Cub Tracks only gets one bite of the apple

Welcome to today’s episode of Cub Tracks news and notes™, a greatest-hits collection of Chicago-style beat writers and bloggers, ground from #Cubs, #MiLB, and #MLB baseball, overheated, steeped in writers’ tears, and then cold-brewed overnight for maximum flavor.

The 59-55 Cubs’ cadre of complete team players (at gametime one game behind in the loss column) took the field against the hometown Metropolitans (and the umpiring crew), in Flushing, New York, which is what a lot of people would like to do, for the rubber game of their three-game series. The Professor, who has been up and down this year, was on the hill looking to keep Pete Alonso in the park, versus David Peterson, who was trying to keep Cody Bellinger off the scoreboard. Christopher Morel staked Hendricks to a one-run lead on the first pitch of the game, and Seiya Suzuki doubled and rode a bad fielding decision (see below) and a passed ball to another score in the second inning.

Pete Alonso left the building in the fourth to tie it up. Wesneski wasn’t sharp and let the game get untied, giving up two earned. The Cubs were only able to get one of those back, and that was all she wrote. Phil Bickford saved the day for the Mets as Ian Happ went down swinging.

Seiya looked better but the Cubs will have to take two out of three from the Blue Jays now, and that’s a tougher proposition than the Mets. Brewers won Wednesday night. There’s work to do. 59-56, two games behind in the loss column, 2.5 games behind the 62-54 Brewers.

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• Andy McCullough and Zack Meisel (The Athletic {$}): In MLB, plays that were once errors are now hits, as players wonder why. “This year more than any other,” Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake said, “you look up and you’re like, ‘How is that a hit?’”
• CBS News*: Mets hand the Cubs a costly 4-3 loss. “With the bases loaded in the ninth inning, Phil Bickford struck out No. 3 batter Ian Happ to save it for New York.”
• Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation*): I think it’s time to give David Ross some credit. “... he’s clearly helped steward a team that refuses to give up.”
• Peter Marzano (NBC Sports Chicago*): With less than 2 months left in season, how does Cubs’ Justin Steele fare in NL Cy Young race? “Steele leads all of baseball with 13 wins and a 171 ERA+, 71 points better than the league average.”
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider*) : Similar Tech Cubs used to help Jameson Taillon available to public via Mustard app. “The Mustard metric most applicable to Taillon would be “torque retention,” which is simply based on keeping the back shoulder closed into foot strike.” Sahadev Sharma has some of this {$}
• Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): What’s next for Cubs’ Drew Smyly, whose struggles continue? “I just have to do a better job keeping it in the park,” he said. Meghan Montemurro has some of this. James Neveau is on it.
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): Adbert Alzolay is one of the best closers in baseball this season. One blown save. One. Evan Altman concurs.
• Peter Marzano (NBC Sports Chicago*): In a resurgent Cubs offense, stolen bases play pivotal role. “... the action on the base paths is an addition to the Cubs attack that was largely ignored in the previous core of players.”
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Cubs’ depth prevails while Seiya works to rejoin lineup. “Chicago’s slugger adjusting approach...” Meghan Montemurro writes of this. Maddie Lee adds on.
• Todd Johnson (North Side Bound*): The New Baseball America Top 30 Cubs list goes big on Matt Shaw and upper level guys. “We have finally reached the point in the year where the midseason prospect lists start to drop.”

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