With the Pirates poised to challenge the Cards NL Central lead, St. Louis sweeps red-hot Diamondbacks in the desert while the Cubs stumble a bit against the Giants. Dan and John discuss the pivotal West Coast trips as both teams prepare for the September sprint to the playoffs.

As both the Cards and Cubs face tough, pivotal West Coast road trips, Dan and John speculate on how each team will position itself for the September stretch run. They also discuss the Cubs' stumbling starting pitching and the Cards' scuffling offense.

According to our extremely unofficial math, the Cubs and Cards have a 32 percent chance of meeting in the NLDS. Dan and John discuss the potential for that historic series, speculate on pitching matchups, and make a few other predictions.

Cubs go on hottest streak of season at the right time but will it last and are the Cubs about to bench Starlin Castro? Dan and John discuss these items and whether Randal Grichuk has finally turned a corner as a star player or whether his good season so far is fool's gold.

As the trade deadline expires, Dan and John discuss the Cubs and Cardinals trades and the trades that might have been. They also talk about Matt Holliday's re-injury and whether the Cubs are being too cautious compared to other rebuilding teams like the Astros.

The upcoming trade deadline has the rumors flying for Cubs and Cardinals fans. Dan and John predict some possible trade partners for each, including at least one long-shot blockbuster deal. They also discuss the hitting machine Kyle Schwarber and call-up of Stephen Piscotty. 

As the Cards and Cubs enter play after the All-Star break, Dan and John make predictions for the second half. Will the Pirates overtake the Cardinals in the NL Central and will the Cubs make the playoffs? Which team will make a blockbuster move at the trade deadline? Fascinating decisions await both squads. 

As the Cubs and Cards recover from a dramatic four-game series at Wrigley Field that ended in a split, Dan and John recap and then pick the first ever Cubs Cards Cast mid-season All-Star squad from the rosters of both teams. They also discuss whether the Cardinals are luckier than other MLB teams.

The Cards still have the best record in baseball and showed it by sweeping the Cubs in STL but since then have stumbled. Is this a sign of things to come, or just a temporary slide? Are the Cubs about to pounce on Andrew Cashman or another starting pitcher and is the second half shaping up as a tight race?

Advanced statistical websites say the Cubs have about a 70% chance of making the playoffs this year but Dan and John agree they won't make it with the current roster construction. What moves must be made for the transition from pretender to true contender? Both the Cubs and Cardinals prepare for big weekend series in St.Louis.