Tag / Cubs

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Against The Mets All Time Leaders – Through 2026

To paraphrase from a famous movie, the one constant through all the years has been baseball.  As we prepare for the uncertainty of the 2027 season due to labor strife, this offseason we will once again take a look at the leaders, both offensively and defensively, against all 30 clubs.  We continue today with the New York Mets.

The Mets began life in 1962, joining the National League following the abandonment of the New York market by both the Dodgers and Giants in 1957.  I’ve seen them play 21 times, including Tom Glavine’s 300th career victory, their pennant clinching victory in the 2015 NLCS, and, most recently, this past August at Rate Field.

All-Time Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Chicago Cubs 11 8 0.579
Chicago White Sox 1 1 0.500
New York Mets 9 12 0.429

Home Runs

Name Total
Corey Patterson 4
Aramis Ramirez 2
Nico Hoerner 2

Hits

Name Total
Corey Patterson 10
Aramis Ramirez 10
Moises Alou 8
Mark Gruzielanek 8

Runs

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 5
Derrek Lee 5
Corey Patterson 4
Moises Alou 4
Michael Barrett 4
Sammy Sosa 4
Nico Hoerner 4

RBI

Name Total
Corey Patterson 10
Aramis Ramirez 7
Michael Barrett 6

Doubles

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 4
Michael Barrett 3
7 tied with 2

Triples Continue reading →

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Against The Nationals All Time Leaders – Through 2026

To paraphrase from a famous movie, the one constant through all the years has been baseball.  As we prepare for the uncertainty of the 2027 season due to labor strife, this offseason we will once again take a look at the leaders, both offensively and defensively, against all 30 clubs.  We continue today with the Washington Nationals.

The Nationals began life in 1969 as the Montreal Expos.  When the Expos missed out on their best opportunity to win a World Series due to the work stoppage of 1994, followed by years of alleged mismanagement, fan support dropped away, and the team moved to Washington in 2005.  I’ve seen them play 20 times, five as the Expos and fifteen as the Nationals, including a neutral site game at US Cellular Field in 2004, two games of the 2017 NLDS at Wrigley Field, and once at their home stadium in 2019.

All-Time Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Florida Marlins 1 0 1.000
Washington Nationals 9 6 0.600
Chicago Cubs 7 8 0.467
Montreal Expos 2 3 0.400
Chicago White Sox 1 3 0.250

Home Runs

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 4
Corey Patterson 2
12 tied with 1

Hits

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 8
Ryan Theriot 7
Michael Barrett 6
Derrek Lee 6
Mark Grudzielanek 6
Juan Pierre 6

Runs

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 5
Ryan Theriot 4
Derrek Lee 4
Moises Alou 4

RBI

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 13
Moises Alou 4
Jeff Conine 3

Doubles

Name Total
Moises Alou 3
Jacque Jones 2
Ben Zobrist 2
Michael Busch 2

Triples Continue reading →

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Against The Rockies All Time Leaders – Through 2026

To paraphrase from a famous movie, the one constant through all the years has been baseball.  As we wait for the World Series to start and prepare for the uncertainty of the 2027 season due to labor strife, this offseason we will once again take a look at the leaders, both offensively and defensively, against all 30 clubs.  We start today with the Colorado Rockies.

The Rockies began life in 1993, joining the National League along with the then-Florida Marlins.  I saw them for the first time in 2002, as they came to town to battle the Cubs.  Since then, I’ve seen them 21 additional times, including the 2018 Wild Card game, a trip to their home stadium of Coors Field in 2022, and to wrap up the 2026 regular season at Rate Field.

