Because everything is going wrong now, Jason Heyward – one of the few consistently good Cubs hitters this year – has been pulled from tonight’s game in favor of Cameron Maybin. No reason given yet.
Heyward struck out in the bottom of the 4th on three pitches, and he was replaced after that. Obviously that’s not happening unless something is not quite right, so we’ll update when we have the reason.
UPDATE: Heyward was not feeling well:
Heyward left the game Sunday night because he is "not feeling well," per team.
— Tony Andracki (@TonyAndracki23) September 7, 2020
Perhaps the strikeout was the last straw in trying to play through it, and Heyward decided he just wasn’t well enough to keep going. Obviously, in the COVID era, any time a player is sick, there’s an additional layer of worry. There are testing and protocols, of course, so I don’t think there’s any reason to make a leap right now.
UPDATE 2: This sounds potentially scary, and I hope everything turns out OK for Heyward:
Ross: Heyward was experiencing light-headedness and shortness of breath. Sent to local hospital for further testing. More will be known Monday.
— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) September 7, 2020