Spring Training Miscellany: Cubs 10, White Sox 7 – March 20, 2015

arizona cactusTake that, White Sox.

In the first 2015 matchup of the crosstown rivals, the Cubs come out on top 10-7 after going down early. It’s meaningless for so many reasons – and I’m still irrationally nervous about the Jon Lester news – but, damn it, let’s just enjoy it.

  • Travis Wood was not at his best in his four innings of work, often missing up in the zone and getting hit hard for his mistake. At the same time, he also wasn’t getting any calls on the edges (even with David Ross behind the plate), so the zone looked fairly tight today (hence, perhaps, the high-scoring affair). In all, Wood went 4.1 innings, allowing four earned on eleven hits. He struck out two and didn’t walk anyone. I’m not particularly concerned about the outing, all things considered.
  • (On the small zone, by the way: Cubs pitchers got just three strikeouts on the day, while Cubs batters struck out ten times. I doubt that was entirely the product of the zone.)
  • Jason Motte pitched a scoreless tune-up frame, and Joe Ortiz notched another scoreless frame of his own. Brian Schlitter allowed an earned run over 1.2 innings on two hits, and Zac Rosscup gave up two in the ninth on two hits and two walks. Like Ortiz, Rosscup is likely headed for AAA Iowa via the option, and could see action in Chicago at some point this season.
  • At the plate, Arismendy Alcantara had a great day, working two walks and hitting a homer. Tommy La Stella had another couple hits. We always talk about those two guys like they are virtual locks for the roster, though it’s worth noting that each does have minor league options available. Still … there’s no reason to think they won’t be making this team.
  • Albert Almora had another couple hits, which is what he’s done all Spring. Not seeing many pitches, though, which we discussed earlier as an ongoing concern.
  • Junior Lake had a double in four at bats, and worked some nice counts, but did strike out twice. Ryan Sweeney went 0-4, and hasn’t done a great deal to distinguish himself this Spring as he fights for a roster spot.
  • It was an unlikely homer party for the Cubs in this one once you get past Alcantara. Other long shots came from David Ross, Taylor Teagarden and Anthony Giansanti.
  • written by

    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.

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