All-Time Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Chicago White Sox 4 3 0.571
Colorado Rockies 11 11 0.500
Chicago Cubs 7 7 0.500
Cincinnati Reds 0 1 0.000

Home Runs

Name Total
Todd Walker 2
Munetaka Murakami 2
21 tied with 1

Hits

Name Total
Derrek Lee 10
Alfonso Soriano 8
Aramis Ramirez 6
Corey Patterson 6
Mike Fontenot 6

Runs

Name Total
Derrek Lee 6
Alfonso Soriano 5
Ryan Theriot 5

RBI

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 6
Alfonso Soriano 4
Mark DeRosa 4
Jeromy Burnitz 4

Doubles

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 3
Mike Fontenot 3
Corey Patterson 2
A.J. Pollock 2

Triples Continue reading →

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2026 Final Batting Leaders

Another season of baseball season is in the books, with both the White Sox and the Cubs advancing to the postseason for the first time since the pandemic year of 2020, with overachieving White Sox falling in the ALDS and the underachieving Cubs bowing out in the Wild Card round.  Let’s take a look back at the offensive leaders for the 44 games that I attended this season.

Home Runs

Name Total
Munetaka Murakami 13
Miguel Vargas 9
Colson Montgomery 6
Pete Crow-Armstrong 6
Randal Grichuk 6

Hits

Name Total
Miguel Vargas 32
Sam Antonacci 31
Munetaka Murakami 26
Chase Meidroth 26
Colson Montgomery 22

Runs

Name Total
Miguel Vargas 27
Munetaka Murakami 27
Continue reading →
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2026 Final Standings

The Cinderella story that was the 2026 White Sox turned back into a pumpkin last night as they dropped the fifth and decisive game of the ALDS to the Guardians, bringing the 2026 Chicago baseball season to a close.  The White Sox became the first team in MLB history to make the playoffs following two (let alone three) consecutive 100+ loss seasons, winning their first postseason series since 2005.  The Cubs, meanwhile, faltered down the stretch, dropping out of the top Wild Card spot and found themselves having to travel to San Diego, where they were quickly swept.  Overall, I managed to attend 44 games, my eleventh highest total, at four different stadiums, seeing 23 of the 30 teams along the way.

2026 Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Cincinnati Reds 2 0 1.000
Milwaukee Brewers 2 0 1.000
Washington Nationals 2 0 1.000
Los Angeles Dodgers 1 0 1.000
Atlanta Braves 1 0 1.000
Boston Red Sox 1 0 1.000
Chicago Cubs 10 5 0.667
Cleveland Guardians 2 1 0.667
Chicago White Sox 18 16 0.529
Houston Astros 1 1 0.500
Kansas City Royals 1 1 0.500
Continue reading →
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2026 Predictions Revisited

Way back in March, when the 2026 season was just about to get underway, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what. With the Division Series round kicking off this afternoon, it is time to revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.

American League

East: Blue Jays

Well, despite adding Dylan Cease to a team that nearly won the World Series last year, the Blue Jays could not put things together and the Rays re-took the top spot in the division.

Central: Tigers

The White Sox had a surprising, long run atop the Central but, in the end, the Guardians won out.

West: Mariners

The Astros ended up “winning” this division, becoming the worst playoff team by record in a full season in the history of the sport.

Wild Cards: Yankees, Red Sox, Astros

Two out of three ain’t bad, with the surprising White Sox taking the final spot.

AL Champion: Tigers

Well, that’s obviously not going to happen.  My guess is whoever wins the ALDS series between the Rays and the Yankees will take the pennant.

Cy Young: Tarik Skubal

Skubal got hurt and then was traded to the Dodgers, so it seems unlikely he will win his third in a row.  At this point, I’m going to guess Yankees hurler Cam Schlitter will win.

MVP: Julio Rodriguez

Despite the Astros struggles, it looks like Yordan Alvarez is the front runner to take home this award.

National League

Continue reading →

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Playoff Pitching Leaders

As the calendar turns to October, one Chicago team remains alive in the postseason, and it is not the one anyone would have expected when the season kicked off back in March.  The White Sox took care of business yesterday, dispatching the Astros to win their Wild Card series and will be heading to the ALDS against the Guardians this weekend.  Meanwhile, the Cubs once again fell to the Padres, ending their season.  While we wait for the next round, it’s time to take our updated look at the pitching leaders from the now 35 post-season games I’ve attended since the White Sox won the AL Central in 2000.

