I got three and a half hours sleep last night, which would be bad enough if the Cubs had won the dang game. On a personal level, I can hack it just fine with one night of no sleep, but if it goes back-to-back on me – like, if tonight’s Cubs game goes really late – I’ll be a total mess on Tuesday. Tired, sick, crabby, all that good stuff. And I *just* got over a sinus infection. Win it quickly tonight, Cubs. Do it for Bert.
Last night’s/this morning’s walk-off homer was the first of Dexter Fowler’s career. Good for you, Dex. But I still hate you now. And I hate you for making me hate you. So I guess I don’t hate you. But also, I hate you.
The Cubs were just so darn close in that game. If Jason Heyward doesn’t lose a ball in the lights, the Cubs win. If Javy Baez completes that almost-amazing play in the bottom of the 14th, the Cubs win. If Fowler’s fly ball is caught – which it is 55% of the time, according to Statcast – the Cubs win. Two strikes, two outs, walk-off fly ball that barely gets over Heyward’s glove. Oof. It was all just so close.
… which is not to say that the Cubs didn’t earn the loss, having don’t nothing at the plate once again. The Cubs managed just 9 hits in 14 innings, just three of which went for extra-bases. They walked just four times, and went 0-9 with runners in scoring position. It was just the latest awful showing for an offense that I still believe is much better than it is showing right now. But, as things stand, they look like one of the most ineffectual offenses in the game.
Speaking of which, Joe Maddon sees the same things we see: everybody’s pressing, nobody’s making hard contact. (Cubs.com) He says of these kinds of stretches, “You’ve got to ride them out.” I suppose so, though I hope there are some helpful, thoughtful words being exchanged behind the scenes. It feels like things are getting away from the Cubs a bit after nearly two weeks of no offense, and now a five-game losing streak. This is where Joe Maddon earns his dough – by saying the right thing, or doing the right thing, or, well, not doing anything at all when all the outside forces in the world are screaming JUST DO SOMETHING.
Your browser does not support iframes.
I actually don’t have a huge beef with riding Luke Farrell at the end there last night – he struck out two, then gave up an infield hit and a fly ball that’s an out most of the time – but I was surprised that Pedro Strop was essentially unavailable after throwing only 22 pitches (albeit spread over two innings) the day before. And that was his only appearance in the last five days.
Speaking of Farrell, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him optioned down for another arm today. Not solely because of the back-to-back walk-off losses (oof, good luck with the mental component of getting past that one), but because he’s got options and the Cubs need a fresh arm.
Talk about a picture saying a thousand words:
(Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
Carl is all of us:
Another thing that really sucks about the loss last night? It sapped the Cubs right before they have to travel and now come home to face a team that SHOULD offer some very winnable games … but the Marlins will be well-rested, are coming off four straight series wins, and will be throwing the league’s ERA leader out there tonight.
I want to say things like “yeah, it’s another loss and a five-game losing streak, but four of those losses were coinflips that could have gone the other way!”, but I just can’t do it knowing that the five-game winning streak that preceded the losing streak was totally the same way. Based on what we’ve seen, it actually feels like the Cubs are fortunate to have gone 5-5.
After the win, #stlcards huddled in clubhouse and got Molina on FaceTime to have him see and be a part of the celebration, according to Pena.#cardinals#cubs
Jason Heyward just got his first hit on a non-fastball this season. Feels like that’s something that should be written up immediately. You on it, @BleacherNation or need me to jump in?
You no doubt noticed – if you were still up – that Baez was working out something in his back there at the end of the game, but he says there’s no issue:
Javy said his back is fine after that 15-inning game. Said sometimes his back just kinda cracks on him and it happened on the swing before the HR and the play in the hole in the 14th inning. But no lingering issues.
Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here.
Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
CUBS LINEUP — It's a rematch! The Cubs won only one game during their series in Atlanta last week, and it was started (on both ends) by the guys on the mound tonight: Javier Assad and Charlie Morton. Let's hope...
I added the parenthetical in the headline to appease the non-believers, but in reality, I'm not so conflicted. If I had to put money on it, I would still bet the Cubs are buyers at the July 30, 2024 MLB...
