NL Central: Cardinals Had Better Be Worried About Cubs Sooner Rather Than Later

You could say that the St. Louis Cardinals have enjoyed a good start for the most part. Bats have been active and pitching has been consistent, allowing less pressure to be on everyone and more talk to be about how well the team can do if Yadier Molina remains healthy.

But all of a sudden, ladies and gentlemen, the Chicago Cubs have shown they will have at least a degree of scrap about themselves.

After securing a 1-0 win against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Cubs move up to within two games of St. Louis in these early standings. In Chicago terms, though, none of that matters; it's on fire.

	Wins	Losses	Games Back
St. Louis Cardinals	15	6	--
Chicago Cubs	13	8	2.0
Pittsburgh Pirates	12	10	3.5
Cincinnati Reds	11	11	4.5
Milwaukee Brewers	5	18	11.0

As of 4:48pm CST, May 1, 2015

Chicago has a winning record, a good streak and pitching that has finally shown up to keep it in games. In fact, with the win against the Brewers Friday, the Cubs tied St. Louis for the No. 3 spot in baseball with three shutouts this season.

St. Louis' pitching might just be challenged here.

The fun part—because yes here's where it gets good—as of Friday night, the Cardinals will have 10 games against the Cubs before the All-Star break. That's more than against any other team on the St. Louis schedule. The two play just two series after the break, meaning the Cardinals have a greater chance now to affect their positioning later in the season.

Both of the second-half series come in the second and third weeks of September.

If the Cubs are going to be a contender this season as it certainly appears that they could, now will be the time or St. Louis to play its best baseball.

Despite the obvious loss of Adam Wainwright being the headline-taker for now, the Cardinals should be thankful that their injury situation is as favorable as it is, given that now is when they will need to be healthy for these games against Chicago.

For traditionalists, it's great to see the Cardinals and the Cubs again squaring off at the top of the division, even if it is early. But there's no time to get caught up in the excitement. If the Cardinals are serious about taking the National League Central Division in 2015, it's time to win.

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