Cub Tracks enters the sixties

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 Cubs forsook the Big Apple for Apple TV+, and who’s to say that they’re wrong? I would certainly want to get out, were I them, then.

And so, after a day off, the squad met the Blue Jays at their roost, the Rogers Centre. Javier Assad (1-2, 3.35 ERA) faced Jose Berríos (9-7, 3.38). Over three career starts against the Cubs, Berríos was 1-1 with a 5.63 ERA. Assad had one career start against the Blue Jays, pitching five scoreless innings in a no-decision last August 29 at Toronto.

The Cubs were rude and disrespectful toward the baseball from the outset, with Nico Hoerner and Cody Bellinger managing circuit clouts, and they put up a crooked number for Assad.

Three more in the 4th with a parade of hits. Suzuki and Tauchman order ribeyes. Assad keeps on slinging. 7 innings, one earned run and a well-deserved victory.

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• Ian Harrison (AP*): Bellinger and Hoerner homer, Assad pitches career-high 7 innings as Cubs beat Blue Jays 6-2. “After losing the finale of a three-game series against the Mets on Wednesday, the Cubs bounced back with their 17th win in 23 games.”
• Tori Ruben stein (NBC Sports Chicago*): Ross held team meeting in June in effort to turn Cubs’ season around. “We took a lot of pride this year in bringing the team together, having team gatherings, spending time together in spring training,” Yan Gomes said.
• Ken Rosenthal (The Athletic {$}): The Cubs fought to stay together. Now they must prove it was worth it. “We took a lot of pride this year in bringing the team together, having team gatherings, spending time together in spring training,” Gomes said. “A lot of that was, ‘Let’s not let that go to waste. We’re putting a lot of effort into this. Let’s put it on the field as well.’” Evan Altman opines. Brett Taylor adds on.
• Hannah Keiser (Yahoo! Sports*): How the Cubs flipped the narrative and became contenders: ‘as blatant a switch as you can have’. “I think ours is probably about as blatant a switch as you can have this season,” Nico Hoerner said.
• Ryan Fagan (The Sporting News*): Red-hot Cubs, bolstered by bold front office, in position to challenge for NL Central title. “Candelario’s arrival said the Cubs intended to stick around.”
• Meghan Montemurro (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Chicago Cubs find both an August off day and playoff push to be ‘refreshing’. “It requires some adjustment from Ross’ position of handling the people part of his job.”
• Zach Crizer (Yahoo! Sports*): Cubs pitcher Justin Steele’s Cy Young-caliber stats don’t lie. It’s his fastball that deceives. “‘It just messes with your head’ — Chicago’s late-blooming ace is confounding convention, and the competition, with an oddball heater.”
• Maddie Lee (Chicago Sun-Times*): Javier Assad’s steady presence stabilizing Cubs rotation with Marcus Stroman out. “... Javy’s picked us up in a lot of different ways. And here’s just another day we’re asking him to carry a little bit more of the load for us,” said David Ross.
• Maddie Lee (Chicago Sun-Times*): José Cuas’ offseason work in Adam Ottavino’s lab shows up in Queens. “Cuas, a Cubs trade-deadline addition, is working on honing his slider with his new team.” Brett Taylor has more.
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Checking in on Cubs’ top pitching prospect trio. “Craig Breslow, director of pitching and assistant general manager for the Cubs, was with the ballclub during its recent trip to New York.”
• Matthew Ritchie (MLB.com*): Refocused Suzuki makes instant impact for Cubs. “When things don’t really work out obviously for a long stretch, it becomes a mental thing,” Suzuki said via interpreter Toy Matsushita on Tuesday.
• Jonathon Dale (The Takeout*): The Call of the Hot Dog Man. “A good vendor is an entertainer as well as a salesman,” says Antonio Acevedo, a hot dog hawker who works at Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs.

Song(s) of the day:

Food For Thought:

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