Cubs play spoiler in sweep of Phillies — like it or not

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When the series opened against the playoff-contending Phillies this week, Cubs manager David Ross wanted no part of talk about the Cubs’ last chance to play a spoiler role in this year's playoff chases.

Doesn’t like the concept, he said.

“I never did.”

Three games later, the Cubs had a sweep of the Phillies — barely two weeks after sweeping the Mets in New York — and Ross was singing a different tune about that whole spoiler thing.

Well, actually, not so much.

“I’m just happy to be playing good baseball,” he said Thursday after Javier Assad, Keegan Thompson and Michael Rucker pitched the Cubs to a 2-0 victory for the Cubs’ 12th victory in 16 games as they head into the final two series of the year.

Along the way, they swept the six-game season series from the Phillies.

“Nice job all around by the pitching staff this whole series,” said Ross, who got stellar starting performances from veteran Marcus Stroman and a pair of rookie who both made their debuts in the last five weeks (Assad and Wednesday’s winner, Hayden Wesneski).

Maybe the stakes against teams like the Phillies — the spoiler role — bring out a little more from a Cubs team that has used 64 different players during a season lacking relevance since May.

“Absolutely,” Stroman said. “At the end of the day we’re going out there to compete, no matter what, whether we’re in the playoff [hunt] or not.”

“It’s fun to play well; it’s fun to win,” said Ian Happ, who made another highlight-reel catch in left in the ninth inning Thursday. “But those are the little things that motivate you as you come down the stretch, being able to compete against good teams that are in playoff position.”

Or not.

“It never made any sense to me, playing spoiler,” Ross said. “I don’t know how people function like that. I really believe the ultimate goal is to go out and play your hardest and your best every single day. And if you can’t do that you probably don’t belong in this league, to be honest with you.”

If anything, the Cubs should feel like they belong in the National League East — where they have feasted, going 21-10 against those five teams, with nary a losing record against any of them.

(Since he’s not into spoiling things, we won’t mention the NL West to Ross).

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