When the Cubs return from the All-Star break on Friday, they dive right into a make-or-break stretch against the Diamondbacks, who they’re trailing in the National League wild-card race, and the Brewers, who they trail in the division race.
And one game into a series against the Reds, a division and wild-card foe, the Cubs will run into the July 30 trade deadline.
The Cubs (47-51) kept themselves in the conversation with a 5-2 road trip to Baltimore and St. Louis to enter the break on a high note. But their work proving they can be contenders is far from over.