Cubs News: Fly the W: Steele delivers in win against Brew Crew |
CHICAGO - For those who doubted
Justin Steele at the beginning of the season, you can retract that statement as the Pride of Lucedale, Mississippi leads the National League with 15 wins. In what was arguably the biggest start of Steele's career thus far, the Chicago Cubs (70-62) left-hander squared off against a former Cy Young winner in Corbin Burnes from the Milwaukee Brewers (74-58).
With the Brewers looking to extend their season-long winning streak to 10 games in front of a packed Wrigley Field crowd, it was Steele further solidifying his case to be in the Cy Young conversation as he went toe to toe with Burnes and out-pitched him. All it took for the Cubs to win this game was an RBI groundout from Cody Bellinger in the first inning as Chicago hung on for the 1-0 win and ended the Brewers winning streak at nine. Steele has been nothing short of amazing this season, and with this being his first real taste of a playoff environment, many eyes were wondering how the left-hander would fare. He answered those questions early and often as a comebacker off the leg wasn't enough to derail him as he struck out eight in six shutout innings while also throwing a season-high 112 pitches. 8️⃣ strikeouts in 6️⃣ shutout innings for @J_Steele21. 😤 pic.twitter.com/hMzlSGHlec Justin Steele is the first Cub to record 15 wins in his first 25 starts of a season since Jake Arrieta in 2016. pic.twitter.com/9LHqFuNaWT “I loved it. I love pitching in that environment,” Steele said after the win. “The fans here do a really special job of knowing the situation, knowing what’s at stake, knowing when to get on their feet. I mean, I think there was a moment in the first inning they were on their feet, because they knew a big pitch was coming.” “Big-time performance by Justin,” Cubs manager David Ross said to reporters. Burnes was equally as good as runs were going to be at a premium. Despite allowing that run in the first, Burnes was solid the rest of the way as he got through seven innings with six strikeouts while also throwing 110 pitches. There were several game-changing moments in this one, and the top of the first was one of those for Steele. After walking Christian Yelich to lead things off, Steele allowed an infield single to Mark Chana as the Brewers had two on with one out. He managed to get through that jam without any damage, as it took him a little while to settle in before getting after it. While the Brewers let a chance get away in the top of the first, the Cubs wouldn't do the same, as Nico Hoerner got hit by a Burnes pitch before advancing to third on an Ian Happ double. Bellinger followed that up with his 47th RBI since July 1 as his RBI groundout put the Cubs up 1-0 and would be all the offense they would need. Belli gets us on the board! pic.twitter.com/6LMCMcktoa Steele battled adversity in the second, allowing two more singles, with one hitting him before using a double play to get out of things. It was the same story in the third inning as William Contreras and Canha singled to put a pair of runners on before Steele struck out the next two to get out of the inning. Perhaps the game's biggest moment up to this point came in the bottom of the fifth when the Cubs had a real chance to bust things open. One-out singles from Christopher Morel and Yan Gomes started things off with Mike Tauchman working a walk to load things up. With one of their best clutch hitters in Hoerner standing in the box, the Cubs were the victim of tough luck as Hoerner not only lined out, but the Brewers turned a double play to end the potential threat. One inning later saw a similar situation as Happ and Dansby Swanson singled to put a pair of runners on base before two consecutive strikeouts from Burnes ended another threat. Given the Cubs' difficulties getting runners in, no one would have been surprised to see them fold as David Ross went to Mark Leiter Jr. and the pen in the seventh as he continued his terrific work with a perfect inning to put the pressure back on the offense. For the third consecutive innings, the Cubs had a chance to get to Burnes as Gomes and Tauchman singled with one out, only to have Burnes escape once more to cap off his inning. Knowing it was now a battle of the bullpens, Ross continued to stick to his plan as he called on Julian Merryweather to face the top of the order and pitch the eighth. Things got interesting immediately as Yelich outsmarted the Cubs defense with a perfectly placed bunt that put the tying run on base. This was when the biggest moment of the game happened as Yelich was gunned down trying to steal a second on a perfect throw from Gomes, and just like that, the Brewers potential rally was over. He was the final baserunner for either side as Adbert Alzolay came in to retire the side in order for his 22nd save of the season and has now saved 18 straight since his lone blown save. The Win keeps the Cubs right in the middle of the Wild Card race while moving to within four games of Milwaukee and three games clear of the Reds. Happ and Swanson paced the offense with two hits as the Cubs had eight hits. Chicago will look to win the series on Wednesday as Professor Kyle Hendricks squares off with Brandon Woodruff at 1:20. Hey, Chicago, whaddya say? "It's truly special to pitch for these fans."
Steele: 15th W (tied for MLB lead)
Bellinger: 54 RBI since July 1 (leads MLB in that span)
Alzolay: 18-straight saves since July 5 (most in MLB in that span) pic.twitter.com/GF0DAiZJFm
Steele & Ross on the "playoff atmosphere" at Wrigley Field. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/RokWKlHfWj
