Stinging defeat as Chicago Cubs fall to Phils in extras
It figures to be an interesting weekend at Wrigley Field.
Not only are the Cubs playing the Phillies in games they're expected to win, but they'll be going against a possible trade target Saturday.
First things first.
The Cubs suffered a stinging defeat Friday, losing a 3-2 lead in the ninth inning before finally falling 5-3 in the 10th, when Jeff Francoeur hit a 2-run homer to left field against reliever Rafael Soriano. In the ninth, closer Jason Motte got a quick out before giving up a triple to Freddy Galvis and a double to Cody Asche to tie the game.
"Every loss stings, man," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon, whose team fell to 51-44. "We had our opportunity to win it. Motter's been fabulous. He's not been good, he's been fabulous. What you do is you grieve for 30 minutes and then you throw it in the trash can and come back tomorrow. We still have a chance to win the series. And that's where our minds are at right now."
On Saturday, the Cubs will face left-hander Cole Hamels, a pitcher with whom they've been linked in trade talks.
Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer met before Friday's game with an extremely curious bunch of media members. He conceded that pitching is a prime target of the Cubs.
The marketplace could be a wildly fluctuating one. Things could be shifting from a sellers' market to a buyers' market. And the Cubs are buyers.
"I think it's probably too early to assess it as either," Hoyer said. "That extreme sellers market that was anticipated, that may be falling out a little bit. But I don't think we'd classify it now the opposite way. So we'll see. It is a week, a very long week to go. I think things will be up and down a few times during that stretch as far as supply and demand goes.
"There are probably four or five teams out there actively assessing their situation on a day-to-day basis, what they want to do. That's the nature of the second wild card. There are some teams right around .500 that may not feel like they have had a good run so far but at the same time they're not that far out of the race. I do think the second wild card really does change the way teams look at the deadline. Some of those teams may sell, and some of those teams may end up buying."
The Cubs need to add depth to their starting rotation, and another bullpen arm wouldn't hurt, either. Another interesting name, Jonathan Papelbon, got the save Friday.
As we've mentioned before, the Cubs offense has been no great shakes of late. They got a solo homer from Kris Bryant to give them a 1-0 lead in the third inning. After the Phillies scored a pair in the fourth, Chris Coghlan hit a 2-run homer in the bottom half.
Overall, though, the Cubs' young hitters have struggled.
"We have a lot of confidence in those guys," Hoyer said. "We've been in a team slump for quite awhile. I'm actually very impressed with our ability to continue to win games without scoring runs. I think it says a lot about the pitching staff and the bullpen. We're going to have to score more runs, ultimately, to get where we want to go. I don't think there's any question.
"We may make an addition on offense, but at the same time, I think the real solutions are within. It's our own players playing the way they did at the beginning of the season or playing the way their career indicates they can play. Everyone goes through a two-to-three week lull during the season. We're in the midst of that, plus, a little bit. Hopefully we get going and that becomes less of a story."
Jon Lester started on the mound for the Cubs and pitched well again. He worked 7 innings, giving up 7 hits and 2 runs as his ERA fell from 3.37 to 3.32.
Saying the Cubs should beat teams like the Phillies (35-63) can be an easy trap to fall into for any team.
"They're still big-leaguers," Lester said. "They're still the best players on the planet. They're playing here for a reason. They haven't quit. Obviously, you saw that today."
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