The Cubs got knocked around by the Rockies today, and didn’t even get a homer from one of their catchers. Total loss.

• Jon Lester’s abbreviated Spring Training debut featured poor defense behind him, and a number of hits. It should concern you zero, relative to anything you already felt about Lester’s anticipated 2020 season (which is to say: at his age, it is always possible he could fall way off or get hurt at any time, but he’s still a fair bet to be a solid 4/5 starter).
• Indeed, the only newsworthy bit was that Lester was on the mound for David Ross’s first ever yank:

In his first game as Cubs manager, David Ross has to go get the ball from Jon Lester.

Lester: 1+ IP, 3 H, 5 R (3 ER), 2 BB, 0 K, 9 BF, 31 pitches. pic.twitter.com/arEiReCSBc

— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) February 25, 2020

• Each of Duane Underwood, Jr. and James Norwood gave up four hits in their innings of work. Rex Brothers looked good again in a two-strikeout performance.
• Nice to see Cubs pitching prospect Tyson Miller get in an inning of work, 1-2-3 with two strikeouts. He’ll be a key part of the Iowa Cubs rotation to open the season, and possibly big league starting depth if necessary.
• This is such a beautiful shot, by which I mostly mean the video, but seeing Ian Happ go the other way from the right-handed side is beautiful:

A double to the gap scores three for Ian Happ. pic.twitter.com/TvQMrHKhCf

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) February 25, 2020

• Big lefty Brad Wieck is away from the team right now, and no reason has been released. We’ll assume for now that it’s a personal matter and he’ll be back when he’s back, competing for a bullpen spot.
• Upcoming starting pitchers:

Upcoming starters: Hendricks (Wed), Rea (Thu), Chatwood (Fri).

— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) February 25, 2020

• Great stuff:

Five @AdvocateKids All-Stars enjoyed a VIP experience at Cubs Spring Training during the annual #KidsCubsCactus trip!@AmericanAir | @MarriottBonvoy pic.twitter.com/Inm55iQyJ3

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) February 25, 2020