Chicago Baseball Teams make the Post Season

Today the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago White Sox play their first Wild Card games.  The Cubs squandered their lead in the WC, so they have to travel to San Diego and play tonight at 8 pm CST.  The White Sox squandered their division lead, so they play the Matinee game at 4 pm CST.  

That it played out this way is so Chicago sports.

Last year the Cubs gave us 8 extra games of baseball.  This year we will get at least 4, maybe 6, between the two teams.  

Sportswriters are pointing out that the teams did well against their respective opponents during the regular season.  But that's the thing.  During the regular season, those games are spread out over 162 games and you might have caught them during a slump.  

In the postseason, they will be fighting to move on to the next berth.  And a team that limped into the playoffs isn't gonna do so well against a team that surged at the end.

Whelp, they are 12

The good news is they inherited my wife's brains. The bad news is they got my sarcasm. Still, having kept them alive for a dozen years is pretty good for a guy who grew up without a father.

Raising kids is no easy task and you hit milestones and level up like a video game. You are thankful when they start sleeping through the night. Then they get off formula, learn to walk and talk, and eventually become potty trained.

I wasn't expecting the Bobbsey Twins but I didn't realize how quickly they would diverge. They have different food likes, so much that sometimes I'm making three different meals.

This is what I posted to Facebook to let everyone know

Fun fact: Katness was pregnant at the same time as Nightingale, our twins being born a few weeks apart. She had to be diplomatic in who she told first, though we had met for lunch in March of 2014 and after I told her about ours, she told me about hers. Meanwhile, with my dysfunctional family being what they are, I didn't have to follow any rules. I posted the above photo and it was awesome.

I think we've hit the point where they no longer think we are cool but don't hate us yet. We started our family late in life because it took so long to find each other, so we are just hoping to be around to help them until they can fend for themselves.

stay tuned

2026 Bears Playoff Prediction: Was Last Year a Fluke

Last year I wrote, "I'm not sure I have it in me to do another one of these," and given that I buried this in my drafts folder, I think the same this year, especially since two games have already been decided.  So I'm already 1-1.  Nevertheless, I will stick with my predictions.

Looking at their schedule and based on how the teams they play did last year, I'm predicting they will again go 12 and 5, though I worry it might be more like 10 and 7.

A lot of winning in the NFL depends on when you play a team as much as how you play them. Catch a team before they find their identity and it looks like an easy win. Catch them during a winning streak and they blow you out. Or if they haven't won in 5 or more games, you are the trap game.

Winning the Division:

As always, the Chicago Bears have two ways to make the playoffs: Win the Division or via the WildCard.  Last Season was an unexpected, exciting and pleasant surprise.  While some fans were optimistic the Bears would do better than in recent seasons, none expected them to go 12-5 and win a playoff game.

That said, I don't strongly believe they will repeat.  I didn't get to watch the first two games (because of broadcast rules) but they gave up 37 points to Carolina -- even though they scored 59 of their own -- and strugged to score against the Vikings at home.  So best case, me thinks, is WildCard.

WildCard:

To earn a Wildcard seed, the Bears need to be in a position to win any tie-breakers.  I have been a fan long enough to see them miss the playoffs with a winning record because of losing tie-breakers.  And the NFC North is good enough that if all four teams have winning records, the Bears would likely be watching the playoffs at home.  

Note from The Future:  I didn't get around to finishing this until two games into the season but apparently Google has fixed the bug where your schedule post will postdate if configured as such.