Chicago Cubs news — Conforto, PCA, Bregman

I wish I just saw the 8-6 final score from Wednesday game. That meant that my comment from Tuesday of that the Cubs could hang with the Brewers was accurate.

Um, nah. That's a case of spinning something positive out of nothing ending up kicking your tail.

Kevin Gausman is the next Jekyll and Hyde performer for the Cubs. What do they really have with him?

The best offense and defense in baseball was held to three hits over eight innings and committed two uncharacteristic errors.

Digging for a plus …. the bullpen allowed a hit and an unearned run over four innings. At the time, it was just clean-up work, low leverage.

That was all that could be rung out of Wednesday's loss. Thursday's day off may help. We'll see.

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*means autoplay on , ( directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome ). {$} means paywall. {$} means limited views. Italics are often used on this page as sarcasm font. The powers that be have enabled real sarcasm font in the comments.

Vinnie Duber ( Chicago Sun-Times): Kevin Gausman allows three homers, but a lot goes wrong for Cubs as Brewers sweep cements Central control . "Gausman, the Cubs' headlining acquisition at the trade deadline, has gone back and forth between great outings and rough ones. Wednesday was one of the latter, though he wasn't the only thing that went wrong for a Cubs team swept out of Milwaukee ."

Meghan Montemurro (Chicago Sun-Times): 3 takeaways as Chicago Cubs get swept, including their tenuous playoff positioning — and the bullpen's woes . "Gausman said, "It comes back to execution. I can't throw lazy (splitters) in the zone.""

Brandon Glick (Cubbies Crib): What's the actual panic level for Cubs fans with postseason fast approaching? "Can this team hang with the National League's best?"

Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Quantifying Hope: Cubs' Odds Still Holding Steady at 96.6% Despite Skid . "Losing four straight may have caused the sky to fall, but the same can't be said for the Cubs' postseason odds."

Tyler Courtney (LastWordOnSports): How Should the Cubs Rotation Be Managed Down the Stretch of 2026? "In 2026, the Cubs' starters have been a major storyline."

Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib): Cubs' magic number after Brewers sweep paints terrifying NL Wild Card picture . "Things are getting tight."

Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): How Badly Did the Cubs Hurt Their Playoff Odds These Last Few Weeks? "Yikes. That's a bona fide collapse."

Mike Petriello (MLB.com): The Cubs are the best-hitting, best-fielding team in baseball. There's just one little problem … "Will the bats and gloves be enough to overcome the arms in October?"

Vinnie Duber (Chicago Sun-Times): After Brewers sweep, Cubs fighting for playoff spot as wild-card standings tighten, series losses keep coming . "The Cubs have gone from NL Central contenders to wild-card leaders to fighting for their postseason lives amid a stretch of series losses. With 15 games left, it's not about tuning up for the playoffs but ensuring they get there."

Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): With division race all but over, Cubs need to get right before they lose playoff spot . "At least the Chicago Cubs didn't need to worry about another bullpen catastrophe."

Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): The Cubs need bullpen answers and all options have to be considered . "Everywhere Counsell looks in his bullpen, there are questions."

Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Swanson Nearing Return, Steele Making Another Rehab Appearance, Palencia Not Missing Bats . "As much as I'd like to go on about Pete Crow-Armstrong having just the 16th season of 10+ fWAR in the last half-century, I feel like we've already chewed most of the meat off that bone."

Jake Misener (Cubbies Crib): Cubs brought Kevin Gausman in to anchor the rotation but he's only pulled them down . "A clunker in his latest start has only turned up the pressure on Kevin Gausman and the Chicago Cubs, as their marquee trade deadline add continues to struggle."

Dan Fappiano (Yardbarker): Kevin Gausman reaping benefits of 'emotional' Chicago Cubs trade. "It didn't take long for the right-hander to find his footing in Chicago. One series with the Cubs, and Gausman realized the opportunity that was in front of him."

Chris Pownall (DaWindyCity): Cubs are watching their worst trade deadline decision come back to haunt them . "The Chicago Cubs made several significant additions at the trade deadline, but failing to land a proven closer is becoming increasingly difficult to overlook."

Vinnie Duber (Chicago Sun-Times): Amid bullpen panic, Cubs 'still have all the faith' in Jacob Webb, others to recover in time for playoffs . "The Cubs' bullpen is in a rut at the wrong time, but the team still believes it's possible for Webb and other struggling relievers to recover from a late-season stumble in time for the playoffs."

Anthony Mason (MLBTradeRumors): Phil Maton To Undergo Knee Surgery . "The team hasn't provided many more specifics but it's fair to assume this will end his season."

Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): The Cubs have a clear plan for Dansby Swanson's return . "Cubs manager Craig Counsell provided a surprising level of detail about Swanson's program during Friday's pregame media briefing at Wrigley Field."

Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): Owen Ayers Keeps Racking Up the Huge Caught Stealing Numbers . "Less discussed in his breakout, though, is the fact that this is a guy who really only became a full-time, dedicated catcher a few years ago."

Daniel Curran (Just Baseball): How Pete Crow-Armstrong Put It All Together . "It took a mixture of improvements to get to this version of PCA, but the final product is a star center fielder staring down an MVP season."

Max Ralph (MLB.com): Could Cubs' best-in-show defense become 1st ever to sweep outfield Gold Gloves? "Each of their starting outfielders — Ian Happ in left field, PCA in center and Seiya Suzuki in right — at least has an argument to be golden this season."

Sam Caulder (North Side Baseball): Matt Shaw's Best Opportunity With Cubs Will Likely Come In October . " Matt Shaw hasn't played a huge role for the Cubs this season. But October could present the perfect opportunity for him to become a difference-maker."

Matt Sullivan (Sporting News): Why Cubs could trade Matt Shaw despite potential starting OF role in 2027 . "The Cubs could deal their young, versatile future starter for one reason."

Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): Pete Crow-Armstrong's Monster Season Has Crossed Another Threshold . "Today is an arbitrary cut-off with two and a half more weeks left in the season, and 10.0 is an arbitrary cut-off for a counting statistic."

Yirsandy Rodriguez (North Side Baseball): Michael Conforto Is A Flawed Hitter, and the Cubs Couldn't Care Less . " Michael Conforto has regained the impact he once had against fastballs, but off-speed pitches continue to expose a weakness that could prove a problem for the Cubs."

Samuel Gene Maghett (February 14, 1937 – December 1, 1969), known as Magic Sam , was an American Chicago blues musician. He was born in Grenada County, Mississippi , and learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and Little Walter . After moving to Chicago at the age of 19, he was signed by Cobra Records and became well known as a bluesman. He was known for his distinctive tremolo guitar playing.

Maghett moved to Chicago in 1956, where his guitar playing earned him bookings at blues clubs on the West Side. He recorded singles for Cobra Records from 1957 to 1959, including "All Your Love" and "Easy Baby". They did not reach the record charts but had a profound influence, far beyond Chicago's guitarists and singers. Together with recordings by Otis Rush and Buddy Guy (also Cobra artists), the West Side Sound was a manifesto for a new kind of blues. Around this time Magic Sam worked briefly with Homesick James Williamson . Magic Sam gained a following before being drafted into the U.S. Army. He served six months in prison for desertion and received a dishonorable discharge .

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