A breezy four hours and 10 minutes after this game began, the Chicago Cubs claimed their second consecutive victory on the back of a four out appearance (and ultimately save) from Rowan Wick, who now has a team-leading 4 saves this season. How about that? I think he and Jeremey Jeffress will continue to get the most save opportunities here in the short-term, until Craig Kimbrel proves that the improvements he’s shown over his last two outings are here to stay.
As for the starter, Yu Darvish, his overall results were good tonight (6.0 IP, 1ER), as he notched his fourth consecutive quality start while keeping his ERA at a pristine 1.80, but there was trouble. While he struck out 7 and walked just 1, Darvish allowed 8 hits and plenty of hard contact. Even still, he worked his way out of a huge moment early in the game, that may have ultimately tipped this one in favor of Chicago:
How to get out of a bases loaded with no outs jam: Presented by Yu Darvish. pic.twitter.com/Yvt6Irbvkg
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) August 19, 2020
The Cubs had a couple of other tense moments in this game, but also benefited from three double-plays – that’ll usually do the trick.
Offensively, it was a big night for interim leadoff man, Ian Happ, who reached base four times, including his fifth homer, a single, and two walks. I have a feeling that if he continues to take the leadoff PAs in Kris Bryant’s absence and continues to get on base in the process, he could end up taking over that spot before the season is over. Just a feeling.
Jason Heyward also had a good night at the plate, using the opposite field while grabbing two hits, but the other memorable moment in this one belonged to the left fielder, Kyle Schwarber, who hit a monster blast that made Javy Baez watch it fly like a kid playing little league:
https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/1295914640975761408?s=20
Speaking of Baez, his night got off to a rough start (2Ks), but he eventually added a double and a walk, before flying out to right field (we like seeing him go the other way). Hopefully, that’s some progress towards reestablishing himself at the plate.
The Cubs had 9 hits overall plus 8 walks and absolutely grinded Cardinals pitchers into the ground tonight, so good on them. It was a long one, but it’s over and the Cubs have moved to 15-7.
By the way, the next game starts in about 14 hours … and there’s another one after that.