8 in a row!

My guys are on a streak! The Cubs have won their last 8, and 9 of their last 10. Blessed to be in the league's worst division,  they're only 3 games out of first place. So, even though this team has over the season lost as many as it has won, the playoffs are definitely within reach. 

This last series has been emotional for me because it's Cubs-Cards, the greatest rivalry in sports.* For now Willson Contreras is a Cardinal. My goddam backstop in the 2016 World Series is now one of Them! I simply cannot cheer against Willie. It's not in me. While of course I want the Cubs to prevail (in my baseball and my politics, I root for blue over red), I wish Willie well personally. Once my guy, always my guy.

Which naturally leads me to ...

Anthony Rizzo is not out of it yet, either. The Yankees are in last place, but their record is actually better than the Cubs'. Their division is just tougher. But they're only 3.5 games out of the play-offs (and first place, for that matter). It's doable with Judge back and with Rizz getting on base again. I know him, I've been watching him for a decade now. Yankee fans want him to go yard with every at-bat, and I'm sure he'd prefer that, too, but he's getting singles, taking walks, getting hit by pitches. At this stage in the season, he's concentrating on getting on base, and that's such an improvement over all those strike outs he endured during his "power outage."

God, I love baseball!

*Yeah, I know about Yankees-Red Sox and am firmly on the Yankees side, but I just don't feel Cubs-Cardinals passion there. In fact, the Yankees seem more jacked to be playing the Orioles. I think the New York media is just used to that Yankees-Red Sox storyline.