Game Recap: Cubs offense comes through in win over D-backs

Joe Camporeale - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - Friday, March 28 2025

PHOENIX - Let's try this again. After dropping their first two regular season games in Tokyo just over a week ago, the Chicago Cubs (1-2) took to the field Thursday night for what they would like to call Opening Day 2.0. Expected to have one of the toughest schedules over the first month of the season, it's imperative for the Cubs to get off to a good start if they want any shot at a division crown this season.

Their challenging schedule continued on the road as the Cubs stayed in Arizona to face the Arizona Diamondbacks (0-1) at Chase Field for the first of four games. The good news is that Chicago does get to avoid Corbin Burnes this week, but they still face Merrill Kelly and Zach Gallen, who are no slouches in the rotation. The bad news is Justin Steele doesn't look like the Ace the Cubs are expecting him to be, and that has to be a concern as the season continues.

Steele was far from his best, as he allowed three runs in just five innings of work, with one walk and two strikeouts. They are going to need a whole lot more from him if they want to be taken seriously, but this was one of those games where he didn't need to be at his best as Ian Happ and Miguel Amaya combined for eight RBIs as the Cubs offense led the way for a 10-6 victory.

Speaking of pitchers who struggled, Gallen had a rough outing himself, as the right-hander was touched up for four runs in just four innings, with four walks and four strikeouts. You have seen his lack of command several times in the past, but more often than not, he finds ways to work around those issues; however, this time, he didn't. Gallen managed to work around a first-inning jam to keep the Cubs off the board, but the same couldn't be said for Steele, who allowed a leadoff double to Ketel Marte to open the game and set the Diamondbacks offense up in a good spot.

Three batters later, Arizona grabbed the lead with newly acquired Josh Naylor coming through with his first hit as a Diamondback, picking up an RBI single. Chicago continued to benefit from Gallen not being at his best in the second, with Pete Crow-Armstrong and Matt Shaw showing great patience to work walks setting things up for the top of the order. That is when Happ came through with a clutch RBI double to put the Cubs ahead 2-1 and set the stage for a big night for him.

That single was followed by a Kyle Tucker single for his first RBI as a Cub, and just like that, the Cubs opened up a 3-1 lead. Not to be outdone, the Diamondbacks kept things close in the early going, with Eugenio Suarez connecting for a leadoff homer in the bottom of the second to pull the Dbacks within 3-2 before Steele started to settle in and retired six of the next seven hitters he faced.

Already with two RBIs under his belt, Happ added his third RBI in the top of the fourth, connecting for a two-out solo home run for his second hit and making it a 4-2 game. As was the case the last time the Cubs scored, the Diamondbacks didn't waste much time battling back, using a Gabriel Moreno single to get things started in their half of the fourth.

Moreno would advance to third on the Randal Grichuk double later in the inning and then came home on the Geraldo Perdermo single to pull Arizona within 4-3. That was the final run Steele would allow as he managed to retire the final four hitters he faced to qualify for the win and put the game in the hands of the bullpen.

Fortunately for him, the offense had other plans, as they, too, wanted Steele to get the win. All it took was for Gallen to be lifted in the fifth, and once again, the Cubs' offense came to life. Ryne Nelson had a rough start to the season. After Michael Busch started things off with a leadoff single, Crow-Armstrong added another single two batters later, as the Cubs had two on and one out. Shaw kept the line moving with a fielder's choice to load the bases, only to see Amaya clear the bases with a double, making this a 7-3 game.

That hit proved extremely costly for the Diamondbacks. It would go down as the game-winning hit, but it was only the start of what was a huge night for the Cubs catcher. After Nico Hoerner added a run with a single in the top of the sixth, it was time for the new-look Cubs bullpen to take over as Nate Pearson was called on to work the sixth.

If the Cubs are going to make the playoffs this season, their bullpen needs to improve. However, after watching Pearson load the bases with three batters in off a pair of walks and a hit-by-pitch, plenty of work still needs to be done. Pearson was able to limit the damage by allowing a pair of sacrifice flies to Jake McCarthy and Perdermo, but the damage was still done as the Diamondbacks were back within 10-5.

That score would hold until the ninth as both pens started to settle in only to have the bottom of the Cubs order come through again. Once again, Hoerner found himself in the middle of it, working a leadoff walk to start the inning and advancing to second on a Shaw single. Then came another Amaya double to clear the bases as two more runs scored to cap off his five-RBI night with the Cubs back in front by five, 10-5.

Arizona did manage to keep things interesting off Ryan Pressly in the ninth as a pair of one-out hits from Marte and Corbin Carroll put a pair of runners in scoring position, but as he has done most of his career, Pressly limited the damage by allowing just an RBI groundout to close out the Cubs 10-6 win. The Cubs offense stole the show with 12 hits and several players having multi-hit games.

That included two hits from Happ and Amaya, who were responsible for eight of the team's 10 RBIs. Busch and Hoerner added two hits, as Dansby Swanson was the only player without a hit. The Cubs will look to make it two straight on Friday when they send Jameson Taillon to the mound against Kelly.