SUN 22
Cardinals at Cubs (1:20 p.m., NBCSCH): Is there any hope left of the Cubs chasing down their rivals for the NL Central title? Hello? Anyone? There’s always the wild-card race, though even that was dicey at best at the start of the weekend. Might as well give ’em the best you’ve got, Yu Darvish. Matter of fact, do it twice — you’ve got the Birds again in St. Louis assuming your team doesn’t throw in the towel before your final scheduled start of the regular season.
Rams at Browns (7:20 p.m., Ch. 5): Baker Mayfield walked on at Texas Tech and won the starting job. Then he walked on at Oklahoma and won the job there. But we still don’t know if the sawed-off Texan is capable of walking into Cleveland and winning a dang thing. Time to find out if there’s anything to this Browns resurrection business we keep hearing about.
MON 23
Bears at Redskins (7:15 p.m., ESPN, Ch. 9): The only thing worse than the Redskins’ 30th-ranked rushing offense? Their 31st-ranked rushing defense. Where we come from, that sounds like a heck of an easy game plan for X’s-and-O’s wizard Matt Nagy. It goes something like this: Hut, hike, handoff. Run the ball, man! [Cue another 45 passing attempts by Mitch Trubisky.]
TUE 24
Indians at White Sox (7:10 p.m., Ch. 9): A seven-game homestand to end the season begins. Watch Tim Anderson chase the AL batting title. Watch Jose Abreu pad his AL RBI lead. Watch Yoan Moncada put both feet on the accelerator as he completes his own marvelous season. And, probably, watch the streaking Indians win anyway.
WED 25
Capitals at Blackhawks (7:30 p.m., NHL Network, NBCSCH+): The preseason is nearing its end, which means Caps superstar Alexander Ovechkin has jumped into the fray. Gotta skate in a few games before the real deal starts, right?
THU 26
Eagles at Packers (7:20 p.m., NFL Network): Last time we checked, we still don’t like that team up in Green Bay a whole lot. Besides, there’s just something about the way the Eagles wear green that’s … better. More wholesome, even. Doesn’t Carson Wentz seem like a great guy? Look, we’re just riffing here.
FRI 27
Cubs at Cardinals (7:15 p.m., Ch. 9): More likely than not, the Cubs are still in must-win mode here. Depending how the previous days went, the Cardinals may be in dogpile-on-the-mound-after-clinching-a-title mode. With apologies to Kris Bryant, none of the above sounds boring at all.
SAT 28
Northwestern at Wisconsin (11 a.m., Ch. 7): If we’ve learned anything about the Wildcats in recent years, it’s that their seasons don’t truly start until they’ve played poorly enough to become overlooked. Pat Fitzgerald has had more than a few pleasant Saturdays against the Badgers. Upset alert?
Blackhawks at Bruins (2 p.m., NHL Network): It’s the preseason finale, and you know what that means. Come to think of it, what does that mean? Here’s what it means: Please, nobody get hurt.
