There were two schools of thought when the Cubs lost the first game of this series to one of the worst teams in baseball (literally): The more prevalent was “Hey, that’s baseball. Shrug.” But there was also a surprisingly vocal minority of “Hey, what the hell? The Braves are one of the worst teams in baseball—we shouldn’t lose to them.”
Thankfully, the Cubs went on to win the next two games in routs, taking the series and maintaining the meager shreds of dignity that come with holding a record of 43-18—despite committing four (FOUR!) errors today. It got a little ugly out there defensively at first, but then the Cubs’ bats went a little crazy and almost made you feel sorry for the lowly Braves. So now the naysayers can save their rancor for another day, and instead of angrily calling The Score they can lovingly pick the lint from their “DITKA” jerseys and finely sculpt their mustaches in the mirror.
Top Play (WPA): Given the way the game began, it was only fitting that the top play (+0.156) was influenced by an error. Prodigal son Chris Coghlan reached on a fielder’s choice in the top of the fourth, then got to second on a Javier Baez bunt (who was safe at first on replay after, of course, originally being ruled out). Ross hit a soft line single to right, but the normally stable Nick Markakis (he of the two Gold Gloves) inexplicably tried to barehand the ball and watched it go trickling away like a White Sox fan’s hopes for respectability. Coghlan hustled around to score, and the Cubs took the lead, 2-1.
Bottom Play (WPA): With runners on first and second, the Braves pulled out the semi-rare second/third double-steal. Catcher Ross threw to second and runner Freddie Freeman kicked it into centerfield on the slide, and Chase d’Arnaud jogged home to tie the game 1-1. Thankfully Jeff Francoeur whiffed and Markakis grounded out to second, and the Cubs got out of the inning without further trouble.
Key Moment: The game was pretty much decided when the Cubs went up 3-1 in the fourth—incredibly, the game was actually kind of close for a while. But Coghlan led off the sixth with sharp double into the right-field corner, then reached third after tagging on an awesome diving catch by Markakis (still doesn’t redeem that error, bro). With the infield drawn in, the lovable David Ross (I mean, have you seen this ad?) rifled a single into right field, giving the Cubs a groovy little insurance run and a solid 4-1 lead. That was pretty much the game—and hopefully it gave Coghlan a nice boost of confidence.
Also worth noting: Maddon’s inexplicable decision to bat the 32-year-old Lester in the 7th with the Cubs leading 7-1. It’s hard to complain when the Cubs won 13-2, but here goes anyway. It was around 100 degrees on the field, and the Cubs had a six-run lead. What’s the point in drawing out Lester’s time in the game? He’d already thrown 93 pitches—isn’t this exactly the scenario the team wanted to avoid after seeing Arrieta so gassed in the NLCS? If this were Dusty Baker at the helm, wouldn’t people be freaking out? Lester ended the game with zero walks and seven K’s—and 109 pitches. There was no reason to get him into triple digits.
One last thing: Javier Baez’s three run homer in the eighth was one of his more controlled swings, which is a wonderful thing to see. Keep doing that, Javy.
Trend to Watch: There were two trends worth noting here, one good and one bad. Anthony Rizzo drove in the Cubs’ first run with a first inning double (and two more later in the game), giving him three RBIs and a hitting streak of nine games. The Cubs aren’t dependent on Rizzo to win—that said, he’s clearly the heart of the team, both offensively and emotionally. So to see him get back on track after a reasonably mild “slump” is a fine thing, indeed.
A little less fine is the sudden Keystone Kops nature of the Cubs’ defense. After going eight games without making an error, the Cubs made eight in three games against the Braves (who, let’s say again, came into today tied for the worst record in baseball). The Cubs had been leading the league in defensive efficiency, and it’s probably just a minor blip—perhaps another example of the North Siders playing down to their competition. Still, it was a little discouraging to a slow single go scooting through Dexter Fowler’s legs like a wayward hedgehog. So… don’t do that anymore, Dex.
Coming Next: The Cubs face the Washington Nationals, one of the teams they could face in the playoffs (assuming there’s not a collapse of Durocher-esque proportions). The North Siders face the Nats’ $210 million righty Max Scherzer in the leadoff game, who they touched up for seven runs when they played on May 6. The 2013 Cy Young winner seemed to take it personally, going on to whiff 20 (20!) Tigers in his next game. The Cubs counter with Ivy Leaguer/future accountant Kyle Hendricks, who lost to the Phillies 3-2 in his last start. Hey, we can live with a L. It happens. But giving up a homer to the withered corpse of Ryan Howard? Not cool, bean counter.
Lead photo courtesy Dale Zanine—USA Today Sports.
I wonder if the decision to keep Lester in has to do protecting the pen for the Nationals series beginning tomorrow. Lackey, Hendricks, Hammell are the most likely to need help, just a thought
That’s not a bad thought, but Maddon probably knew a guy like Warren was going to get in anyway. In the long run, getting some rest for the pen is less important than getting rest for Lester, in my mind.
The Bryant errors earlier concerned me fat more than Rossys, but I agree, it is pretty strange especially on a team engineered to take the grind away. Isn’t this why they where stupid outfits? (sarcasm font)
Yeah, Bryant’s efforts yesterday were troubling, but I truly think that was a one-time (or two-time, rather) glitch.
I’m still wondering about Javy’s strike zone control. His K-rate is down to 19.1%, but his walk rate is down to 2.3% and he’s only seeing 3.53 pitches/ab. And he generally gets at least one throwaway pitch per plate appearance – as it seems pitchers are checking to see if he’ll still chase junk. What do you think?