The Chicago Cubs are on a historic roll, and they showed no signs of slowing down on Friday night. In a dominant 7-1 victory over the Texas Rangers, the Cubs secured their second 10-game winning streak of the season—a feat not seen by the franchise since 1935. The last time the Cubs had more than two such streaks in a season? Way back in 1906, when they had four.
Ian Happ set the tone early, extending his on-base streak to 29 games with an RBI single in the first inning that gave Chicago a lead they never relinquished. Happ's consistency at the plate has been a driving force for the Cubs, who now sit at 27-12 and have won 20 of their last 23 games. The only blemishes? Three consecutive losses that separate their two impressive win streaks.
According to Sportradar, the last major league team to notch two 10-game winning streaks within the first 39 games of a season was the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers, who did it in just 24 games. The Cubs are in elite company.
On the mound, Ben Brown was electric in his first start of the season after 12 relief appearances. He tossed four hitless innings, striking out three and walking one. Javier Assad (3-1) earned the win, allowing just one hit over 3 2/3 scoreless innings. The Rangers managed only two hits all night, as Brown and three relievers kept them off balance.
Offensively, Happ drew a leadoff walk in the third and scored on Seiya Suzuki's seventh home run of the season—a two-run blast that extended the lead to 3-0. Michael Busch added a three-run double in the seventh to put the game out of reach. Happ's 29-game on-base streak is the longest by a Cub since Bryan LaHair reached safely in 30 straight games in 2012. The only longer active streak in the majors belongs to Nick Kurtz of the Athletics, who has reached in 31 consecutive games.
Texas didn't get their first hit until the fifth inning, when pinch-hitter Justin Foscue drove in a run with a single to make it 3-1. But that was all the Rangers could muster, as they dropped their eighth game in their last 11. Rangers starter Kumar Rocker (1-4) struggled, giving up three runs on four hits over 3 2/3 innings while throwing 87 pitches.
The Cubs will look to keep their streak alive on Saturday night, with Edward Cabrera (3-0, 3.27 ERA) taking the mound against Jack Leiter (1-3, 5.45 ERA) of the Rangers. Leiter has lost his last five starts, posting a 6.67 ERA during that span. For Cubs fans, this is a team that's not just winning—they're making history.