2021 Cubs Heroes and Goats: Game 4

Spoiler alert, not only does today’s picture have our usual picture of the Superhero, this one captures the Hero too. On the left? He shut down the Brewers offense. On the right? He ignited the key rally. Trevor Williams, the brand-new Cub, making his first-ever start as a Cub. On the right? Willson Contreras, one of the veteran leaders of this Cubs team. Willson’s two-run homer in the fourth kickstarted the offense.

That duo, along with a small handful of others, powered the Cubs to this victory. The victory was the Cubs’ third straight after an opening day loss. It’s way too early to draw any conclusions, but hey at the 2.5 percent mark of the season, the Cubs are on pace to win 121 games. Or something like that. Early season “paces” are always a giggle to look at.

The important news is that this team has looked pretty good the first time through. Sure, that opening game was a clunker, but they still hung in and only lost by two. And also, the Pirates are likely to be one of the worst teams in the league, if not the worst. But this Brewers team likely is not. None of the teams in the Central look like powerhouses, so all of them are going to beatable when the Cubs play well. They’ve played well for three straight days and they’ve got three wins to show for it. Tuesday, we’ll hope for a fourth.

With that, we’ll turn our attention to Heroes and Goats. As you’ll recall, the Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA (Win Probability Added) and are not in any way subjective. Many days WPA will not tell the story of what happened, but often it can give at least a glimpse to who rose to the occasion in a high-leverage moment or who didn’t get the job done in that moment. With that, let’s get to the results.

Game 4, April 5: Cubs 5, Brewers 3 (3-1)

THREE HEROES:

• Superhero: Trevor Williams (.209). 6IP, 2H, 2BB, 2R, 6K (W 1-0)
• Hero: Willson Contreras (.159). 1-3, HR (1), HBP, 2RBI, R
• Sidekick: Andrew Chafin (.123). 1⅓IP (4 batters faced), 0H, 0BB, 0R, 4K

THREE GOATS:

• Billy Goat: Jason Adam (-.121). ⅔IP (4 batters faced), 2H, 0BB, R, K
• Goat: Anthony Rizzo (-.048). 0-4
• Kid: Kris Bryant (-.045). 0-3, BB, K

WPA Play of the Game: Willson Contreras batted with a runner on first and no outs in the fourth inning. It was the first base runner that either team had in the game. Willson topped that with a long two-run homer to center to give the Cubs a 2-0 lead. (.182)

*Brewers Play of the Game: Jason Adam inherited runners on first and second and no outs in the seventh inning with the Cubs leading 4-0. He got the first two batters he faced with a ground out that moved the runners up and what looked like a big strikeout. That is until Omar Narvaez took Adam deep for a three run homer to cut the lead to one. (.167)

Up Next: Game two of the three-game set is Tuesday night at Wrigley Field. Adbert Alzolay will make his first start of the season as the Cubs look for a fourth straight victory.