Cubs drop another close game to Guardians |
CLEVELAND - When you sat back and looked over the final 14 series of the season and the Chicago Cubs (59-62) to get in, one thing comes to mind. Their remaining schedule is one of the easiest schedules in baseball and should they play to the way they are capable of this team will win a ton of games down the stretch.
Playing to that level has been an issue this season and with 10 of their final 14 series being considered easy to winnable games, should the Cubs find a way to win 25 of those games you could be looking at an 84-85 win season which could give them the final Wild Card spot. Then comes the other four series against the Yankees, Phillies, Dodgers and Guardians who are four of the best teams in the game. One of those series is currently going on as the Cubs continued their series with the Cleveland Guardians (71-49) at Progressive Field on Tuesday. Coming off a heartbreaking loss on Monday, the Cubs had a chance to even the series, but it wouldn't come easy as the Guardians entered the game tied for the league's best record. The Cubs, however, have been one of the better teams since the all-star break and have the third-best record in baseball behind the Diamondbacks and Padres, who oddly occupy the top Wild Card Spots. Once again, this game proved that the gap between the Cubs and being a legitimate playoff contender may not be as big as some fans would think as the Cubs are lacking a true star and an elite closer. Those can be had this offseason and those have been the difference in this series as Emmanuel Clase pitched his fourth consecutive game and protected a 2-1 Guardians lead to pick up his 37th save. This came after Matthew Boyd made his first start in over a year, and you would've never guessed it based on his performance. The former Seattle Mariner and Detroit Tiger lefty has been out of the game for over a year and has tried to rejuvenate his career in the minors. Apparantly, that has worked in the Guardians system this season, as Boyd made his season debut and handcuffed the Cubs across 5 1/3. He allowed one run, scattered three hits, and struck out six before handing things off to the best bullpen in baseball. Opposing him was Javier Assad, who was desperate for a good outing after his previous four had been less than appealing. Granted, Assad still throws too many pitches and failed to reach the fifth inning again, but after allowing one run in 4 2/3, the Cubs can live with that outing as their bullpen has been the best in baseball over the past five weeks. Javier Assad has the lowest opponent batting average with RISP since 1974. pic.twitter.com/CEkluC1W0q It's hard to fathom the Cubs are in the position they are in when you look at some of their stats and put them against some other playoff teams. Then you have the past two nights where the Cubs have shown they can play with anyone in the game. The lone run of the game for the Cubs came in the second inning as Nico Hoerner started things off with a leadoff double. Hoerner eventually stole third for his 21st steal of the season and then came home on the Dansby Swanson sacrifice fly to put the Cubs in front 1-0. Dansby Swanson starts the @Cubs off with a sac fly! pic.twitter.com/p8FxbJNpZ5 Swanson has had a great series so far, as he has driven in four runs the past two nights to ignite the offense. Immediately following that run from the Cubs, it was the Guardians getting their offense going, as they benefited from tons of soft contact all night. With Andres Gimenez starting things off with an infield single before advancing to second on the Jhonkensey Noel infield single, the Guardians had two runners on without a ball leaving the infield. Eventually, Cleveland had runners on the corners with one out, but the double play was in order given Assad's ability to pitch around traffic. That was until Bryan Rocchio came through with an infield single off of Assad to bring home the tying run. It was the only run Assad would allow in his outing, and that happened to be the last run for a large portion of the game as Drew Smyly and the Cubs pen took over in the fifth, with the Guardians pen following in the sixth. Given the success of both of these pens, you knew runs would be hard to come by, but for the second straight night, Mr. Big Christmas himself came by to crush the Cubs hopes. One night after clobbering two homers and driving in four, Noel was at it again as he fouled off several tough pitches from Smyly before waiting back on his looping curveball. Noel knew what to do with it and didn't miss as he cranked the Smyly bender down the left field line for the 430-foot shot to put the Guardians on top for good 2-1. It was the final run of the game and the only run the Guardians would need, as the Cubs had their chances to tie things up late but failed to do so. That included an opportunity to solve Clase in the ninth as Hoerner reached base on a two-out single before stealing second only to end the game by being tagged out in a run down. #Cubs find yet another way to lose in 2024, this time it's a walkoff rundown. @Cubs #GoCubsGo pic.twitter.com/hzzugAfOeJ The Cubs will now look to avoid the sweep on Wednesday as they send Jameson Taillon to the mound against Alex Cobb. The Cubs have yet to be swept this season and hope that continues to be the case Wednesday. Chicago was held to five hits in the loss, with Hoerner leading the way with two. Ian Happ, Isaac Paredes, and Cody Bellinger had the rest of the hits for the Cubs. On a side note, Jorge Lopez continues to dominate since joining the Cubs and now has a 0.56 ERA in his 16 appearances with the team. It may be time for the Cubs to give him some closing opportunities down the stretch, as every game from here on out is crucial. “Tough losses for sure … we just didn’t come out on top the last two days.”
Nico Hoerner on the Cubs’ last two games. pic.twitter.com/jENOl8HePh
