Chicago P.D.), Gary Busey, Daniel Stern (who directed the film), Dan Hedaya, and John Candy in an uncredited role as the Cubs’ play-by-play announcer. The film was a hit and is a favorite among baseball fans, and turned TIN into a bit of a popular figure in the Windy City.
The Cubs made the best of their appearance this year, but on October 11, 2025, it all came to an end. They definitely have the talent to make an impact in 2026, which will mark a decade since their dream season. That has to feel good for Cubs fans; knowing that it hasn’t even been a decade since their last ring after going over a century without one. If they keep that group together, and maybe add some good pieces, there may be another golden celebration in the North side of Chicago.