Cub Tracks’ son day

Here at CUB TRACKS NEWS AND NOTES™, we like to keep things brief on the principle that it makes us appear wise. Unless we feel a rant. But we don’t mind a little informing with the entertaining.

And boy, was that entertaining. Three homers in the fourth took care of Brett Anderson’s no-hit bid, with Willson Contreras’ drive scoring Ian Happ, who had walked, and Javier Baez and David Bote going back-to-back for solo blasts. Anthony Rizzo might have had one if he’d had another biscuit for breakfast as his drive to the right-field corner died on the track and was caught.

Trevor Williams kept up his strong, economical pitching after that and was perfect for five full innings before bending a bit in the sixth and allowing the Brew Crew to load the bases, though they didn’t score at that point. Omar Narvaez homered in the seventh off of Jason Adam and made things interesting. There were more heroics later — Al will have full game details in his recap.

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• Gordon Wittenmyer (NBC Sports Chicago*): Cubs fully revealed: 5 things we now know about their 2021 chances. “Only an idiot would evaluate a 162-game baseball season after just one game.”
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Triumvirate of Davies, Bryant, Kimbrel key ‘W’. “He’s a really, really confident pitcher,” Ian Happ said. “He doesn’t try to do too much. He works both corners and he really understands himself.” Sahadev Sharma echoes this {$}.
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): Cubs welcome Jake Arrieta back to Wrigley Field: ‘Just like I remembered it’. “Feel free to say hello if you see a big dude with a full beard maneuvering around Wrigleyville on a scooter.”
• Bryan Smith (Bleacher Nation*): Zach Davies is one of the most extreme “Down” pitchers in the game – will that change with the Cubs? “... Davies features an arsenal built around sinkers and changeups.”
• Tim Stebbins (NBC Sports Chicago*): No closer controversy in Kimbrel’s strong debut. “Kimbrel threw 16 pitches, 12 for strikes.”
• Maddie Lee (NBC Sports Chicago*): Cubs Injury Update: Austin Romine, Rowan Wick progressing. “Looks really good,” Ross said Monday. “All the reports I’m getting sound good.”
• Russell Dorsey (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Cubs’ offensive approach stands out in series victory against Pirates. “The Cubs drew 14 walks during their opening series, including seven in a 4-3 victory Sunday.”
• Meghan Montemurro (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Baez believes Francisco Lindor’s $341 million deal with the New York Mets ‘opens the door’ for other free-agent shortstops. “No one was going to get more than Lindor, and you’ve got to be honest about it,” said Baez. Russell Dorsey adds on.
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): Kris Bryant, Cubs Office Safety Manager. “There was a really scary moment late in yesterday’s game.”
• Randall Williams (Yahoo Sports*): Cubs’ Happ invests in Jomboy podcast as baseball duties resume. “I invested personally because I really believe that Jomboy Media is the future of the way that baseball should be and will be consumed,” Happ said in an interview.
• Food for thought: