Cubs’ .540 record post ASB would have been good enough to get them into the playoffs over the whole season.
Overall, they got off to that horrible start and then had that putrid June, and have otherwise been a pretty good team. In both bad stretches, the blame is largely on the starting pitching, which is ironic since it’s been phenomenal outside those two bad stretches. 3rd best starting pitching ERA since the ASB behind only the Dodgers and Astros.
There’s no mystery with what happened in June. The whole starting staff was hurt and they were plugging in relief starts, non-prospects and prospects who clearly weren’t ready. If there was any positive out of that stretch, it’s that they were eventually forced to start Sampson, who they had DFA’d earlier in the season and no other team had claimed.
At the start of the season, it was Stroman, Steele and Leiter - all guys who ended up having overall nice seasons - who were getting lit up. Steele and Leiter were both put in that role due to Mills, Alzolay, and Milely all being hurt. Steele eventually settled in as a starter with a fantastic last 18 starts of his season and Leiter carved out a nice role as a solid reliever. Maybe Stroman was just putting pressure on himself after signing the big contract.