CHICAGO _ As recently as two weeks ago, the second-half-opening series between the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers looked to be the marquee matchup coming out of the All-Star break.
The Cubs, as popular as any team in any sport, and the Rangers, one of MLB's most successful franchises since 2010, had the two best records in baseball and were considered shoo-ins for the postseason.
But then their hard-charging offenses stopped scoring with regularity, and their thrifty starting rotations became overly generous. The result was a pair of skids to end the first half that put the brakes on any plans for a drama-free ride into October.
Despite the recent woes, the Rangers continue to pace the American League with the best overall record, and the Cubs have a seven-game lead in the National League Central.
And a weekend series that might have lost some luster remains a potential World Series preview.
"That would be kind of cool," Rangers All-Star pitcher Cole Hamels said. "At least you know a team that hasn't won it in a long time is going to win it. The Rangers have never won it. Hey, 100 years or never, someone is going to win it."
To Hamels' point, the Rangers fell short in back-to-back Fall Classics in 2010 and 2011, the only two appearances in franchise history. The Cubs haven't been to a World Series since 1945 and haven't won one since 1908.
The Cubs' woes are well-chronicled, with the Curse of the Billy Goat still holding them back. But they reached the NL Championship Series last year, getting swept in four games by the New York Mets, and were considered World Series favorites entering 2016.
Hamels and fellow All-Star Ian Desmond are among the Rangers players with the most recent looks at the Cubs as NL-ers last season. Hamels' last outing against them was historic, as he tossed a no-hitter July 25 at Wrigley Field.
"I hope the scouting report is still in tact in my memory bank of how to get them out," Hamels said. "We just want to win."
The Cubs' lineup features some of the players who were no-hit by Hamels, though they added second baseman Ben Zobrist and right fielder Jason Hayward in the offseason and have turned to catcher Willson Contreras after starting the season in the minors.
Desmond said that while some of the Cubs' hitters are the same, the lineup and pitching staff underwent the usual offseason overhaul.
"There's always changing parts. They have some of the same guys, but they've also got a whole different dynamic. Teams change on an annual basis. I don't even know what their roster looks like beyond the mega-names, but I don't know who we'll face. We'll get there and see what happens."
The Cubs' All-Stars also aren't too familiar with the Rangers. Zobrist played half of last season with the Oakland A's, but, like Desmond, his working-knowledge of the Rangers might be outdated.
Zobrist, for instance, never saw Hamels last season and hasn't faced right-hander Yu Darvish since 2014.
"I've seen that they've played really well, but I haven't seen what's making them play so well," Zobrist said. "They've stayed fairly healthy, outside of Darvish and [Colby] Lewis. They've got a good offense, but I haven't dissected or looked at their pitching."
Jake Arrieta, the reigning NL Cy Young winner, said that he was hoping the series would be at Globe Life Park to get him back to his Plano, Texas, and TCU roots. He had a little more knowledge about the Rangers than some of his teammates.
"I think they were the first team to 50 wins, right?" Arrieta said. "They're obviously a good ballclub. They've got some good arms, and they've got some youth that's turned some corners. They play with a lot of energy, and that's something they've done for a long time. It'll be a fun series, I know that."
Arrieta, though, won't pitch for the Cubs, nor will fellow All-Star Jon Lester. The Rangers will face three right-handers, former Rangers prospect Kyle Hendricks, Jason Hammel and John Lackey.
Hamels will pitch the series finale for the Rangers, following fellow left-hander Martin Perez on Friday and Darvish on Saturday as he comes off the disabled list to pitch for the first time since June 8.
The series might have lost some luster as the Cubs and Rangers staggered to the first-half finish line, but it could still be a World Series preview.
"The Rangers are having a really good year, and I think it would be a pretty cool World Series," Cubs slugger Kris Bryant said. "Just the fact that we made the World Series for us would be awesome. Hopefully we face them in a deep playoff run."
Said Hamels: "That would be great, but in order to make it happen, it's not an easy walk in the park. You have to take it. You have to earn it. In the excitement of the postseason, anything can happen. I'm hoping that we get ourselves going for the second half and really go after it."
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