Amaya clutch as Cubs sweep Crosstown Classic |
CHICAGO - Baseball is a funny game, isn't it? One night after the Chicago Cubs (59-60) lit up the Chicago White Sox (28-91) Garrett Crochet for four homers, the Cubs found themselves struggling against one of the worst pitchers in the game in Chris Flexen. The same Felxen that faced the Cubs earlier this season and got lit up at Wrigley Field as the Cubs went for the season sweep against the Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on Saturday.
Throughout history, there have been many strange games and series between these teams, but none have been as strange as this season, when all three games went to the Cubs by a 7-6 score. Surely that wouldn't happen again, would it? Well, this was one of those games where pitching dominated the show, as Flexen and Justin Steele battled through some elevated pitch counts to keep things close, as this was a 1-1 game entering the later innings. In what became a battle of the bullpens late, you have the game's best bullpen in the Cubs against one of the game's worst in the White Sox. Something had to give, and as expected, the White Sox pen gave up the lead as the two-run Miguel Amaya single in the eighth pushed home the winning runs in the Cubs 3-1 win. This was one of those games where the Cubs have to consider themselves fortunate to have won. A pair of first-inning walks went to waste, and Flexen struggled with his command throughout, walking four and striking out one across four labor-intensified innings. The same can be said about Steele in the early going, although command wasn't an issue. Instead, the White Sox did a great job fighting off pitches as he was near 50 pitches through two innings before settling in to give the Cubs six innings of one-run eight, strikeout baseball. Steele had to work around traffic several times in the early innings, but the leadoff error in the second came back to bite the Cubs as Nico Hoerner committed the first error in 71 games for the Cubs middle infield. That error was followed by a pair of singles for Korey Lee and Brooks Baldwin, with Baldwin coming through to give the White Sox a 1-0 lead in the second. That would not only be the only run Steele would allow, but it was also the only run the White Sox managed to score, as they had plenty of chances to add on but failed to do so. The Cubs had a chance to tie things up or take the lead in the third as a one-out Michael Busch double set the offense before a pair of walks loaded the bases before coming away empty. These are the types of chances this team has let get away far too much in the past, and if they want to continue to make a late-season push, they can't give those chances away. Following another jam that Steele managed to pitch himself out of in the fourth, the Cubs offense finally broke through in the fifth, and it came with a bit of help from the White Sox defense. After Cody Bellinger kept the inning alive with a two-out single, Isaac Paredes ripped a double off the left field wall. With Bellinger racing around the bases, Baldwin had a shot to nail Bellinger at the plate, but he chose not to throw the ball home, resulting in the tying run to score. That was a puzzling decision, to say the least, as Bellinger would've been out by at least 10 feet had the throw been made. Those types of plays have put the White Sox in the position they are in this season, as they have made far too many mistakes across the board. That was the game's final run for the next few innings, as both bullpens were pitching very well most of the night. That shouldn't shock you when you look at the Cubs, as their 1.64 bullpen ERA is the best in baseball since July 6, and with Porter Hodge and Jorge Lopez tossing a pair of scoreless frames, that ERA will drop a bit more. To the White Sox credit, their bullpen was more than up to the task of keeping things close as their bullpen stepped up in this one to give them a chance. That all changed in the eighth inning as Chad Kuhl entered the game in place of Justin Anderson and immediately walked Hoerner to start the eighth. Dansby Swanson followed that up with a swinging bunt as the Cubs had runners on first and second and no outs. The key to the entire inning was watching Pete Crow-Armstrong play some baseball 101. His perfect sacrifice bunt moved both runners over to set things up for Amaya and the rest of the lineup. As bad as things have gone for Amaya this season, he has really come on over the past three weeks, and some extra work in the cage has helped get his offensive game on track. His terrific turnaround continued as he turned on a hanging slider from Kuhl and dropped it into left field for the go-ahead single as the Cubs were back in front 3-1. It was a moment that Amaya had been waiting on for a long time, but he was thrown out at the plate later in the inning as the Cubs led 3-1. “I think you've seen Miggy make some really impressive adjustments this year,” Nico Hoerner said, “while also dealing with an entire pitching staff and playing his first full, extended season in the big leagues. So a really impressive guy. “And that was a tough, big hit he had for us today and obviously a big spot.” With Lopez finding a way to pitch out of an eighth-inning jam to keep the Cubs in front, the White Sox were down to their last chance as Hector Neris took the ball in the ninth. Neris wasn't sharp on Friday, pitching out of a bases-loaded jam to earn the save as he was looking for save No. 17 in this one. Not only did he do his job, but he did so in relatively easy fashion, pitching around a leadoff error to retire the next three as the Cubs sweep the season series 3-1. #CubsWin! Sweep the season series from the Sox! Go crazy, Chicago!@Cubs #GoCubsGo #CrosstownClassic pic.twitter.com/IFMjanBlSn The Cubs will now enjoy a rare off day on Sunday before they head to Cleveland with an opportunity to get back to .500 for the first time since late May. Swanson and Amaya paced the offense with two hits as Swanson collected career hit No. 1000 in the game. “It does feel like it is still within our grasp,” Hoerner said about making the playoffs. “Obviously, we put ourselves in a hole with how we played for an extended stretch, but I do think you’re seeing a very complete version of us right now, as far as starting pitching, bullpen, defense and a full lineup. So, I think we’re in a good spot.” #Cubs third Crosstown Series sweep in franchise history! “We took care of business … but we’ve got to play good baseball and we know we don’t have much room for error.” “What a day for the family.”
Amaya: 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI
Steele: 6 IP, 2 BB, 8 K
Neris: SV (17) pic.twitter.com/9uLF1HqWca
Craig Counsell on the upcoming road trip. pic.twitter.com/is2TgOIm6C
Dansby Swanson acquired his 1,000th career hit the same day his wife Mallory won Olympic gold 🥇 pic.twitter.com/opFAdFY3Tf
