Race officially over

The Cubs were eliminated from the NL Central race on the same night their bullpen handed away a lead in a 6-3 loss to Atlanta.

Counsell sounded blunt

Craig Counsell said Chicago cannot get through October unless several relievers become dependable, not just one or two.

“We’re not going to survive if we don’t have multiple guys we can count on”

Atlanta punished mistakes

Jacob Webb and Edward Cabrera each gave up two-run homers late, turning a tight game into another warning sign against a playoff-level lineup.

October raises the stakes

Postseason games leave little room for shaky relief work. The Cubs have seen this flaw show up too often down the stretch.

Ten games to decide

With 10 regular-season games left, Chicago still has to sort out which bullpen arms can be trusted when the matchups get sharper.

Webb has slipped hard

Webb was once the summer’s go-to reliever, including a run of 24 straight scoreless outings. His September has looked nothing like that.

One swing flipped it

Webb’s seventh-inning homer changed the game from a Cubs lead to a Cubs deficit. It was his fourth homer allowed in eight appearances.

Cabrera got a test

Edward Cabrera returned from a long injured-list stint with blister trouble, and Chicago used him in relief to see if he could fit a playoff role.

Mostly good, then costly

Cabrera covered 2 1/3 innings and did enough to intrigue. But his ninth-inning homer made a comeback much harder.

The bats went quiet

The loss was not only on the bullpen. Chicago’s lineup managed three runs and five singles, then had its final 12 hitters retired in order.

The weakness is clear

September has put the relief corps under a harsh light, especially since Webb allowed two late-August walk-off homers on the road.

Twenty-seven outs matter

Counsell framed the fix simply: the Cubs need to finish games cleanly, with multiple relievers throwing well enough to protect slim leads.

“We’ve got to put together 27 outs”