Wins

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 2
Jon Lester 2
Jake Arrieta 2
29 tied with 1

Losses

Name Total
Matt Clement 2
33 tied with 1

ERA (> 6 IP)

Name Total
Aroldis Chapman 0.00
Stephen Strasburg 0.00
Kyle Freeland 0.00
Johnny Cueto 1.13
Chad Billingsley 1.35

Strikeouts

Name Total
Jon Lester 25
Jake Arrieta 22
Mark Buehrle 13
Continue reading →
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Playoff Batting Leaders

A mixed bag for the local teams following the start of their respective Wild Card Series yesterday, with the White Sox taking a one game lead against the Astros while the Cubs were blown out by the Padres.  With both series potentially wrapping up today, it’s time to take an updated look at the offensive leaders from the now 35 post-season games I have attended since 2000.  So, without further ado, we start off with:

Home Runs

Name Total
Kris Bryant 4
Javier Baez 3
Paul Konerko 3
B.J. Upton 3
Dexter Fowler 3
Enrique Hernandez 3

Hits

Name Total
Kris Bryant 11
Javier Baez 11
Dexter Fowler 10
Anthony Rizzo 10
Moises Alou 9
Jason Heyward 9

Runs

Name Total
Dexter Fowler 7
Kyle Tucker 7
Paul Konerko 6
Daniel Murphy 6
A.J. Pierzynski 5
Kris Bryant 5
Javier Baez 5
Continue reading →
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All Time Playoff Team Records

We’ve made it through 162 games and, for the first time since 2020, both the White Sox and the Cubs are in the post-season.  After faltering down the stretch, however, both teams open up on the road in the Wild Card series, with the White Sox headed to Houston to face the Astros, their foe in the 2021 ALDS, while the Cubs go west to San Diego in a rematch of last year’s series against the Padres.

It’s time to take an updated look at the team records for the now 35 playoff contests I have attended. These contests come from the 2018 Wild Card game, the ALDS in 2000, 2005, 2008, and 2021, the NLDS in 2003, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2025, the NLCS in 2003, 2015, 2016, and 2017, the ALCS in 2005, and, of course, the 2005 and 2016 World Series.

Post-Season Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Florida Marlins 3 0 1.000
Seattle Mariners 2 0 1.000
New York Mets 2 0 1.000
Colorado Rockies 1 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 1 0 1.000
Chicago White Sox 6 5 0.545
Los Angeles Dodgers 3 3 0.500
Atlanta Braves 1 1 0.500
Cleveland Indians 1 1 0.500
Los Angeles Angels 1 1 0.500
Washington Nationals 1 1 0.500
Tampa Bay Rays 1 1 0.500
Chicago Cubs 11 13 0.458
Houston Astros 1 2 0.333
Milwaukee Brewers 0 2 0.000
San Francisco Giants 0 2 0.000
St. Louis Cardinals 0 1 0.000
Boston Red Sox 0 2 0.000
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Clinched

With their 9-1 victory over the Royals in Kansas City yesterday, the White Sox clinched a postseason berth, their first since 2021.  They became just the fourth team to make the playoffs a year after losing 100+ games and the first to ever do so after two straight years of 100+ losses.  They also became the first team in MLB history to notch a winning record following two 100+ loss seasons.  With three games to go in the regular season, they remain one game behind the Guardians for the AL Central title and hold the tiebreaker.

Mere minutes later, the Cubs followed suit, officially wrapping up their spot in the postseason with a 2-1 win over the Marlins at Wrigley Field.  The Cubs currently sit one game behind the Padres for the top Wild Card seed in the NL and face a tough weekend in Boston (and maybe Tampa?) to wrap up the season.

This is just the fourth time both Chicago teams have made the postseason in the same year and the first, with fans allowed in the stands, since 2008.