The Chicago Cubs are desperately clinging to the second Wild Card spot in the National league, but their playoff hopes took a massive blow on Saturday afternoon when it was revealed that shortstop Javier Baez suffered a hairline fracture in his thumb:
JUST IN: Cubs star Javy Baez could miss the rest of the season after an MRI revealed a hairline fracture in his thumb. https://t.co/24YdJHkOUh
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) September 7, 2019
Javier Baez had been a late scratch from the lineup in recent days, including the series opener against the Milwaukee Brewers when a batting practice session went awry.
Although the Cubs slotted former starter Addison Russell in at short, Russell apparently needs some more time to acclimate to his old position, as he has made three throwing errors in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Baez had been spiraling in recent weeks. After another sensational start to the 2019 campaign, the two-time All-Star was slashing .219/.282/.375 over the last 28 days. The Cubs have had other key players missing games as of late — including Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo — but the loss of Baez is yet another setback for a team that desperately needs a spark down the stretch.
The Cubs have had little consistency in the second half. After the Washington Nationals swept Chicago at Wrigley Field, the North Siders responded by sweeping the New York Mets at Citi Field, beating both Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom in the process.
However, Chicago has lost four of its last six against the Brewers entering the series finale on Sunday afternoon. The Cubs (76-65) are 3 1/2 games behind the first-place St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central, and they have a 1 1/2 game lead over the hard-charging Arizona Diamondbacks in the Wild Card race.
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