Assad pitches gem as Cubs top Blue Jays |
TORONTO - There is a lot to like about the balanced MLB schedule, including that everyone plays everyone at least once a season. No more waiting three years between AL opponents and potentially six or more seasons to return to an AL park. It also means that teams have less opportunity to beat up on a lousy division and will find out how good they are when they see more teams.
The Chicago Cubs (60-56) are discovering how good they are and how good they can be as they went north of the border to take on the Toronto Blue Jays (65-53). The Rogers Centre hasn't been too kind to the Cubs in recent years, and with a pitching rotation in flux with Javier Assad stepping in for Marcus Stroman tonight and Drew Smyly for the time being, things didn't stack up well for the Cubs. That is why they play the game, as Assad not only delivered but pitched the best game of his young MLB career, giving the Cubs seven great innings on the mound while a pair of first-inning homers would be all they would need to take down the Blue Jays 6-2. Assad has the stuff to be a solid pitcher for a long time, but for whatever reason doesn't have the swing-and-miss stuff you would like to see. Sometimes that can be an issue, but with a defense like the Cubs, it plays into their hands as he tossed seven innings of one-run baseball, allowing just four hits. He walked one and struck out two as he did what he needed to do. Expected to be in for a tough series, the Cubs are expected to see two of the Blue Jay's three best starters, with Jose Berrios taking the ball tonight. For whatever reason, this is one of those teams he has struggled against, as he failed to make it out of the fifth inning and was tagged with all six runs, although only four were earned. Most of the damage Berrios would allow came in the first inning as the Cubs bats came out swinging. A one-out solo blast from Nico Hoerner gave the Cubs the lead, and they would never look back. That homer set the stage for three consecutive hits as Ian Happ followed that up with a single and came around to score on the Cody Bellinger homer, which made things 3-0. Cody Bellinger - Chicago Cubs (18) pic.twitter.com/ps4bb2lEJc
Little did the Cubs know that homer would be the winning run as Assad was getting ready to pitch a gem. His outing got off to a great start, but after walking Cavan Biggio in the second ahead of the Matt Chapman single, the Blue Jays had one of their rare scoring opportunities only to come up empty. That would prove costly in the end, as the Blue Jays helped the Cubs out in the fourth by allowing Dansby Swanson to reach base on an error. Two batters later, Jeimer Candelario picked up a single to put runners on the corners before the Seiya Suzuki double put the Cubs in front 5-0. It has been a nice two games for Suzuki since his mental reset, as he appears to be getting locked in at the plate. For the Cubs to have the success they want to have, his bat needs to pick it up, and he is on the right track right now. Mike Tauchman would close out the Cub's second three-run inning with an RBI single as the Cubs opened up a 6-1 lead and were in complete control. The lone run-off of Assad came in the bottom of the fourth, and ironically it was the same part of the lineup with Biggio picking up a one-out single to get things started. He would eventually reach second base before the two-out single from Alejandro Kirk made things 6-1. Immediately after surrendering that run, the Cub's offense was in business again as Happ and Bellinger began the fifth with a pair of singles that spelled the end for Barrios. Bowden Francis took over and promptly got out of the inning without any damage giving the Blue Jays offense a little glimmer of hope. Considering how good Assad was pitching, that glimmer was fading to a light dim as Assad retired the final 10 hitters he faced to give the Cubs a promising outing. Coming off an off day and having such a big lead late, David Ross had an opportunity to give some of his big guns in the pen an extra night off but chose to go with Michael Fulmer in the eighth. Fulmer has been excellent the past two months and got the first two hitters out before the Brandon Belt homer made things 6-2. That was the last run of the game for either side as Fulmer finished off the eighth before another scoreless ninth inning from Adbert Alzolay secured a big win. The win guarantees the Cubs a winning record against the AL East and keeps them within 2.5 games of the Brewers, who knocked off the White Sox in extras. It also marks the 60th win for this team, something they didn't accomplish until late September. The Cubs will look to clinch the series on Saturday as their Ace, Justin Steele, will match up with Chris Bassitt.
