Analyzing Cubs' Position Within Loaded National League Playoff Picture Weeks Before Trade Deadline

What a roller coaster of a season it has been for the Chicago Cubs. Two ten-game winning streaks and a ten-game losing streak within the first two months of the season, a 23-3 win directly followed by a 17-1 loss, and so many more ebbs and flows to go along with it. When you wrap all that up into a ball and analyze it, Chicago is 56-43 entering Monday's three-game series against the Detroit Tigers. Let's dive into where that stands in relation to the National League playoff picture.

Prior to any of Monday's action, the Los Angeles Dodgers hold a 0.5-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers for the best record not only in the National League, but in all of baseball. Los Angeles sits at 63-37, with Milwaukee ever so close behind at 62-37. The Cubs 56-43 record is the fourth best in the National League, just 1.5 games worse than the Atlanta Braves who lead the NL East with a 57-41 record. If the postseason were to begin today, this is what the playoff bracket would look like.

6. St. Louis Cardinals vs. 3. Atlanta Braves

5. Philadelphia Phillies vs. 4. Chicago Cubs

St. Louis is one of three teams tied for the third and final NL Wild Card spot (alongside the Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates); three more clubs are within 2.5 games of that trio, with those being the Arizona Diamondbacks, Washington Nationals and San Diego Padres.

So, with all of the current playoff and standing situations laid out, what does Chicago need to do to improve its chances of holding onto one of those spots? The answer to that seems pretty simple on the surface, and it's very clearly to improve the pitching staff.

The Cubs have been decimated with injuries to both the starting rotation and bullpen this season but are still 13 games over .500 despite it. Injuries to Cade Horton, Justin Steele, Ben Brown, Matthew Boyd, Daniel Palencia, Hunter Harvey and so many others have caused the Chicago front office to do deep diving to find pitching help throughout the season. Making moves to help the pitching staff are clearly the route the front office needs to take at the trade deadline.

When looking around at lineups for the teams Chicago will need to shut down in order to be successful, there are some seriously dangerous left-handed power bats. The likes of Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, Matt Olson, Drake Baldwin, Alec Burleson are all currently part of teams in playoff position. Adding at least one more left-handed pitcher to either the starting rotation or the bullpen may be the smartest thing to do. Caleb Thielbar as the high-leverage lefty reliever this season hasn't worked out great, so another option for the late innings would be advisable. The front office could also be ultra-aggressive and throw the farm at the Detroit Tigers to try and acquire Tarik Skubal to be the anchor of the rotation for the rest of the season.

Whatever the decisions ultimately end up being, pitching is what Chicago will need to stay competitive in a loaded National League playoff picture for the remainder of the season.