"Playoffs? Don't talk about playoffs..."

By Bob Zayas, Cubs beat writer and MLB contributor

8/27/20

This morning I had the playoffs on my mind before I reviewed the box score of the Cubs loss to the Tigers on Tuesday. I realized there is only about one month left of the 2020 regular season. It seems that suddenly the Cubs, who were cruising along at a winning clip, are having trouble. Some are pitching issues, some are offensive issues, but issues nonetheless.

Kris Bryant is out with a wrist injury, while Javy Baez is struggling at the plate (.220 BA) and Kimbrel is still not on track with a 9.95 ERA. Cubs team batting average is .224 and the team ERA is 4.45. Some good news is that Yu Darvish is pitching well (1.70 ERA) and reliever Jeremy Jeffress is 2-1 with a 1.46 ERA. But the Cubs hold of first place in the NL Central appears to be fading to those pesky Cardinals. Cubs only have a 3 game lead on STL and are 5-5 in their last 10 games. But, baseball is a game of cycles…some good and some bad. Here’s hoping the Cubs can start on that winning cycle again and into the post-season.

Ok, so what does all this have to do with the title quote about playoffs? For those of you old enough to remember, the quote is from a post-game interview in 2001 with NFL Colts head coach Jim Mora. Mora’s Colts had suffered a disappointing loss to the 49ers that day and Mora was responding to a reporter’s question about the Colts chances to get to the playoffs. It’s a famous quote that is still seen on sports shows today. Mora is quoted as saying “Playoffs? Don’t talk about playoffs! You kidding me? Playoffs? I just hope we can win a game! Another game!”

Things for the Cubs are not that dire but it’s a reminder that sometimes we look too far ahead instead of getting the job done in the moment. Go Cubs!

Sources: ESPN.com, Bleacherreport.com and CBS Sports