Things that have happened since the Cubs last had an off day

The Cubs have, at last, reached the end of their 30-day odyssey through the major leagues, and played 29 games on those 30 days, finishing with an 18-11 record, a .621 winning percentage which would translate to 101 wins in a full season. They are enjoying a well-earned day off Thursday, their first since August 20.

A lot has happened, both in and out of baseball, since the Cubs had that off day last month, which they spent in Detroit. Here are just a few of those things, in no particular order.

• The Cubs posted a 3.10 ERA and a +23 run differential over the 30 days.
• Daniel Murphy was still a member of the Nationals when the Cubs last had an off day. He was acquired on the first day of the stretch, August 21, and first played for the Cubs August 22. The Cubs are 16-6 with Murphy in the starting lineup.
• The Cubs flew from Pittsburgh to Detroit to Chicago to Atlanta to Philadelphia to Milwaukee to Washington to Chicago to Washington to Chicago to Phoenix to Chicago, a total of approximately 16,442 miles (source: air mileage calculator)
• When the Cubs had their last off day, the Diamondbacks were in first place in the N.L. West. Since then, Arizona is 10-18, the worst record in the National League in that time frame.
• Mets ace Jacob deGrom made five starts with a 2.12 ERA and a 0.912 WHIP over the last 30 days. He struck out 47 in 34 innings in those five starts... and posted zero wins. The Mets went 1-4 in those five games, scoring a total of 12 runs in “support” of deGrom.
• When the Cubs had their last off day, Hurricane Florence was still 10 days away from forming.
• Eight other tropical storms/hurricanes (Gordon, Helene, Isaac and Joyce in the Atlantic, and Miriam, Norman, Olivia and Paul in the Pacific) formed, traveled through oceans and dissipated within the last 30 days.
• The city of Chicago has gone from 13 hours, 44 minutes of daylight to 12 hours, 15 minutes of daylight.
• When the Cubs had their last off day, Khalil Mack was still 12 days away from being traded to the Bears.
• Wisconsin was still undefeated and ranked No. 4 in AP’s Top 25 preseason college football poll when the Cubs last had an off day. (Now, after a loss to BYU, they rank 18th.)
• White Sox prospect Michael Kopech made his major-league debut, had four big-league starts, tore his UCL and had Tommy John surgery, all during the Cubs’ 30-day stretch without a scheduled off day.
• The Tampa Bay Rays are 21-5 since the Cubs last had an off day and moved from 11 games out of the second wild card spot in the American League to 5½ games behind that spot, still with a chance.
• The Cubs made 39 total transactions (disabled list moves, recalls/options/outrights to and from Iowa, acquisitions, etc.), including 14 changes to the 40-man roster (this includes both players added to and removed from the 40-man).
• The Cubs played the 29 games beginning at the following times, in this order over the 30 days (all times Central), in three time zones: 6:10, 6:10, 7:05, 1:20, 1:20, 1:20, 7:05, 7:05, 1:20, 6:35, 6:05, 6:05, 12:35, 1:10, 7:10, 7:10, 6:05, 4:15, 8:00, 7:05, 7:05, 7:05, 4:05, 7:05, 3:05, 1:20, 8:40, 8:40, 8:40.
• Approximately 324,000 babies were born in the United States.
• Approximately 216,000 people died in the United States. (source for birth/death numbers)

Enjoy this off day — the Cubs, and you, deserve it. The Cubs are close to clinching the N.L. Central title and the best record in the National League. If they do that, they’ll play their first postseason game Thursday, October 4 at Wrigley Field... after three off days. That’ll feel like heaven.