'It stinks:' Plenty of pain as Cubs win but eliminated from playoffs

MILWAUKEE - When this season began, few believed the Cubs would make any serious noise.

And for more than three months they did little to alter that narrative.

But then came an eight-game winning streak in late July, 18 victories in August and a 5-2 mark to start September.

Not only was Wrigley Field was roaring, but so were opposing ballparks filled with delirious fans who figured the North Siders were well on their way to the postseason.

But then the Cubs dropped three of four at home to Arizona and almost nothing went right after that.

Their wild-card lead shrunk with each loss and finally evaporated for good during a three-game series sweep at Atlanta.

While the Cubs did explode for 6 first-inning runs en route to a 10-6 victory over the Brewers at America Family Field on Saturday, they were officially eliminated from playoff contention when Miami defeated Pittsburgh 7-3.

Afterward, you could see the pain in players' faces and hear it in their voices.

"The only tough one is there's so much love in this clubhouse, man," said catcher Yan Gomes, who hit a grand slam in the first inning to give the Cubs a 5-0 lead. "It was a big deal for us in creating a winning culture and a close-knit group - and we did that. We definitely did that."

Jameson Taillon, Nico Hoerner, Cody Bellinger and manager David Ross echoed Gomes' thoughts.

"It stinks," said Taillon, who threw 4 scoreless innings in relief and picked up his first career save. "I was just thinking this would be a really fun team to compete with in the playoffs and pop champagne with."

The biggest reasons for the Cubs' demise boils down to simple Baseball 101: Fielding miscues, poor baserunning and lack of clutch hitting. A gassed, ineffective bullpen was a killer as well.

The blame belongs on most of the big names as Bellinger (7-for-29, 3 RBIs last eight games), Dansby Swanson (6-for-37, 4 RBIs last 10), Hoerner (3-for-19 in his last five) all went cold at the plate. On the mound, Mark Leiter Jr. had a 9.95 ERA in his last nine appearances, Drew Smyly's ineffectiveness as a starter put more pressure on young arms like Javier Assad and Jordan Wicks, and Justin Steele gave up 15 earned runs in his last 3 starts.

In the end, maybe everyone just ran out of gas.

"The season's long and it seems even longer when every game matters, every pitch matters," Taillon said. "You saw the last two weeks - it came down to little plays. One pitch here. One swing there. ...

"It's probably a lesson throughout the entire roster. Condition as well as you can and stay locked in for every single game."

Asked if he was surprised by the tailspin, Ross said yes.

But the fourth-year manager also believes the Cubs are trending in the right direction and can do what the Orioles did over the past year. After just missing the playoffs at 83-79 last season, Baltimore claimed the NL East with a 100-win campaign.

"I would put this team in that category," Ross said.

How does that happen?

Gomes believes everyone will remember this feeling and use the experience to understand how to finish games late in the year. Ross likely loves that message, but also knows every player and coach needs to improve.

"It's on each one of us to grow," Ross said. "It doesn't feel like it right now, (but) there's a lot to be proud of from a lot of different guys. ... We're gonna have to come back next year and be tested all over again.

"Right now just disappointment. We can all feel that, soak that in, remember how that feels, use that this off-season to get better.

"(Let's) come back next year and take another step forward."