Hey, a tight game against a division foe in the midst of a pennant race is one thing, but that catch is another thing altogether: Addison Russell reportedly covered 107 feet, reaching top speeds of 19.3 miles per hour. Had the ball dropped, the tying run might have very well scored (Len’s words, if you […]
Tag: PIttsburgh Pirates
Game 130 Recap: Cubs 8 Pirates 7 (13)
Given all the feel-good stories the 2016 Cubs have provided and the up-and-coming studs that populate most of the roster, it’s been easy to gloss over the guy whose baseball career is trending the wrong way. Last year, Miguel Montero was one of the veterans who helped elevate a young Cubs’ clubhouse, providing value behind the plate […]
Series Preview: Cubs vs. Pirates, Aug. 29-31
Earlier in the season, writing the Pirates out of the playoff picture probably would have been a safe bet. Not a sure thing, but especially when they sold off their closer at the deadline, things did not appear as if Pittsburgh would be getting even their usual one-and-done playoff appearance. But that’s part of the […]
Game 88 Recap: Cubs 6 Pirates 5
Oh, how they needed that. Top Play (WPA): With Dexter Fowler injured, “You go, we go,” has become a more fitting slogan for the Cubs’ opponents, who have persisted lately in hammering Cubs pitching almost immediately after the Cubs’ batters put runs on the board. Such was the case again in today’s cat-and-mouse game. Ben […]
Game 87 Recap: Pirates 12 Cubs 6
The Cubs’ pitching staff is an abject mess right now. It’s roughly that simple. Okay, it isn’t, but we’ll get into why soon enough. For now, that first sentence is a sufficient explanation of the team’s 15th loss in 20 games. Top Play (WPA): Things began so promisingly. A one-out Kris Bryant walk begat a two-out, two-run, […]
Game 86 Recap: Pirates 8 Cubs 4
Top Play (WPA): Let’s start with some good vibes, shall we? Before the Cubs Cubsed their way to maybe the Cubsiest loss all Cubs season, it looked like it might be a vintage Good Cubs comeback victory behind strong pitching from their ace. The Cubs scraped one run off of the Pirates’ lead in the […]
Series Preview: Cubs at Pirates, July 8-10
If there were a euphemism or tired cliché that has described the Cubs’ season so far, it’s Isaac Newton’s “what goes up must come down.” He was talking about gravity, but had he said it about the 2016 Cubs, the 17th century British mathematician and astronomer would be right about the way the season has […]
Game 67 Recap: Cubs 10 Pirates 5
“It always seems one guy every year is that guy. On every staff there’s one guy that never gets any runs, regardless of how well that he pitches.” Maddon went on to commend the job Kyle Hendricks has done, improving both velocity and command this season, but through twelve starts he had nevertheless been that […]
Game 65 Recap: Cubs 6, Pirates 0
To use a tired cliché, that escalated quickly. Top Play (WPA): Jake Arrieta dispatched the Pittsburgh Pirates quickly in the bottom of the first inning, bringing the Cubs to bat against Pittsburgh left-hander Francisco Liriano in the bottom half. They wasted no time. Dexter Fowler singled on a ball that ricocheted off the third base […]
Series Preview: Pirates at Cubs, June 17-19
This has a chance to be a moment. If the Cubs win two out of three in each of their series over the next week, they will hit the road with at least their current 9.5-game lead in the NL Central, and both the Pirates and the Cardinals will be running low on chances to […]