The Los Angeles Dodgers won the series 3-0, eliminating the Chicago Cubs from the playoffs. The Cubs finished second in the NL Central with a 79-83 record.
In 2007, the Cubs finished first in the National League Central with a 97-65 record. They went on to beat the Florida Marlins in the NL Championship Series before being defeated by the Boston Red Sox in seven games of the World Series.
In 2006, the Cubs finished first in the National League Central with a 91-71 record. They went on to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL Division Series before losing to the Cleveland Indians in five games of the NL Championship Series.
In 2005, the Cubs finished first in the National League Central with a 92-70 record. They went on to beat the Houston Astros in the NL Division Series before losing to the St. Louis Cardinals in six games of the NLCS.
In 2004, the Cubs finished first in the National League Central with a 93-69 record. They went on to beat the Houston Astros in the NL Division Series before losing to the San Francisco Giants in five games of the NLCS.
The Athletics win Game 3 to eliminate the White Sox from the playoffs. The A's would go on to lose the series in seven games.
The White Sox finished with a record of 89-73, which was five games behind the first-place Minnesota Twins. They were eliminated from playoff contention on September 26th when the Twins beat the Chicago Cubs 7-4. The White Sox did not play any home games after August 31st due to renovations being done at U.S. Cellular Field.
Starting pitcher John Danks went 15-9 with a 3.32 ERA during the regular season. In 102 innings pitched, he allowed only 97 hits while walking 42 and striking out 122 opponents. He also had ten saves this season which tied a team high.
Danks' teammate Jose Quintana had an excellent year as well with a 17-5 record and a 2.96 ERA. In 278 innings pitched, he gave up only 193 hits while walking 73 and striking out 227 opponents. He had six shutouts this season which is one more than the previous highest total by a White Sox pitcher.
The Cubs had a 9.5-game lead on August 14th and a 98 percent likelihood of making the postseason as of August 20th. It's typical of the Cubs to find a way to lose. Chicago dropped 14 of their final 20 games, losing the division by eight games to the Mets. The final game of the season was played at Wrigley Field with the Cubs trailing 3-1 going into the ninth inning.
Cubs fans have been clamoring for a World Series title for over 100 years. They've never won one even though they've had many chances to do so. In addition to being a fun team to watch, the Cubs also have the best record in baseball this year - but that doesn't guarantee anything when it comes to the playoffs. Chicago has made the post-season every year since 1945 except for 1955 when they finished second in the NL behind St. Louis. That's five out of seven seasons - a.714 average - but they've never advanced past the League Championship Series.
In October 1988, the Cubs were leading three games to two against St. Louis in the National League Championship Series. Chicago could not finish off Game Five and lost it 4-3. The next day, the Cardinals completed a four-game sweep to take the series four games to two. The 1989 Cubs finished last place with a 71-91 record.
Even before the end of their 9-5 defeat to the White Sox, the Cubs had won their first division title in three years. The Brewers' victory against the Cardinals in St. Louis crowned the Cubs as NL Central champions for 2020, securing Chicago the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. This is also only the second time in franchise history that the Cubs have finished with a winning record (69-93). The last time they accomplished this was back in 1945 when they finished with a 90-72 record.
After losing 103 games two seasons ago, the Cubs made some changes to their roster, trading away Josh Donaldson and Justin Wilson and signing Alex Cobb and Zack Greinke. They also brought in David Ross to be their new manager. All in all, these are all good moves by President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein and General Manager Jed Hoyer. In fact, many experts believe it's possible that the Cubs could finish over.500 for the first time since 2014 if they keep making these kind of moves going forward.
Now, not every player on the Cubs' roster this season will help them win games, but there are several key players who could have an impact on their success this year.
The only mistake the Cubs made in 1906 was losing the World Series. They were defeated in six games by their cross-town rivals, the White Sox, in what remains the only all-Chicago World Series ever played. Undaunted, Chance led the Cubs to World Series victories in 1907 and 1908, both times against Ty Cobb's Detroit Tigers.
In 1907, 1908, and 2016, the Chicago Cubs won the World Series three times. Postseason Results for the Chicago Cubs:
The Chicago Cubs last appeared in the playoffs in 2020, when they were eliminated in the NL Wild Card Series. In their 116 seasons, they've made the playoffs 21 times.
History of the Chicago Cubs and an encyclopedia of the team. Chicago Cubs, Chicago Orphans, Chicago Colts, and Chicago White Stockings were also national association franchises.
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