It was Aug. 1 in 1984 that the Cubs took over first place for good, and the Cardinals also overtook the Mets for 2nd place. The pattern was a bit different, though; the Cubs spent much of the first part of the season in first place (a few days in April, all but 7 days in May, and about half of June). It was really just the second half of June and the last three weeks of July that the Cubs were continuously out of first.