The Chicago Cubs optioned Pete Crow-Armstrong to the minors on May 20, which means he can return to the big league roster as soon as May 30. That is two days from now. Just throwing that out there and cc'ing...
I really wish Craig Counsell's first return to American Family Field was a little more painful for the Brewers faithful. As in, I wish his first game back after ditching Milwaukee for Chicago was with a dominant Cubs team that...
After his previous outing, for which the final numbers didn't look as good as the stuff, Justin Steele said he was actually starting to feel good about where he was, after missing the first chunk of the season with the...
It has become mildly overwhelming to try to think through all the layers to the Cubs' offensive disfunction. We will be exploring them on an ongoing basis, I suppose, because there are so many aspects to a team-wide slump like...
do you remember happiness With yesterday's loss to the Brewers, the Cubs fell to .500 for the first time since April 1. And not that anything is being decided today, but the Cubs also fell out of a playoff spot...
Angel Hernández long ago - roughly around the time Joe West hung 'em up - became the face of Bad Umpiring in Major League Baseball. We can debate the degree to which that kind of title is deserved, but Hernández...
The Cubs' offense is in a really, really bad place. You don't need me to tell you that. I'm running out of ways to say it anyway. They got a sac fly in the 9th inning of a 5-0 game...
CUBS LINEUP — The Cubs have been in a pretty frustrating rut for a couple weeks now, especially on offense. But they have a prime opportunity this week to make up some of the ground they've lost with four straight...
Kerry Carpenter and the Detroit Tigers (26-27) host Bryan Reynolds and the Pittsburgh Pirates (25-29) on Wednesday, with first pitch at 1:10 PM ET.Keep reading to find out how to watch the Detroit-Pittsburgh matchup in the article below.When is Tigers...
On Tuesday afternoon, the Blackhawks announced the team has signed forward Martin Misiak to a three-year, entry-level contract that runs through the 2026-27 season. The deal has a $878,333 cap hit. Misiak, 19, was a second-round pick (No. 55) by the...
The Chicago Bears stadium plan proposal is taking a back seat for the time being. Reporting from the Chicago Tribune's Dan Patella and Jeremy Garner has the Illinois legislature kicking the can down the road on the Bears stadium project....
Anthony Volpe (19 games) and Kevin Pillar (10 games) will look to add one more to their lengthy hitting streaks when the New York Yankees (37-18) and Los Angeles Angels (20-33) meet Tuesday at 9:38 PM ET, live on BSW...
The Seattle Mariners (29-26) are set to take on the Houston Astros (24-30) Tuesday at 9:40 PM ET, airing on SCHN. The Mariners are listed as -125 favorites by oddsmakers, while the underdog Astros have +106 odds for the contest.Luis...
J.T. Realmuto will look to extend his 16-game hitting streak when the Philadelphia Phillies (38-17) take on the San Francisco Giants (28-27). The Phillies are listed as -214 favorites on the moneyline for the contest, which starts at 9:45 PM...
The San Diego Padres will take the field against the Miami Marlins (19-36) on Tuesday. The game begins at 9:40 PM ET on BSFL, with the Padres listed as -130 favorites on the moneyline.San Diego's Matt Waldron gets the start,...
On Tuesday at 8:30 PM ET, the Dallas Mavericks meet the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals, and Kyrie Irving's 3-pointer prop for this matchup requires three triples.Kyrie Irving's Three-Pointer Prop Odds vs. the TimberwolvesKyrie Irving's...
On Tuesday at 8:30 PM ET, the Dallas Mavericks meet the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals, and Luka Doncic's 3-pointer over/under for this matchup requires four triples.Luka Doncic's Three-Pointer Prop Odds vs. the TimberwolvesLuka Doncic's...
The Minnesota Timberwolves meet the Dallas Mavericks at 8:30 PM ET on Tuesday, in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals, and one of the 3-pointer over/unders available for this matchup requires two trifectas from Karl-Anthony Towns.Karl-Anthony Towns' Three-Pointer Prop...
NEWSLETTER
