Marlins double up Cubs for series split |
CHICAGO - There are some series during an MLB season where you can look back and feel like there were some missed opportunities. This weekend's series against the Miami Marlins (6-17) was one of those times as the Marlins came into Wrigley Field and earned a four-game split with the Chicago Cubs (13-9). Normally, that wouldn't be a big deal this early in the season, but with the Marlins having the second-worst record in the league, this is certainly a kick in the pants and one the Cubs will be the wake-up call they need to not take anyone lightly.
What is more disappointing than splitting this series was watching Kyle Hendricks go out there and lay another egg. This was one of those starts where Hendricks needed to go out and pitch well, and after allowing five runs in four innings, you have to think his days as a starter are numbered. At this point, you can't afford to put him out there every five days, as he isn't even giving the Cubs a chance to win. That makes life very difficult for Craig Counsell, who is already down his top starter in Justin Steele, while the bullpen continues to be a work in progress. Granted, there was some good when it came to his start as he didn't walk a batter and struck out five; there were also a few unlucky breaks as the Marlins had several soft-contact hits that led to multiple runs. No one will sit here and make excuses for him, and the bottom line is that he hasn't pitched well all season. Mix that with Edward Cabera building off an impressive first start with five innings of three-run ball, and the Cubs were playing from behind most of the day, which can't happen against a team like Miami. You can look at the first inning as an inning of missed opportunities for the Cubs. Nico Hoerner led off the inning with a leadoff double, before the Cody Bellinger walk put two on with no outs, only for the offense to come away empty. That gave the Marlins some added confidence heading into the second, and with Jesus Sanchez connecting for his first homer of the season, it was the Marlins in front 1-0, as Hendricks was behind again. Unlike the first inning, where the Cubs failed to cash in, a one-out double from Mike Tauchman set the offense up, with Miguel Amaya adding a walk shortly after. Looking to break through this time, it was the scoring hot Hoerner delivering as his RBI knock was his second hit in as many at-bats and brought things back to even 1-1. Nico gets us on the board 👏 pic.twitter.com/WtlvQOuK5h Then came the top of the fourth, where the Marlins singled Hendricks to death to plate three runs and took a 4-1 lead. “Gotta take the positives again — progress,” Hendricks said after the game. “Just got beat like 5 pitches in a row there, first-pitch hunting, mostly fastballs. But still executed a lot. “Mentally, more aggressive, on the glove. Just put us in a bad spot again. We had to win that game to take that series. So a lot of disappointments but I gotta still focus on the positives — the mental approach that I took out there and executing on the glove was better.” Jazz Chisholm and Josh Bell started the singles parade, with Sanchez making it three straight to put the Marlins back in front 2-1. Tim Anderson kept the line moving with the second RBI single of the inning to make things 3-1 with an RBI groundout from Emmanuel Rivera pushing the lead to 4-1. Hendricks would finish the fourth without further damage, but that was his final inning as he gave way to Drew Smyly and the pen. Putting runners on base wasn't an issue for the Cubs, and with Tauchman and Alexander Canario adding singles, it was the Cubs who had two runners on with one out. Hoerner made sure to keep things rolling, connecting for his third hit in as many at-bats to make things 4-2. 🔵Nico double Bellinger added a single to make things 4-3, as the Cubs were elevating Cabrera's pitch count in a hurry. Unfortunately for them, not only were they unable to score the rest of that inning, but they were unable to score for the remainder of the game as the Marlins bullpen picked a great time to deliver some of their best performances of the season. Following the pitching change to Smyly, things couldn't have started much worse for the left-hander as he allowed three straight hits to begin the fifth, including the RBI single from Chisholm to make things 5-3. Then came the seventh, when Nick Fortes led off the inning with a double against Smyly before a wild pitch moved him to third. Enter Colten Brewer, who was tasked with pitching out of a tough spot. Despite two walks and less-than-stellar command, Brewer limited the damage but still allowed a run to extend the Marlins' lead to 6-3. While Miami did a great job cashing in on their opportunities, the Cubs didn't, as that was the difference in the game. You can look back at the first inning as the reason why and the bottom half of the sixth when Amaya reached via an error to lead off the inning before being stranded on second. Then came the bottom of the seventh when Christopher Morel led things off with a ringing double off Bryan Hoeing, only to be stranded on second. That was two, if not three, runs left on the bases, and it is hard to win games when that happens. What stings the most was that Morel was not only the final runner to land in scoring position for the Cubs, but also the final batter to pick up a hit as the final nine hitters were retired in order by the Marlins pen to seal the deal in what was a series split. The Cubs had eight hits in the game compared to the Marlins 11, with Hoerner leading the way with three hits and two RBIs. Tauchman added two more hits, with three others earning one. Another positive was seeing Keegan Thompson deliver his fourth consecutive scoreless outing in four tries as he continues to look like the old version of himself. Should that continue, he could emerge as a serious weapon for a bullpen that could use a lift. .@Miguelsvoice conducts the stretch today! 🎙️#LetsGetSomeRuns pic.twitter.com/TAZiizxOD9 Shota Imanaga meets his biggest fans!@EliseMenaker pic.twitter.com/nYJKXhjxrE “We need better results, frankly.”
🔵Cody single
Down by one! pic.twitter.com/tcLG6DdV79
Craig Counsell on Kyle Hendricks. pic.twitter.com/BxXaCRgtDT
