What is the Greatest Strength for the Chicago Cubs This Season?

As we head into the final month of the season, what is the greatest strength for the Chicago Cubs this season?

Aug 27, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Justin Steele (35) delivers a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fourth inning at PNC Park. / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs are right in the mix of the Wild Card hunt this season, as they are hovering right around the .500 mark. Luckily, the schedule for the rest of the season is favorable for the Cubs, as they might be able to gain enough ground over the next month to snag a playoff spot.

Last season, Chicago missed the playoffs by just a game, as they finished with an 83-79 record. It was also the Arizona Diamondbacks who finished right above them and went on to win the National League.

This year, the Cubs would like to take a step forward and make the playoffs, but they obviously still have a lot of games to play and some work to do.

Recently, Zachary Rymer of Bleacher Report spoke about run prevention being the greatest strength of Chicago this season.

"Though the Cubs have failed to launch as a proper contender in 2024, at least they're back in the top five of the National League for runs allowed per game for the first time since 2020. And the reasons for that are twofold."

"For one, it never hurts to have four starting pitchers (Shōta Imanaga, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon and Javier Assad) with ERAs in the 3.00s. And they also have strong defenders all over, and especially up the middle with Dansby Swanson, Nico Hoerner and Pete Crow-Armstrong."

Pitching and strong defense are generally a very good formula for winning games, and the Cubs have that on the roster this season. Having five starters with ERAs in the 3.00s is very rare to see and Chicago has strong defenders up the middle, which certainly helps them.

While the pitching and defense have been great for the Cubs, the offense is the area that has to improve down the stretch. Chicago currently ranks 20th in batting average and 15th in runs scored, as they have been very mediocre at the plate this season.

One of the reasons for the struggles on offense has been the lack of production from shortstop Dansby Swanson. Swanson was a big signing by the Cubs after he had a lot of success with the Atlanta Braves. However, this season, Swanson is hitting just .228 with 11 home runs.

If Chicago can get their bats to come alive in September, they will be in excellent shape to make a push for the playoffs with how good their pitching and defense has been this season. In recent games against the Pittsburgh Pirates, we have started to see the bats wake up a bit. Hopefully, that can continue.