Well that game certainly wasn’t worth dividing my attention between the Cubs and the ‘Better Call Saul’ series finale …
Even after blowing an early lead thanks to shoddy defense – their first unearned runs in what feels like a long time – the Cubs managed to tie things up late thanks to a Nick Madrigal double and Seiya Suzuki single:
They had a chance. But Nelson Cruz took Brandon Hughes deep in the 8th (Hughes has been so good lately I can’t say much about him), and that was the decisive blow.
Marcus Stroman wound up getting bounced in that four-run Nationals fifth inning, not so much because of anything he did, but because he was twice let down defensively on the infield. So the inning just dragged on.
On the positive side, Mark Leiter Jr. sure wants folks to notice he’s still quite good in these kinds of short-burst, multi-inning outings. I’m not 100% convinced he won’t be retained on the 40-man this offseason.
Ian Happ went deep twice, and Franmil Reyes even hit a run-scoring triple:
Man, Carl Edwards Jr. sure is pitching well for the Nationals this year, eh? Good for him.