Top Play (WPA): Imagine my relief in not having to write about the top play being a Hector Rondon wild pitch. In the top-half of the ninth inning, Rondon was one pitch from getting out of yet another late-game jam, but promptly bounced a slider in the dirt that Miguel Montero could not block, allowing Ryan […]
Author: Isaac Bennett
Game 108 Recap: Cubs 7 Giants 3
Top Play (WPA): In an ode to sabermetrically leaning folks everywhere, Dexter Fowler secured today’s top play by doubling to right in the home-half of the fifth (.142), this despite the clutch run-scoring blows that would follow by Kyle Schwarber (.099) and Jorge Soler (.105). David Ross added a bloop single to make it a high-five fifth inning and a 6-1 lead for […]
Game 55 Recap: Cubs 6 Nationals 3
Top Play (WPA): Following Starlin Castro’s 13th error of the season, Kyle Hendricks fell behind Ian Desmond 2-0 before delivering an 87-mph sinker that stayed up just enough for Desmond to create loft: Hendricks hit Miguel Montero’s outside target, but Desmond stayed with the pitch and drove a two-run home run into the right-field seats (.195). The Nationals enjoyed […]
Game 49 Recap: Cubs 5 Marlins 1
Photo courtesy of Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports Top Play (WPA): As a testament to Jason Hammel’s brilliance on the mound, the Cubs needed just three batters get to the top play. Dexter Fowler broke out of a 1-for-24 slump by smacking the game’s first pitch into center for a single. Kris Bryant followed by working an impressive […]
Game 29 Recap: Brewers 12 Cubs 4
Top Play (WPA): The contest was lopsided in favor of the home team, but the top play is fittingly reserved for Kris Bryant. With one out in the third, Dexter Fowler doubled into the left-center gap. Addison Russell was destined to score, but the Brewers caught a break when the ball stuck beneath the padding of the wall, […]
GAME 22 RECAP: BREWERS 6 CUBS 1
Photo courtesy of Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports Top Play (WPA): With one out in the top of the first, Jake Arrieta fired a 95 mph thigh-high and right-down-the-middle fastball to Ryan Braun. Braun did what Braun does to thigh-high fastballs, launching a two-run home run into the berm in center field (.187). The pitch was an atypical […]
Game 18 Recap: Cubs 4 Pirates 0
Photo courtesy of Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports Top Play (WPA): With two outs in the fifth, Kris Bryant lined a 2-2 fastball into center field to plate Anthony Rizzo and Jorge Soler (.158). As is quickly becoming commonplace, Bryant didn’t try to do too much in the two-strike count, settling for an inside-out swing to place the ball […]
Game 17 Recap: Cubs 5 Reds 2
Photo courtesy of David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports Top Play (WPA): With one out in the fourth, Bryan Price elected to intentionally walk Chris Coghlan to load the bases and set up a double-play scenario. Jake Arrieta followed Coghlan by striking out on three pitches, setting the stage for Addison Russell. Russell swung through two fastballs, quickly falling behind 0-2. […]
What If The Astros Had Taken Kris Bryant?
As the 2012 amateur draft approached, there was little debate among experts as to who deserved the title of top right-handed starting pitcher. The talent, character, and charisma this young man possessed made him an easy selection. Yet, it was another word that set in place a series of events that led to his hometown Houston Astros passing over […]
GAME 11 RECAP: PADRES 5 CUBS 2
Top Play (WPA): Yangervis Solarte pulled a 2-2 high fastball from Jason Motte deep into the right-field bleacher supports (.189). Solarte’s seventh-inning shot was his first home run of the season and extended the Padres lead to 5-2, a score that would eventually become final. Solarte’s home run came on the heels of an excellent eight-pitch […]