Sept. 22--Manager Joe Maddon believes there's enough at stake with every Chicago Cubs individual player to not have them overlook the Milwaukee Brewers as they try to take another step Monday night toward a National League playoff berth.
Jason Hammel, for instance, will try to shore up a spot in the playoff rotation if the Cubs advance past the NL wild card game with a strong effort against the Brewers.
With Thursday serving as a day off, the Cubs will skip the turn of Dan Haren so that Jon Lester, Hammel and Jake Arrieta will face the Pirates this weekend at Wrigley Field.
The final two weeks of the season could serve as a final audition for the likes of reliever Neil Ramirez and right fielder Jorge Soler, but Maddon wants his players to concentrate on winning and not their individual well-being.
"I want our players to be focused on the process of the day and don't get caught up in that stuff," Maddon said. "The thing I want our guys to understand is the process is fearless. When you want to become outcome-oriented, that's where you run into trouble or problems. If we can keep our guys focused on the process of the day, there's no fear in that.''
