Game Recap: Wicks dominant in MLB debut |
PITTSBURGH - It has been a long time since the Chicago Cubs (68-61) can say they were seven games above .500, an entirely different generation, to be exact, but that is where things are sitting right now. When the 2023 season started, everyone knew the Cubs had talent on their MLB roster and had loads of talent in the minors, especially on the pitching side of things.
Eventually, that pitching would have to start making their way to Wrigley, which they have done throughout this season. Although there have been mixed results along the way, Saturday night at PNC Park saw the Cubs throw one of their best against the Pittsburgh Pirates (58-72) as Jordan Wicks made his MLB debut, and what a debut it was. “He's put in the work,” Cubs manager David Ross said after the game. “And we have confidence in his makeup and his skillset to call him up in this environment.” Selected in the first round of the 2021 MLB draft, Wicks has steadily progressed through the system to the point where he was 7-0 with a mid-3 ERA this season. Given the Cub's need for starting pitching help, Wicks earned a call-up and made his MLB debut on Saturday. Not only was it an impressive debut as the Cubs left-hander struck out nine in five innings to secure his first win, but it was a historic debut as he struck out five consecutive hitters. That is the first time in the modern era that a pitcher has begun his MLB career with five straight strikeouts as the Cubs held off the Pirates 10-6. “I think in my dreams, I imagined that,” Wicks said after his performance. “But I thought it was unbelievable.” “Stick to what you do. They told me, and they just reminded me over and over again: ‘What you do is good enough. It's why you're here.’ And so that was a real calming message for me.” Opposing Wicks was Colin Selby, as Derrek Shelton elected to go with a bullpen game for the second consecutive night. Selby was strong early, allowing no runs in two innings, while Osvaldo Bido got lit up for eight runs in under three innings. The lone blemish on Wicks's night came in the bottom of the first when Ke'Bryan Hayes led things off with a leadoff homer and a quick 1-0 lead. That was followed by Bryan Reynolds's single and an Andrew McCutchen walk as the nerves set in. Once Wicks got under control, the left-hander took over, striking out the next three to end the inning and the first two in the second to record five consecutive strikeouts. While he was doing his part on the mound, the Cubs offense started to back him up as they took the lead in the third. A one-out walk from Miguel Amaya got things started before the Nick Madrigal single put two runners on. Mike Tauchman and Dansby Swanson kept the line moving with two more walks as the one to Swanson tied things up. Shortly after that walk, Ian Happ worked another walk to give the Cubs a 2-1 lead as he has now reached base in 56 consecutive games against the Pirates, breaking the old record set by Stan Musial. Cody Bellinger capped off the big third inning with an RBI groundout as the Cubs now led 3-1. .@Cody_Bellinger leads @MLB with 40 RBIs since the All-Star Break 🔥 pic.twitter.com/VjvBpzW8LA That was only the beginning of their offense as they continued to hit Bido hard in the fifth. Once again, it was the top of the order getting things going as Tauchman picked up a one-out single ahead of the Swanson walk. Happ continued to have his way with the Pirates as he is hitting north of .370 against them this season as his RBI double extended the lead to 5-1. Another single from Bellinger made things 6-1 while Seiya Suzuki raced around the bases for an RBI triple to extend the Cubs lead to 7-1. Chicago still wasn't quite finished as Jeimer Candelario ended the five-run frame with an RBI single as the Cubs were in complete control 8-1. That was all Wicks would need as he had five straight strikeouts to open the game and retired the final 15 hitters he faced, leaving an exclamation point on a dominating debut. Jordan Wicks has 9 strikeouts through four innings in his MLB debut with the Chicago Cubs. Native of Conway, Arkansas. pic.twitter.com/mOmNWoodc9 With Wicks out of the game after five, another one of the Cubs young arms, Hayden Wesneski, took over and hoped to put his rough season behind him. Wesneski was outstanding in the sixth, but once the seventh inning rolled around, the right-hander not only got in trouble but single-handedly allowed the Pirates to get right back into the game. Singles from Connor Joe and Joshua Palacious certainly didn't help to start the inning, nor did a sacrifice fly from Liover Peguero to make things 8-2. After a walk to Jack Suwinski, the Pirates had two runners on with two outs as Wesneski had a chance to work out of the inning with minimal damage. Instead, the Pirates had the last laugh, with Alika Williams and Hayes picking up RBI singles to make things 8-4, with Reynolds using an RBI double to pull the Pirates to within 8-6 and closing out a five-run inning. Granted, Mark Leiter Jr. allowed that RBI double, but all of those runs were charged to Wesneski, who wasn't great in this one. Fortunately for the Cubs, those would be the only runs the Pirates would get the rest of the way, as David Ross was able to mix and match to give guys a lighter load while still playing to win. Suzuki also did his part by adding a two-run single in the top half of the ninth, and just like that, the Cubs took a 10-6 lead into the bottom of the ninth and looking to close things out. .@suzuki_seiya_sb with a 2-RBI scorcher! Cubs up 10-6! pic.twitter.com/SsiQODfSS1 Given the late workload for Adbert Alzolay, Ross called upon the young flame thrower Daniel Palencia to finish things off, but his inconsistencies remain per usual. Palencia has excellent stuff, but after walking two batters, the command still isn't there as the Pirates were threatening again. That forced the Cubs to go to Alzolay, and fortunately for him, he only needed to get one out and struck out Reynolds to end the game for his 21st save of the season. Whatever Suzuki worked on during those four off days earlier this month has paid off, as he led the Cubs with two hits and three RBIs to raise his average to .266. Bellinger also picked up two hits with his two RBIs, while Happ continues his dominance over the Buccos with three more RBIs. The Cubs will now go for the series win on Sunday as another young arm in Javier Assad will take the ball, looking to make it four great starts in a row.
