MLB: Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee Brewers

Game 103 Recap: Cubs 4 Brewers 2

Top Play (WPA): This was a fairly straightforward game for the Cubs, as there was very little drama on the way to the team picking up their fourth consecutive victory. This meant that there were relatively few moments with the potential to alter the course of the game. However, one such play was the definition of a turning point and it came from the likeliest possible source. Anthony Rizzo stepped to the plate with two on and two out in the top of the third inning and did what he does best, as he crushed a fastball left out over the plate into the right field stands for a home run (.298) to give the Cubs a 3-0 lead.

Bottom Play (WPA): Kyle Hendricks pitched an absolute gem in this one and prevented the Brewers from having many chances to score. Hendricks went seven innings and gave up four hits and two walks while striking out six in a return to form for the young starter. There was one play that really stood out, though, and it involved Hendricks, as well as Kyle Schwarber, Rizzo, and Addison Russell. Following a walk to Khris Davis with one out in the bottom of the second inning, Jean Segura stepped up to the plate. Davis was dancing off of first, and it appeared as though he thought he could catch everyone sleeping and try to steal second. Instead, the battery of Schwarber and Hendricks executed to perfection, as Hendricks wheeled around and tossed the ball to Rizzo, then waiting just off of first base, without hardly a peek over his shoulder, and Davis was suddenly caught in a rundown. Davis had nothing left to do but run between Russell and Rizzo until he was finally tagged out by the latter (-.061). This allowed Hendricks to recover an out without throwing additional pitches and to quash what could have been a decent opportunity for the Brewers to get ahead early.

Key Moment: While this game was for the most part in the Cubs’ control throughout the contest, there was one scare towards the end. The Cubs’ much-maligned “closer” Jason Motte came into the game to pitch the ninth, and things began poorly as Adam Lind doubled off of the bearded, mostly-fastball-throwing reliever. This then brought the powerful Davis to the plate with a runner on second and nobody out. Davis got a pitch to hit and he drove it just above the top of the right-field wall. Fortunately, the drive had a fair amount of hang time, allowing Jorge Soler to get into position at the base of the wall. Soler then leapt above the wall and made a miraculous catch (-.030) to prevent the home run and to maintain the Cubs’ lead. Soler’s defense in right this season has often been disappointing, but this play was a reminder of the athleticism that was so often on display for Soler as he burned his way through the minors last season.

Trend to Watch: Starting on July 1, Rizzo went into a very deep slump. The slugging first baseman began a run of 23 games in which he hit only one home run and had only three total extra-base hits. This was obviously cause for concern, as the Cubs’ lineup saw a number of other players go into slumps right around this time and the team needed their best hitter to pick up the slack. However, the last four games have seen a resurgent Rizzo, as he’s now gone deep once in each of those games. This is obviously a very small sample, but I believe it is safe to say that Rizzo has snapped out of his slump and is ready once again to be the offensive force we’re used to him being.

Coming Next: The Cubs (56-47) will look to win their fifth straight game and complete the road sweep of the Brewers (44-61). The Cubs send out the human representation of a replacement-level pitcher, Clayton Richard (5.40 ERA, 5.01 FIP, 8.12 DRA), to the mound while the Brewers counter with their own version of this phenomenon in Kyle Lohse (6.24 ERA, 5.10 FIP, 5.21 DRA).

Lead photo courtesy Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

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