The Chicago Cubs took care of business at home and then split their series in Kansas City during their week-long pow-wow with the Royals. The rare home-and-home in baseball was an overall success for the Cubs.
Series Recap:
- Monday, August 3rd: Cubs 2, Royals 0
- Tuesday, August 4th: Cubs 5, Royals 4
- Wednesday, August 5th: Cubs 6, Royals 1
- Thursday, August 6th: Royals 13, Cubs 2
PSA: Alec Mills is a Bonafide MLB Starter
The Chicago Cubs extended their winning streak to four games behind a masterful performance from Alec Mills. The righty threw seven innings of scoreless baseball while allowing just three hits on a windy Monday night at Wrigley Field.
Javier Baez continued his magic on the field with one of the more impressive tags in his career.
David Bote also decided to he wanted a little time in the spotlight, as he made a few impressive plays at the hot corner.
Kris Bryant informed the media after the game that he promised his infant child a home run before he left for the ballpark on Monday. He finally showed off his new dad strength and delivered on that promise.
The Cubs bullpen came in with two much-needed scoreless innings to shut down the Royals in the series opener.
Chicks Dig The Long Ball
The Cubs continued their victorious ways on Tuesday night, extending the winning streak to five games. This was all made possible by a grind-it-out performance from Kyle Hendricks and multiple baseballs that were deposited in the bleachers by Cubs’ hitters.
Kyle Hendricks did not have his best stuff on Tuesday night. Luckily for Cubs fans, Kyle Hendricks’s mediocre stuff is still pretty damn good. The Professor pitched seven innings of two-run baseball while allowing seven hits and no walks.
The Cubs decided to break out the lumber on Tuesday night. The offense was powered by home runs from Jason Heyward, Jason Kipnis, and a much-needed insurance home run from Willson Contreras.
The Cubs had a “comfortable” three-run lead heading into the ninth inning. David Ross thought this would be a good time to get his former All-Star closer back in the mix. Craig Kimbrel entered the game and promptly exited the game after 1/3 of an inning giving up two hits and two earned runs.
Kyle Ryan came up and completed the job Kimbrel could not for a Cubs victory.
Yu Serious With This Starting Pitching?!
It truly is impossible to not use the Yu pun when Darvish dazzles on the mound. My friends, that is exactly what the right-hander did on Wednesday night in Kansas City.
Those are some of the proverbial best starters in the major leagues today and Yu makes them look silly. He dominated the Royals, throwing seven fantastic innings while allowing only one run.
The Chicago Cubs just continue to manufacture runs. On Wednesday night, it was simple fundamental hitting. The high-powered offense had two-out RBIs from Baez, Caratini, and Contreras.
The bullpen came in and tossed two scoreless frames to continue the Cubs’ impressive six-game winning streak.
All Good Things Must Come To An End
Well, there is not much to say about Thursday’s game other than it really sucked. The Royals snapped the North Siders’ six-game winning streak by pummelling Cubs pitching. Tyler Chatwood pitched very poorly, allowing eight runs and 11 hits in 2 1/3 innings.
And that is all we have for that game, onto St. Louis!
On Tap Observations
This starting pitching is for real. I am going to raise my hand on this one, I thought for sure this could be a weak spot on this team. It was very fair to have that opinion with Quintana going down and two of the rotation spots belonging to Tyler Chatwood and Alec Mills. Those are huge question marks and those two gentlemen have answered the call. Take a look at how the Cubs staff stood after 12 games.
The Craig Kimbrel experiment needs to end right now. I don’t care if he is tipping his pitches. I don’t care if he still has great stuff. This is a 60-game sprint; there is no time to wait for him to figure this out. Every single game matters. Use a closer by committee, ride the hot hand. Bite the bullet, take the L, and move on from the man. Look at how he has performed so far this season and tell me you don’t agree.
This team has 2016 vibes to it. Everyone seems to be on the same page and most importantly David Ross has taken the bull by the horns. The players and front office have nothing but great things to say about the first-year manager.
Theo Epstein even addressed the elephant in the room — the issues between the front office and Joe Maddon the past few years. It is very encouraging to see David Ross stepping in the way he has.
Next Up
A successful week leads the Cubs to St. Louis to take on the Cardinals, who have had an extended break due to a COVID-19 outbreak.
Series Preview:
- Friday, August 7th, 7:15 PM CST: Jon Lester vs. Daniel Ponce de Leon
- Saturday, August 8th, 7:15 PM CST: Alec Mills vs. Adam Wainwright
- Sunday, August 9th, 6:00 PM CST: Kyle Hendricks vs. Dakota Hudson
For postgame reactions and analysis, be sure to tune in to the Cubs On Tap podcast on all major platforms.
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