CHICAGO -- In an industry with teams deciding to be either all-in or all-out, the Reds took a chance to zig when others zagged.

Following a 67-95 season in 2018, the Reds' front office joined the fan base that had enough of a lengthy rebuild and yearned to be more competitive. The club hired David Bell to manage and revamped the entire coaching staff while fully embracing the analytics movement.

Cincinnati parted with several prospects in trades to acquire three veteran starting pitchers in Sonny Gray, Tanner Roark and Alex Wood while adding offense with right fielder Yasiel Puig. Gray -- who signed a three-year, $30.5 million extension as part of the trade -- has pitched well, but Wood has been limited by a back injury, while Roark and Puig (netting Trevor Bauer) have been traded away.

So there was confidence that the Reds could have a legitimate shot to at least be more competitive in a tough and wide-open National League Central division. But after many twists, turns and some pleasant surprises, their playoff hopes won¡¯t be a reality this season.

Cincinnati¡¯s 8-2 loss to the Cubs on Monday night at Wrigley Field officially eliminated the Reds from postseason contention.

? Box score

¡°For me, it¡¯s all about making the postseason,¡± Bell said. ¡°That¡¯s now next year, but part of that process is playing well the rest of the way.¡±

A 1-8 start to the season had the Reds spending the rest of 2019 trying to climb out of a deep hole. But oddly, no team really took charge of the Central race -- and despite being in fifth place most of the first half, the Reds were often within striking distance, where one winning streak and some sustained success could have meant a breakthrough to truly contending.

That never came, although they were often close to challenging the Cubs, Cardinals and Brewers as those teams swapped division leads. They were just 4 1/2 games out of first place in the division heading into the All-Star break.

They have now been left out of postseason play for the sixth consecutive season -- with their last berth coming in 2013, when they were defeated by the Pirates in the National League Wild Card Game. But while they are virtually assured of finishing below .500 for the sixth consecutive season, it¡¯s all but certain that their streak of four 90-plus-loss seasons will end.

¡°It¡¯s been a really important year," Bell said. "There¡¯s so many things I¡¯m excited about, partially things that we have in place that we¡¯ve made progress on that I know are going to lead to success, and also have been able to identify things we need to get better at."

The rotation, one of baseball¡¯s worst for several years, was often impressive as it was led by All-Stars Luis Castillo and Gray. Before it ran out of gas, the bullpen was one of the most dependable groups in the NL. But the offense, which was viewed as a strength entering the season, was a letdown despite a blockbuster season from Eugenio Suárez. Big run-producer Scooter Gennett missed the first three months on the injured list before being dealt to the Giants, and Joey Votto had a second straight subpar season.

Those struggles were underscored in the close games. The Reds lead the Majors with 32 one-run losses.

¡°We¡¯ve played in so many close games against really good teams all year long,¡± Bell said. ¡°The record isn¡¯t what we wanted in those close games, but having that experience -- we¡¯ve needed that and have gotten a lot of it.¡±

What stands ahead of the Reds as the book begins to close on 2019 remains to be seen. The clubhouse is full of players looking to make a strong push into 2020 and beyond.

Their steady rotation, with Castillo and Gray leading, has added another workhorse in the form of Bauer. While Bauer has had some ups and downs working into his new role with the Reds, the potential of their 1-2-3 starters is tantalizing.

¡°There¡¯s been a lot of change. New faces, a lot of new,¡± Bell said. ¡°I think we¡¯ve made the most of this year to identify all of those areas and make progress in areas we needed to. That has me really excited.

¡°I¡¯m excited about the future. I mean, I¡¯m not allowing myself to think about next year yet. We have really important games here left. Going into the offseason and next year, these games are important to win.¡±

Those remaining 11 games will be vital for players like Kevin Gausman. The righty, who allowed three runs -- on a first-inning home run by Kyle Schwarber -- over two innings in his first start with the Reds on Monday, was claimed on waivers from Atlanta on Aug. 5 as the team's latest reclamation project. He pitched primarily out of the bullpen, but he could very well be a part of the team¡¯s rotation next season.

Gausman trusts the structure the Reds have in place. It also helps seeing other success stories like Gray.

¡°I didn¡¯t throw any sliders tonight, but I think my slider is probably the best it¡¯s ever been in my life right now,¡± Gausman said. ¡°That¡¯s just one thing they¡¯ve been working with me on every day. They talk about getting 1 percent better every day. I¡¯ve really tried to focus on that.

¡°They have some really smart people here and some really good people. It seems like a good fit. I think it¡¯s been good for a lot of guys here, not just me."