Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
4/8/2015
Today’s game should be another good matchup as both teams send solid starters to the mound following the previous evening’s game where the Cubs hit John Lackey pretty hard and found Joe Maddon having to cool his team down after a retaliatory beaning of Kris Bryant as the Cubs won the season opener in strong fashion 8-2.
The redbirds send Carlos Martinez, a B XZ against Jon Lester, also a B XZ. Lester makes quick work of the Cardinals in the top of the first with a fly out to center and a couple of pop ups to Bryant in foul territory to end the inning with no score.
Chicago fails to score thanks to the Cardinals solid defense. Starlin Castro reached when his grounder bounced off of Wong’s glove for an error. Anthony Rizzo was hit on a 1-2 count and there was some barking from the home dugout but nothing comes of it. Unfortunately Bryant hits a one hop smash for an easy 6-4-3 double play to stall the rally and there’s no score after one.
Lester continues to roll with a strikeout of Yadier Molina to end the second inning. The Cubs break out the heavy lumber in the bottom of the frame when Miguel Montero gets pitched very carefully following his towering homer late in the game last night, but Martinez’s curve hangs and Chris Coghlan crushes it into the hitting eye in center field for a two run homer and the Cubs take a 2-0 lead. Molina comes to the mound and has what appears to be an effective chat as Austin Jackson and Addison Russell strikeout and Lester hits one to third for an easy third out.
The visitors finally get a hit with Brandon Moss’ slips a grounder to the left side that Russell cannot get to for a single. Martinez lays down a great sacrifice bunt, but Jason Heyward hits a weak grounder right at Lester and the inning is over. Martinez finally gets a quality inning and the score is still 2-0 at the end of three.
St. Louis gets on the scoreboard in the fourth inning when Kolten draws a 5 pitch walk and manager Mike Matheny pulls a surprise by having Matt Carpenter bunt the runner over. Stephen Piscotty then hits a single up the box for an RBI and the lead is sliced to one. The Cardinals fail to get any more and the inning is over with Chicago on top any more 2-1.
The Cubs get the run back in the bottom half though as Montero draws his second straight walk of the day and Coghlan chases a slider for strike three and two out when Jackson gets an off speed pitch that he slips into the left center field gap for an RBI double and the inning ends quickly afterwards with the Cubs leading 3-1.
Neither team does anything in the fifth inning, and Lester seems to have settled in and retires his 8th straight hitter as the Cubs come to bat in the bottom of the sixth. After Martinez gets two quick outs to start the inning Montero draws his third walk in three trips to the plate (Note to Bryce Harper he didn’t cry about it) Chris Coghlan then gets an inside fastball and drills it into the seats in left field for his second homer and fourth RBI of the day as the Cubs are now in total control 5-1. Jackson fans to end the inning but Lester now looks more relaxed as he takes the hill in the 7th.
Piscotty gets a leadoff single to start the inning and had moved to second with two outs and Lester grinds through a tough at bat against Mark Reynolds for the strikeout. The Cubs go down quietly in the 7th inning, and the Cardinals seemed poised to get back in this ballgame when Moss draws a leadoff walk and Martinez’ day comes to an end, and the Cubs get the bullpen in action as pinch hitter Randal Grichuk comes up and hits a hard grounder that Castro makes a great backhanded stop, throws to Russell at second who makes a good dodge from a hard slide by Moss and the throw to Rizzo is on the money for a momentum killing double play!
Heyward keeps the inning alive with a solid single to right, but Wong pops up to Russell at second and the inning is over with the Cubs still on top 5-1. The Cubs could not get the ball out of the infield and Lester comes to the mound to start the 9th. Hector Rondon begins warming up in the pen but is not needed as the Cardinals go down quietly and the Cubs get a 5-1 victory.
