The Chicago Cubs are in a good position to make their second straight playoff appearance following a four-year drought, but their performance over the past few weeks has been a cause for concern among their fans. Having to face Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski on Wednesday only increases their worries. Get up to $1,500 in bonus bets if your first bet loses at BetMGM with promo code CBSSPORTS when wagering on Wednesday's biggest games: Chicago (78-61) hopes its third time opposing Misiorowski this season is a charm as it continues its four-game series against major league-best Milwaukee (86-53) at 7:40 p.m.
The NL Central rivals split the first two games of the set, with the Cubs romping to a 17-3 victory in the opener and the Brewers responding with a 9-4 triumph. That loss was the 11th in 18 contests since Aug. 13 for Chicago, which fell one game behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the first NL wild card. The Cubs, who are 3-5 against the Brewers this year and were on the wrong side of a three-game sweep at home in May, have a five-game lead over the San Diego Padres for the second berth but trail Milwaukee by eight games in the division.
Chicago hasn't been able to solve Misiorowski in 2026, as the 24-year-old right-hander allowed one run and five hits with 16 strikeouts over 12 innings in winning his two starts versus the club. Misiorowski has been exceptional against most of his opponents this season, winning 14 of his 19 decisions - including five of the last six - while leading the majors in both ERA (1.73) and strikeouts (222). Eight other games are on MLB's Wednesday evening schedule, one of which is the rubber match of the three-game series between the New York Yankees (79-60) and Los Angeles Angels (53-86) at 9:38 p.m.
ET at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Calif. The Angels ended their seven-game losing streak with a 10-1 triumph in the opener and the Yankees answered with a 7-3 win on Tuesday. With the victory, New York expanded its lead over the Boston Red Sox for the first wild card in the AL to four games and remained 4.5 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East.
Bet on Wednesday's MLB games with the FanDuel promo code and get up to $350 in bonus bets when you bet $5 for seven days: The Miami Marlins (70-69) look to stay in the NL postseason race when they visit the Kansas City Royals (62-77) at 7:40 p.m. ET for the middle contest of their three-game set at Kauffman Stadium. Miami, which is three games back in the chase for the third wild card, took the opener 6-3 after beginning its seven-game road trip by losing three of four to the Washington Nationals.
Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Pirates (68-71) attempt to continue their surprising surge toward a playoff spot when they resume their three-game series at PNC Park against the San Francisco Giants (57-82) at 6:40 p.m. The Pirates squandered a six-run lead in the opener but escaped with a 13-12 victory as Oneil Cruz went 4-for-6 with four RBI. It was the third straight win a fifth in seven contests for Pittsburgh, which is five games out of the third NL wild card spot.
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