I can not believe the Cubs won that game, and if you were looking through five innings, you would not have believed it either.
The Cubs were 4-1 down, with the one run coming as a total freebie in the first inning. They hadn’t recorded a hit that night, and, along with the previous rough performances during the day, it felt like they didn’t want to do much.
But a Willson Contreras rocket doubled to score Javy Báez, a Jason Heyward walk, and then a pinch-hit three-run blast from David Bote later … suddenly the Cubs were on top. It happened so fast. ‘It’s baseball’ can also be a good thing.
Here’s what I wrote about the 6th inning for Bote’s homer. It still remains in principle, though Bote’s swing changes the context a bit: “When Kyle Schwarber tries to tie the game for a hit on a 0-2 score, you get a pretty good sense of how the Cubs offense is on this moment feels about itself. He dropped it off and knocked it out, on the way. Also give a nice sense of the crime. Oh, and in that same inning, after Willson Contreras smashed a double for the Cubs’ first hit of the night, Ian Happ tried to tie it. He was easily chased away. What. De. F ***. ”
Anyway, back to the positive stuff. All in all, a decent night out of the Cubs’ bullpen, where they had to cover five innings after completed starter Tyson Miller got them two (two runs allowed). Kyle Ryan gave up back-to-back homers, but that was the only damage against the pin.
Even when Bote came on the record to score a hit for Caratini, here’s what happened – embarrassing, but worth it:
Puppy, Bote pinch hit for Vic. I think supply still exists.
– Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 18, 2020
I LOVE VICTOR CARATINI (and David Bote) pic.twitter.com/AZYoaBWIz3
– Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 18, 2020
Puppies win. Puppies win. The losing streak is over.
Full box score.
