When last we checked in on the Cubs, they were wrapping up a 10-game, three-city road trip. They finished that trip 5-5. That left them at 39-32, in first place, one game ahead of the Cardinals and 1½2 games ahead of the Astros in a jumbled National League Central.
The Cubs return home where since May 1, they were an even 10-10 in 20 games on two homestands. Splitting games at home isn’t good enough for a team with its sites on a division title. When you reach mid-June in first place, you are no longer thinking like a team that lost 95 games the year before and just being happy to be competitive.