RECAP: Cubs fall back under .500
There’s no nice way to put it. This one was a clunker. It was another shut out at Wrigley, only this time, it was the Cubs on the receiving end of the shutout. The Cubs drop to a game under .500 and their record now sits at 9-10. They still have another 143 games to play, though, so I wouldn’t worry too hard just yet.
There are some pitchers, like Jon Lester, who can still pitch a good game even when their command is off. While Darvish still may yet prove to be one of those guys, he definitely wasn’t today. Right out the gate it was evident he didn’t the command of his fastball that he had in Miami. His second pitch of the game was sent to left field but when Dyson tried stretching a solid single into a leadoff double, he was thrown out at second by Schwarber, who is probably enjoying the fact that the league has yet to learn not to test his arm. That seemed like a big out when the very next batter, Eduardo Escobar, launched a solo homer to the right field bleachers. Any excitement left from that first out was quelled when D-Backs left fielder David Peralta went back-to-back with a solo homer of his own, putting the Cubs in a 2-0 hole they wouldn’t be able to climb out of.
Darvish would give up a third run in the very next inning, and it would come without the benefit of a hit. Darvish issued back-to-back walks to start the inning. The runners then advanced on a sac bunt by pitcher, Zack Grienke. Leadoff hitter Jarrod Dyson then sent a fly ball deep enough for the runner on third to tag up and score. Darvish wouldnt give up another run but he only pitched 3 more innings. His line at the end of his night: 5.0 innings pitched, 3 runs/3earned, 2 home runs, 3 walks and 7 strikeouts. Had Darvish been given some run support, or had he been able to go another 3 outs, that line wouldnt have been bad at all. However, for the third time this season, Cubs bats fell flat with Darvish on the mound.
Zack Grienke’s day went a whole lot better than Yu Darvish’s. To begin with, he was given a 2 run lead before he stepped on the mound. Things only got better for him once he did take the mound. From the beginning, he stymied Cubs hitters. The offense didnt even get their first hit until the 4th inning- a leadoff double by Kris Bryant. It was all for naught, though. Rizzo made the first out with a harmless flyout. Baez would advance KB with a grounder towards first but made the second out of the inning. Contreras worked a nice plate appearance and drew a walk to put runners on the corners for Heyward but Grienke ended the threat and the best chance the Cubs had at scoring the whole game, by striking him out. Grienke would end his day with 3 hits, 2 walks, and 0 earned runs while striking out 4 over 6 innings of quality pitching.
By the top of the 6th, Darvish was out and Webster was in. He started off the inning by giving up back to back singles but when Marte tried stretching a single into a double, he was caught in a rundown that advanced Walker to third base. Ahmed came up next and bounced a hit to Bryant who decided to try and get the out at home instead of first. Unfortunately, a catching error on (ironically enough) catcher Willson Contreras allowed Walker to score, putting the Diamondbacks up 4-0, while Ahmed was safe at first. Arizona’s catcher, John Ryan Murphy, was up next and put runs 5 and 6 on the board with a 2 run homer. Webster would give up two more hits in the inning, including a one out double to Grienke, before ending the inning by striking out Peralta.
In the end, the 2 run hole that Darvish put the Cubs in in the first proved to be too big a hole for the offense to dig their way out of and Darvish earned his third loss of the season and Zack Grienke earned the first win of his career at Wrigley, crossing off the final NL park he hadn’t gotten a win in.
With the series all tied up at 1 apiece, Cubs look to take the rubber match tomorrow when Tyler Chatwood makes his season debut as a starter. Arizona will counter by sending lefty Robbie Ray to the mound. Ray is 0-1 with a 4.64 ERA. Being a lefty, theres a good chance we see Almora back in center to close out the series. First pitch is scheduled for 2:20 eastern/1:20 (local) central.
