Game 1 was miserable. The Cubs got embarrassed. But I must admit I'm a bit surprised at the number of fans who are already ready to throw in the towel.

It was never going to be easy against the hottest team in baseball on the road. Petco is a tough place to play. But I'm not nearly as intimidated by Nick Pivetta as I was Michael King. 

The importance of home-field advantage is showing itself early.

This Padres crowd at Petco Park was electric before the game even started.

The Chicago Cubs are in the late night window for the Wild Card Series. 9 pm start time CT.

Seems to be the only spot that fits with San Diego being the only host city on the west coast, but I've seen some negativity online. Does anyone have an issue with the Cubs being in the late night spot?

There's still a chance the Cubs end up as the No. 6 seed in the National League rather than the No. 5 seed.

What's your ideal path for them in the playoffs?

Pretty concerning when you look at the Cubs' season as a whole after their red-hot 27-12 start.

Since then, they're just 61-61. That's four months of .500 baseball after looking like one of the best teams in baseball through their first 39 games.

This Ryan Zeferjahn trade really hasn't aged well for the Chicago Cubs thus far. He gave up the walk-off single to Leo Rivas on Friday night and in seven appearances with the Cubs now has a 7.50 ERA with a WHIP at 2.17.

Moises Ballesteros hasn't been very good with the Los Angeles Angels either, but there's obviously some future potential there for what could turn into a really productive bat.

A lot of talk about last night's walk-off play and whether or not Nico Hoerner cost the Cubs the game by not covering second base.

Do you think Pete Crow-Armstrong could have forced Josh Naylor out at second base? It seemed as if he was coming up ready to throw, but nobody was covering the bag.

Now that the 2026 Crosstown Classic is over, we can look back on the series, and I honestly think this might be the most competitive season series I've ever seen between the White Sox and the Cubs.

Every game was worth watching. Every game was tight. We had three total walk-offs, 22 home runs, and ultimately, a 3-3 split.

Cubs fans, what are your predictions for part two of the Crosstown Classic?

The White Sox took the series from the Cubs back at Rate Field. But now things head to Wrigley, and the Cubs are in dire need of a series win, trying to make up ground on the Brewers.

What an encouraging outing from Clay Holmes on Friday. He does 6.2 innings with one hit allowed and zero earned runs. The Cubs beat the Cardinals 3-0.

We've now seen it from both Holmes and Gausman since joining the organization, and that's got to give Cubs fans a lot of confidence as we head towards the postseason that this pitching staff could turn out to be up there with the best in baseball.