No Cain, No Gain

If I would have written this post last week, if the road trip hadn't slowed down, I'd have said something along the lines of 'the Brewers are unstoppable, they've got a stronghold on the NL Central, they've expanded upon their 2017 season', things like that.

Now that the Cubs have overtaken them to regain control of the division, I have a bit of a different post to write.

The 4-team stronghold on the NL Central has evaporated since I left for the road. It's now essentially down to the Brewers and Cubs....which is what it was last year. So much for surprises. The Cardinals are 2 games behind the top two, and the Pirates are 7 games behind the top two. They're not out of it yet (though the Pirates' slide hasn't helped them whatsoever), but the Brewers and Cubs are rolling right now, with an emphasis on the Cubs, who've won 7 in 10, as opposed to the Brewers, who've only won 4 in 10.

The Brewers, while still great, are looking a bit more human this month. That's not to discredit Lorenzo Cain and Travis Shaw, still leading the team, Christian Yelich, who's finally caught up, and Eric Thames, who's finally back from the DL. The team hasn't especially gotten worse, it's just that the Cubs have gotten better. Both are arguably equally good, even if the Brewers had the punchier start. The Brewers still have the best bullpen in the NL. Nothing's going to change that, not even the Cubs.

The Brewers also have a very versatile roster, with a lot of homegrown talent, a lot of bench room, and a lot of signees proving their worth. Heck, Erik Kratz, a 38-year old backup catcher hitting .500, might be this team's Grandpa Rossy. I mean, that's assuming a lot of their season's lower half, but some things are beginning to click. There are only a few players playing truly badly (Manny Pina and Orlando Arcia), but the Brewers might buy at the deadline, which means they have definite needs (which I don't think can be said about the comparatively-pristine Cubs (and no, they don't need another starter, Montgomery is fine (betcha never thought you'd see ellipses cubed))), and might land a steady catcher (perhaps one that came up in their organization who's looking lonely in Oakland), and a steady shortstop (perhaps THE steady shortstop everybody wants?)

The Brewers may not be in first right now...but they might be the most powerful team in the NL Central headed down the stretch.

Coming Tonight: He moved to Texas to get a ring. Unfortunately, he moved to the wrong part of Texas.