(670 The Score) Today marks only the third time we can say this about the Cubs and White Sox: They're each in sole possession of first place in their respective divisions or leagues entering play on Sept. 1.
We could do so on this date in 1906 and as recently as 2008, and recognizing the achievement today is important, especially considering everything else that's going on in our world. It's OK to find something to enjoy and appreciate when we can, if not downright essential for what's left of our collective mental health. Sure, there are any number of extraordinary factors that make this MLB season different from all others, and it's understood that this particular marking point on the calendar is both convenient and arbitrary, but it feels like it should matter.
Monday afternoon saw the passing of the MLB trade deadline, there's less than half of the regular season remaining and this strange and concentrated campaign now intensifies further as meteorological autumn is upon us.
The surging White Sox have won 12 of their last 14 games and now register on Fangraphs.com with a 99% probability to reach the expanded playoffs. They lead the American League in batting average (.270), slugging percentage (.485), total fWAR (9.2), wRC+ (122), isolated power (.214), home runs (65), Defensive Runs Saved (27) and more, riding the explosive performances of Luis Robert, Tim Anderson, Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada and Eloy Jimenez, who all rank within the top 48 MLB players in individual fWAR. And the recent no-hitter by Lucas Giolito was the best nine-inning pitching performance in the history of the franchise, registering a game score of 99. If it seems like significant feats are happening, it's because they are.
The Cubs are hanging tight atop the NL Central after powering out of the gate at 13-3, holding a four-game lead entering play Tuesday evening with a 96.9% playoff probability. While the Cubs' team statistics are nowhere as similarly gaudy as those of their crosstown counterparts, some individual performances are notable. First is that of Ian Happ, a onetime reclamation project who's nothing less than their best position player, slashing .294/.417/.624 with a wRC+ of 174. His 1.7 fWAR places him eighth in all of baseball, mere decimal places ahead of Robert. Jason Heyward has continued to lash the ball, posting a line of .286/.402/.560 with a wRC+ of 156, with those two helping to make up for an injured Kris Bryant and oddly struggling Javier Baez. And Yu Darvish is on track to contend for the NL Cy Young Award, leading the league in both total fWAR (1.8) and ERA (1.47).
The contrasting approaches of the Cubs and the White Sox at the deadline illustrated clear differences in what it means to be in contention as it currently stands. This is something of a last roundup for a big-ticket Cubs core looking at the end of a competitive era and the likelihood of a transitional phase to come. They made a handful of inexpensive upside bets to shore up one more shot at a trophy, shopping at the margins for left-handed bullpen arms and right-handed bats.
White Sox general manager Rick Hahn chose instead to keep his powder dry despite ample opportunity to engage the market, evincing a belief that his team is on the field at the outset of what could be a golden era. The rebuild appears to have worked, a window having been opened.
Both strategies are validations in different ways too, the former being a further commitment of resources to maximize whatever may be left even after three seasons of agonizing underachievement. The latter expresses a belief in what the White Sox already are or are close to being.
The Cubs and White Sox are in very different places at the moment, but relative to the standings in a season we could never have envisioned, they share a common and enviable spot.
Dan Bernstein is the host of the Dan Bernstein Show on middays from 9 a.m. until noon on 670 The Score. You can follow him on Twitter @Dan_Bernstein.
