Cubs vs NL Central: Who will win the division in 2021?on February 26, 2021 at 4:00 pm

The biggest question mark for the Cubs right now is their pitching. They have Kyle Hendricks who is awesome and could lead any rotation but there isn’t enough behind him. They traded Yu Darvish and lost Jon Lester and Jose Quintana to free agency. It is going to come down to the guys taking those spots elevating their play.

What are the Chicago Cubs’ chances in the division?

The big wrench in the division this year is the St. Louis Cardinals. They were already a pretty good team but they made the big trade of the offseason when they acquired Nolan Arenado from the Colorado Rockies. He is one of the best players in all of baseball so that really gives them a boost. As we stand right now, you have to project them to be the winner of the division.

The Brewers have a player in the same stratosphere as Arenado in Christian Yelich. He struggled mightily in 2020 but in 2018 and 2019, you can argue he was right there with Mike Trout as the best hitter in the game. If he can get back to his elite level that we have seen, and there is no reason to think he can’t, the Brewers will get a major boost.

The Reds still have some really good players but it is hard to see them actually competing for the division as it stands right now. They have a chance because this division might be won by the team who reaches 85 games first but if the Cubs or Cardinals won 90, nobody should be surprised. The only team that has absolutely no chance is the Pirates.

Pre-exhibition standings prediction:

1. St. Louis Cardinals

2. Chicago Cubs

3. Milwaukee Brewers