Sara Sanchez from Bleed Cubbie Blue joined to chat about the upcoming Crosstown series and what’s going on over on the North Side. The Cubs have been on fire lately, leading the National League Central, but not everything is perfect at The Friendly Confines. Sara talked about the issues Chicago’s other baseball team sees, and the chaos that always ensues during this particular series.

Here is what we talked about:

• What’s new with the Cubs
• Both teams have A+ giveaways, especially for heritage nights
• Rating the offseason
• Kyle Tucker was a great addition to the squad, but pitchers were needed
• Kyle Hendricks, the lack of retiring numbers, and who should be the next statue
• Is first place sustainable?
• No Wild Card will come from the NL Central
• Jed Hoyer’s contract year
• The 2016 team and where they are now
• Pitching matchups
• Stats go out the window and vibes take over
• Fights, cup snakes and maybe a Pope sighting
• The biggest threat to the White Sox
• Mallory Swanson
• Keys to winning the series
• Fears heading into the series
• Will Atlanta be better soon?
• Will the Rockies be historically bad?
• The Dodgers hype might be overblown
• The other teams in California

You can find Sara on Bluesky and read her work on our sister site, Bleed Cubbie Blue. You might even see a familiar name this Friday for the series preview on the site.