Sports
Cubs and White Sox Reached the Playoffs. Here’s What to Expect in the Wild Card Series
The Chicago Cubs and White Sox are heading into the MLB playoffs, marking the first time since 2020 that both Chicago teams made the postseason.
Both teams will play their best-of-three Wild Card Series on the road starting Tuesday with the Cubs taking on the Padres in San Diego and the White Sox facing the Astros in Houston.
Alex Cohen of Cubs Marquee Sports Network and Jeff Meller of ESPN Chicago joined “Chicago Tonight” to preview the series and the season ahead. Here are some things to look out for.
Crosstown Rivalry
Chicago is the only city with two MLB franchises to see both teams make this year’s postseason.
“Welcome to Baseball City, USA,” Meller said. “Whether we can continue to dream about a Crosstown World Series, at the very least I think both teams not only want to win and advance in the playoffs, but they want their fan bases to be able to have bragging rights moving forward as well.”
In 2020, both teams didn’t get far in the postseason after the Cubs lost 2-0 to the Marlins and the then-Oakland A’s beat the Sox 2-1 in the Wild Card round.
In 2008, both teams made it to the best-of-five Division Series.
And 120 years ago, in 1906, the Sox beat the Cubs 4-2 in the World Series.
“Anything’s possible — I’ll quote Kevin Garnett,” Cohen said. “When you have both teams in the playoffs, yeah, of course, there’s a chance to have a nice little series here in Chicago with the Cubs and the White Sox.”
The White Sox’s Dramatic Turnaround
After setting the modern record for the most losses in a single season, finishing with a 41-121 record in 2024, the White Sox gained another historic first badge as the first team in MLB history to reach the playoffs immediately following consecutive 100-game-loss seasons.
Meller attributes a lot of the Sox’s winning era to the new behind-the-scenes crew including general manager Chris Getz, who was hired in 2024, and manager Will Venable, who took over in 2025, both shaping a better team and environment.
On how the South Side team will fare against the Astros, Meller feels hopeful.
The Astros had a roller-coaster season. At one point, they were 11 games below .500, and they fired their general manager in August before ultimately finishing with an even record of 81-81. Houston has some weaknesses, but it also has one of baseball’s biggest stars in Yordan Alvarez, who hit 42 home runs, led the American League in batting average and is in the MVP conversation.
“The truth is that the Astros, for all their history, they’re kind of in the dying embers of their dynasty,” Meller said. “There are still some remaining champions from their roster, but they’re definitely not in the spot where the White Sox roster is fearing them in any way. I think they think it’s a real opportunity to take advantage of a weak American League for the White Sox.”
A Historic Season for the Cubs
The Cubs are on a high as the team that scored the most runs in baseball this season and anticipate an MVP title for Pete Crow-Armstrong, who recently became the seventh player in MLB history to join the 40-40 club.
“Just seeing his growth from when he made his big league debut in 2023 to now — it’s been pretty special to watch,” Cohen said. “He is the X factor. He is the main factor. If Pete Crow-Armstrong does well, the Cubs will go far.”
The Padres are back in the postseason for a third straight season, but that doesn’t deter Cohen’s optimism for a Cubs win.
“I think the Cubs are going to beat the Padres because, one, they beat them in the postseason in 2025, and two, you look at their matchup over the course of the season, the Cubs dominated the Padres,” Cohen said. “I’m very confident both the White Sox and the Cubs are winning their wild cards here.”
Wild Card Series Schedule
To watch the White Sox-Astros games:
Game 1: Tuesday, 5 p.m. ET on Peacock/NBCSN
Game 2: Wednesday, 5 p.m. ET on Peacock/NBCSN
Game 3 (if necessary): Thursday on NBC/Peacock/NBCSN
To watch the Cubs-Padres games:
Game 1: Tuesday, 10 p.m. ET on Peacock/NBCSN
Game 2: Wednesday, 10 p.m. ET on Peacock/NBCSN
Game 3 (if necessary): Thursday on NBC/Peacock/NBCSN
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
