Reds walk-off Cubs again |
CINCINNATI - Who said the Chicago Cubs (72-64) couldn't develop homegrown pitching? Last time I checked, 80% of their current rotation is homegrown, as well as their closer and several other pitchers on this roster. The same can be said about the Cincinnati Reds (71-67), who have historically been known as a terrible pitching team, especially at the Great American Ballpark.
Those days are long gone, as the Reds have done a great job developing an excellent cast of homegrown pitching of their own that has helped them make a playoff push this season. Saturday marked the third game of a four-game weekend series between the Cubs and the Reds, and it was a battle of homegrown arms with Javier Assad facing off with Andrew Abbott. Abbott has quietly become the ace of the Reds staff this season, and after allowing just one run in 6 1/3 innings, you can see why. Assad has been one of the best stories in baseball this season, and you can make a case he has been the best starter the past month. Sporting an ERA of 2.69, Assad gave the Cubs the longest outing of his career as he went eight shutout innings with seven punchouts. He was in line for the win late, but it was another tough outing for the back of the Cubs pen. Friday saw Adbert Alzolay have a rough go, and Saturday was Mark Leiter Jr.'s turn to have a rough day. As good as the back end has been for David Ross this season, there have been moments where they haven't looked good, and this series is one of them as the Reds scored two times in the ninth for the second consecutive night and handed the Cubs another walkoff loss 2-1. When you look at how things were unfolding early, you had a sense that runs would be at a premium, although the Reds did have a chance to make something happen in the third. With Christian Encarnacion-Strand leading things off with a double, Noelvi Marte followed that up with an infield single to put two runners on base with no outs. Encarnacion-Strand could not advance on the play, which proved costly for the Reds as Assad used a double play and a strikeout of Jake Fraley to escape the jam without any damage. After being no-hit through three, two-out singles by Seiya Suzuki and Yan Gomes had the Cubs offense set up in the fourth, but they were unable to cash in against Abbott. One inning after escaping trouble for the first time, Assad found himself in even more trouble as Spencer Steer reached on a one-out single before getting to third on the Elly De La Cruz double. Once again, it was Assad figuring out how to get out of trouble as he continued to toss zeros for the Cubs. You knew that would come in handy as the Cubs offense continued to struggle against Abbott as they have all season. With Fraley starting the bottom of the sixth off with a single and then moving to second on a TJ Friedl walk, the Reds had two on with no outs as the luck of Assad appeared to be running out. That was until another double play killed yet another Reds rally as this game moved to the seventh, tied 0-0. That appeared to be the momentum swing the Cubs needed, and all it took was one swing by Jeimer Candelario in the seventh to end the shutout bid as he took Abbott deep for his fifth homer as a Cub and 20th of the season to put Chicago in front 1-0. Considering that Assad would retire the next six hitters he faced and the final nine to end his outing, you had to like the Cubs chances as they led 1-0 heading into the ninth. Hoping for some insurance, Suzuki worked a one-out walk against Sam Moll to put another runner on base. His walk was followed by a Gomes fielder's choice as the Cubs suddenly had two men on with one out. That was as close to the Cubs would come to scoring again as Moll bounced back nicely to retire the next two hitters and sent the game to the bottom of the ninth with the Cubs up 1-0. Expecting to see Alzolay yet again, Ross chose to give his closer the night off and instead went with Letier Jr. To his credit, Leiter Jr. has been excellent all season, and with some lefties coming to bat, that is his specialty. A leadoff double by Fraley certainly didn't help the situation, nor did a walk and a hit by pitch, as the Reds had the bases loaded with no outs and their phenom coming to bat. Knowing the type of power De La Cruz has, everyone knew this game could be over with one swing. De La Cruz managed to pick up a hit, but his RBI single tied things up and loaded the bases for his team. Following a Nick Martini flyout, Leiter Jr. was one grounder away from getting this game to the 10th, and with Hunter Renfroe coming to bat, a double play was certainly a possibility. Leiter Jr. got the grounder he was looking for as Dansby Swanson fielded it and tossed it to Nico Hoerner at second, who fired across the diamond to first for what the Cubs were hoping was an inning-ending double play. Instead, Renfroe was ruled safe, and the Cubs challenged the play only to come out on the losing end as the Reds walked off the Cubs again 2-1. With five hits, the Cubs didn't have much of anything going for them offensively, as they haven't been able to hit the ball much the past two games. The Cubs will now look to salvage a series split on Sunday as they send Jameson Taillon to the mound against Brandon Williamson.
