Cubs Week In Review: The Offense Leads The Way In Another Solid Week

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Image courtesy of © Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

The most fervently baseball-inclined know that even what appears to be a comfortable division lead comes with a certain level of trepidation. The Chicago Cubs, a team well-versed in the game's oddities, hurdled further unexpected calamities on their way to another winning week. Relying heavily, perhaps a bit too heavily, on their offensive might, Craig Counsell's club piled up some important victories this past week. At what cost those victories may have come has yet to be seen. 

Familiarity does breed contempt as the Cubs kicked off the week in Miami versus the lowly Marlins. The Cubs have fared well against South Florida's major league ball club so far this season, though not with the ease of ordering a "Hurricane" cocktail from a swim-up bar on Biscayne Drive. Ben Brown took the hill in game one of a three-game series, and it has been a trend of late; he struggled. The 25-year-old righty cranked through 4 2/3 innings of work, surrendering six earned runs and seven hits. In an uncharacteristic day for the Cubbies' offense, the Marlins took the series opener 8-7. 

A most admirable trait of this Chicago Cubs team is its ability to wash out the bad taste of a deflating loss. They did that and a whole lot more in Game 2 of the series. Featuring one of Jameson Taillon's most impressive outings of the season, the North Siders rode a wave of consistency from the offense en route to a 14-1 thumping of Miami. Seiya Suzuki and Nico Hoerner combined for six RBI as the Cubs roared back into the series, setting up the rubber match. 

The finale of their second and final series in 2025 against the Marlins this season proved somewhat of a milestone as it marked the first time this year the Cubs would ascend to 10 games over .500. In perhaps one of the more impressive showings from the Cubbies' bullpen in recent memory, the club's relievers picked up the slack after a respectable start from the young Cade Horton. A combination of Caleb Thielbar, Brad Keller, and Daniel Palencia held the Fish scoreless as the Cubbies escaped with a 2-1 victory. 

Although the Cubs are the kings of their division, it's universally regarded as one of the weaker divisions in Major League Baseball. Riding a late-game offensive onslaught, the North Siders showed why, despite their division's reputation, they are a force to be reckoned with. Scoring just two runs before the sixth inning, the Cubbies' bats, known to cause significant damage to their opponents, erupted in the late stages of the game. In doing so, the Cubs erased a 6-2 deficit, taking the game 13-6 at Great American Ballpark. No Cub was more instrumental in the comeback than legitimate MVP candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong. The North Siders' phenom center fielder crushed two long balls, including a go-ahead grand slam that is giving me and thousands of other Cubs fans chills at this exact moment. 

Colin Rea has been a pleasant surprise for the Cubs' pitching staff in 2025, but his fourth win of the season was not meant to be as the Cubs squared off versus the Reds in game two of their three-game series. Jumping out to an early 2-0 lead against the North Siders, the Reds found enough ways to hold off Chicago, even withstanding a late-inning push by Craig Counsell's squad. Replacing the injured Miguel Amaya, Carson Kelly stepped up and did not miss a beat after being unexpectedly called upon, albeit in a losing effort. The Reds walked away with game two by a score of 6-4. 

Sunday has been less kind to the Cubbies than a priest scolding a parishioner who's skipped church for eight straight years. But not this time. After another shaky start from Ben Brown, the Cubs' bullpen did enough for the Cubbies to hang around long enough to work their magic. After being called up in the wake of Miguel Amaya's injury, the young Reese McGuire delivered a holiday weekend memory no Cubs fan will soon forget. Mac came up big with two home runs to aid in his club's latest comeback victory. The league's RBI leader, Seiya Suzuki, capped things off with a breathtaking, 3-run bomb. The Cubs scored eight unanswered runs and boarded the plane back to O'Hare International Airport winners of a harrowing, thrilling contest. 

Triumphant in four of their last six games, the Cubs are back at Wrigley this week to take on baseball's worst team, the Colorado Rockies, before facing off versus this very same Cincinnati Reds squad. If you weren't already, this is the perfect time to get excited about Cubs baseball. With foundational players like Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker, this team boasts the star power and determination to stay competitive in any contest, regardless of the odds. 

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