Chicago Cubs: From basement to penthouse

Let’s go back to May 1. On that date, the Chicago Cubs were sitting in the basement of the NL Central, five games out of first place. There were questions about whether or not their impending free agents would be on the trade block, something that the front office said they would consider once the month came to an end. However, given their lackluster performance in April, and ongoing scoring issues, it seemed inevitable that the ‘For Sale’ sign would be flipped on.

But a month can make a tremendous difference. Not only did the Cubs go on that run they were hoping for, but they made up all of that ground. The Cubs entered Tuesday’s action with a half game lead in the division, going from the basement to the penthouse in a month.

Chicago Cubs rise from the ashes

The Cubs 30-23 record has been a long time coming. Their success has continued since the end of April, as the Cubs have won 20 of their past 30 games. The offense has finally woken up, as they now rank in the top six of the National League in OPS, runs, homers, on base percentage, and batting average.

This also changes the narrative for the Cubs heading into June. The likes of Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, and Javier Baez all appeared as though they were on their way out the door, sent elsewhere for prospects to jumpstart a rebuild. As of the beginning of May, that seemed to be the likely path.

Instead, the Cubs may well look to take one last stand with their present core. The rotation could use some work, as Adbert Alzolay is the only starter with an ERA+ that is at least league average. However, Kyle Hendricks has started to come around of late, and the bullpen has been stellar. Any changes may not be as drastic as one would have expected.

In general, teams wait until the first third of the season is over to get a sense for who they are. The Cubs’ slow start to the 2021 campaign, coupled with a hot start for the Brewers, made it easy to jump to the conclusion that they were dead in the water. That was the case when April came to an end as well, when the Cubs were in the basement. But there was still a lot of baseball left to be played, which they reminded us of with an impressive showing in May.

The Chicago Cubs turned their season around during the month of May. In just one month, they went from the NL Central basement to the penthouse.