On a lot of things last night, the Cubs did it. They avoided getting swept one last time by the Cardinals. They stuck it to their old buddy Jon Lester in what might have been his last career start. They reached the 70-win threshold, which just feels less impotent, even if 73 (and the accompanying loss total below 90) would’ve been a little bit nicer. Ian Happ, he of the heroic ninth-inning blast, may have locked himself into an above-league-average 2021 by wRC+ (something we’ve been watching with interest).
A few other notes:
- Adrian Sampson looked great, and he might not stick around, but maybe he’s worth a shot?
- Trayce Thompson crushed a grand slam, and I know the sample’s small, but what a few weeks from him.
- Matt Duffy notched two hits.
- Jason Adam was great out of the bullpen.
- Rowan Wick was great out of the bullpen.
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The Diaspora:
Anthony Rizzo homered, but the Yankees were smoked by the Rays, and the New Yorkers now enter the season’s final day with playoff business to wrap up. Kyle Schwarber doubled against his former team, which is the Washington Nationals in this case. Joc Pederson homered for Atlanta.
Around the Division:
Rowdy Tellez came off the IL for the Brewers. The Cardinals are just .500 in their last four games.
Up Next:
The finale.
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Whom:
Cubs vs. St. Louis
When:
2:15 PM Chicago Time
Where:
Busch Stadium
Weather:
Humid, chance of rain, temperatures in the 70’s with a wind blowing out at five to ten miles per hour.
Starting Pitchers:
Alec Mills vs. Jake Woodford
The Opponent:
Woodford’s been a pleasant surprise for St. Louis, with a 3.88 ERA that’s skepticism-worthy due to the 4.66 xERA and 4.68 FIP, but would still be better than expectations if he regressed to those levels.
The Numbers:
I’m seeing the Cubs at +155 and the Cardinals at -175, for an implied Chicago win probability of about 37%. The over/under’s at nine and leans towards the under.
Cubs News:
Tommy Nance is the latest IL-without-designation case, implying he probably is sidelined due to Covid. Willson Contreras left the game last night with a hip injury. The Cubs are locked into the seventh spot in the 2022 MLB Draft.
Cubs Thoughts:
We can get into the 40-man crunch thing a lot this offseason, and we will get into it a lot, but it’s nice to have so many guys you don’t really want to lose. That’s a good problem to have.
