Craig Counsell Drops Blunt Assessment After Cubs’ 9th Straight Loss

The Chicago Cubs have lost 13 of their last 15 games and have gone from having a 27-12 record to 29-25 in the space of 2 weeks.

Craig Counsell Drops Blunt Assessment After Cubs’ 9th Straight Loss

Craig Counsell (Image via Bleacher Report)

In Short
  • The Chicago Cubs have suffered their 9th consecutive loss, marking their longest losing streak since 2022.
  • Manager Craig Counsell emphasized the need for the team to improve offensively and defensively.
  • The Cubs have dropped 13 of their last 15 games and are now 0.5 games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final wild card spot.

The Chicago Cubs have stumbled in the 2026 season. Following a hot start, the Cubs suffered their 9th straight loss on Monday. Manager Craig Counsell later dropped a blunt assessment regarding the team.

After a 7-9 start, the NL Central side started firing. Huge series wins against the struggling Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets in April saw them go on a 10-game winning streak.

This streak was snapped with a 12-4 loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers. After dropping 3 games in a row, the Cubs went on another winning run. Between late April and early May, the team had another 10-game winning streak.

The 7-1 win against the Texas Rangers saw them have a 27-12 record. Since then, they have had a mixed form. They lost 4 games in a row before winning back-to-back games against the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago White Sox.

After losing the rivalry series against the White Sox, they got swept by the Milwaukee Brewers and the Houston Astros. On Monday, they entered the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, hoping to end this barren run.

The Cubs, however, struggled again. The team was not able to do much offensively as they scored just 1 run through 6 hits. A solo home run from Michael Busch in the 5th inning brought them back on level terms after falling 1-0 down in the 3rd inning through a double from Brandon Lowe.

A solo home run from Henry Davis in the 7th inning put the Pirates back on top. The home side held on to this lead and ended up 2-1 winners while handing the Cubs their 9th straight loss.

In a dramatic shift over the course of 2 weeks, the Cubs have dropped 13 off their last 15 games. While speaking with the reporters after the game, Counsell simply claimed that the team needed to play better.

We’ve got to play better. We’ve got to swing the bats better, we’ve got to pitch better … Offensively we are equipped to be way more consistent than this and way better than this, and we need to show it.

Craig Counsell told the reporters regarding the slump of Cubs

With the Arizona Diamondbacks winning 6-2 against the San Francisco Giants later on, the 3-time World Series winners fell out of the playoff spots. Though it is still early for playoff talks, they are now 0.5 games behind the D-backs for the final wild card spot.

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Cubs embark on longest losing streak since 2022 following Pirates’ 2-1 win victory

On the occasion of Memorial Day, the Chicago Cubs ended up losing again. Their 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates saw them embark on their longest losing streak since 2022.

Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong
Pete Crow-Armstrong (Image via Bleacher Report)

In the 2022 season, the Cubs lost 10 games in a row in June. A month later, they almost matched this unwanted record with a 9-game losing run.

In the end, they finished with a 74-88 record, 19 games behind first-place St. Louis Cardinals. A loss on Tuesday would see the team drop their 10th successive game.

If the Chicago-based side loses on Tuesday, there will be some questions regarding their playoff chances. In MLB history, only 4 teams have reached the postseason after losing 10 consecutive games at any point in a season. For now, the team remains above the .500 mark due to their hot run earlier in the campaign.

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