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          Chicago Cubs Report

          Breaking down the Cubs' stakes on their potential clinching day

          • Jesse Rogers, ESPN Staff WriterSep 26, 2017, 07:07 AM ET
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              Jesse joined ESPN Chicago in September 2009 and covers MLB for ESPN.com.
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          ST. LOUIS -- Clinching day is finally here for the Chicago Cubs. After a rocky start to 2017, they’re on the verge of something special once again. It has become the norm on the North Side of Chicago, though being pushed by the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals meant this day wasn't a certainty.

          The Cubs still need either to win one more game or the Brewers to lose one, but a return to the postseason is all but assured. FiveThirtyEight.com says the Cubs have a 99 percent chance of going to the playoffs. In that vein, here’s what you need to know about the Cubs and their attempt to clinch a second consecutive National League Central Division title and third straight postseason appearance when they take on the Cardinals on Tuesday night (8 p.m. ET on ESPN/WatchESPN):

          • Jake Arrieta faces Carlos Martinez with the Cubs righty owning a 2.06 career ERA against St. Louis. Since July, Arrieta has compiled a 2.00 ERA with a .196 batting average against.

          • The Cubs would be the first World Series winners to make the postseason since 2012 and the first reigning champions to win their division since 2009. No NL team has repeated as World Series champion since the Cincinnati Reds in 1975 and '76.

          • It would be the second time the Cubs have repeated as division champions (2007-08) and second time they’ve made the postseason in three straight years (1906-08). The Cubs have won six division titles since 1969. This would be No.7.

          • The Cubs would be popping champagne for the eighth time since Theo Epstein took over after the 2011 season, with all of those happening since 2015. That year, the team secured the second wild-card spot, then won the NL wild-card game over the Pittsburgh Pirates and the divisional round against the Cardinals. In 2016, the Cubs took the division, their first-round series against the San Francisco Giants and the NLCS over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Finally, they beat the Cleveland Indians for their first championship since 1908, ending the longest drought in professional sports history.

          • Joe Maddon will make the postseason for the seventh time in his 12 years as a big league manager and third in three seasons with the Cubs. He has made the postseason in six of the previous nine years and has a winning record in nine of his past 10 seasons.

          • The Cubs are almost a lock to play the Washington Nationals in the first round of the postseason. The Cubs went 3-4 against the Nationals this season, but both teams have made changes since their first meeting in June. The Cubs added to their starting staff, and the Nationals bolstered their bullpen. The Cubs also let catcher Miguel Montero go after Washington stole seven bases off him and Arrieta in June.