Chicago Cubs

Chicago Cubs slugger Kris Bryant is one of baseball's brightest young hitters, and he demolished Dan Straily and the Cincinnati Reds in an 11-8 Cubs victory Monday.

Bryant finished 5-for-5 with three home runs, six RBI and four runs scored, which etched his name into the baseball record book, per MLB's Twitter account:

CHICAGO — Even when John Lackey is bad, he is good.

That's not to say the Chicago Cubs' starting pitcher is never off his game. But nearly every time the 37-year-old takes the mound, he is good enough to win regardless of the quality of his pitching repertoire.

The Chicago Cubs starting rotation enters Tuesday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals with a cumulative 2.34 ERA, which would be the lowest combined mark by any team's starters since 1919, per MLB Stat of the Day.

The Chicago Cubs enter Monday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals with a 12.5-game lead in the National League Central, making them just one of four teams in the divisional era (since 1969) to hold a lead of 10 or more games by June 19, per Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN Stats & Info).

 SALEM, Va. — It’s been a wondrous 53 weeks for 2015 Chicago Cubs first-round draft pick and Myrtle Beach Pelicans second baseman Ian Happ on the baseball diamond.

Sunday delivers a poignant reminder of his greatest personal loss off it.

It will be Happ’s first Father’s Day since the passing of his dad, Keith, who died in October at age 58 as a result of brain cancer.

The Chicago Cubs made a move to bolster their bullpen depth Thursday, when they agreed to terms on a minor league deal with 40-year-old Joel Peralta.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal first reported Peralta is headed to the Windy City. The 12-year veteran's stint with the club will begin with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs. The Chicago Tribune's Paul Sullivan confirmed the news. 

An MRI on Tuesday confirmed that Chicago Cubs outfielder Jorge Soler has suffered a strained hamstring and is headed to the disabled list, CSN Chicago's Patrick Mooney reported. 

Continue for updates.

Chicago Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta got a taste of defeat Sunday for the first time in more than 10 months.

The Chicago Cubs are the best team in baseball.

That's true on the stat sheet, where they lead the solar system with a plus-129 run differential. And it's true in the standings, where Chicago paces the National League Central, and every other team in every other division, with a 36-15 record.

So it stands to reason the Cubs would be well-represented in the 2016 MLB All-Star Game.

The Chicago Cubs have finally tasted defeat when Jake Arrieta takes the mound, as the Los Angeles Dodgers' 5-0 victory Tuesday night at Wrigley Field snapped the team's 23-game winning streak with the 30-year-old ace starting.

Arrieta remains undefeated on the year at 9-0, however. Clayton Richard was credited with the loss.