Cubs squander early lead, Ballesteros’ milestone home run in loss to Rays
Anthony Rizzo retirement day at Wrigley Field featured an incredible moment.
Rizzo took a seat in the left-field bleachers and during the second inning, Moises Ballesteros hit his first major-league home run right to Rizzo. The sure-handed former Cubs first baseman tried to make a one-hand grab, with no glove, and it bounced off his palm to a fan seated behind him.
Rizzo joked on the television broadcast he wanted to be able to trade the Ballesteros home run ball for some memorabilia, which is standard procedure with milestone home runs. After the game Ballesteros did have the ball in his locker and said he promised to give the fan a bat in return.
But it was just like the Cubs to spoil a beautiful event. Despite taking an early 3-0 lead, they lost to the Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 when catcher Nick Fortes homered off Brad Keller in the top of the ninth.
Not only did they squander the 3-0 advantage, the Cubs took a 4-3 lead in the seventh on a Michael Busch homer. Junior Caminero answered in the eighth with his 43rd home run of the season off Porter Hodge.
“You could pick out multiple moments today,” manager Craig Counsell said. “We gave up an 0-2 homer, we hung a slider to the catcher 1-2. We had opportunities.”
In the ninth, Rays closer Pete Fairbanks walked the first two batters. In the process Dansby Swanson stole second and went to third on a wild pitch, putting runners on the corners with nobody out.
Matt Shaw stepped up next and hit a grounder to third base, the exact wrong spot. Swanson essentially had to run, so he tried to get caught in a rundown, but it didn't last long enough for runners to advance. Fairbanks then struck out Busch and Ian Happ to end the game.
In the meantime, the Cubs are suddenly short on outfielders. Owen Caissie was called up Saturday because the team is about to hit a stretch of facing right-handed starting pitchers.
Now Caissie is in concussion protocol and likely to miss a few days, if not more. He made an excellent running catch on the warning track in the third inning, then stumbled into the ivy, which has a brick wall behind it.
The ball was hit into right-center field, which meant both Caissie and Pete Crow-Armstrong were chasing it. PCA slid to avoid a collision, but Caissie ended up tripping on his foot as he made the catch and his head struck the wall. Caissie initially stayed in the game but was replaced in the top of the sixth.
“He just kind of got gradually worse after the run into the wall,” Counsell said. “About 45 minutes later, he couldn't continue.”
Seiya Suzuki missed his second straight game due to an illness and isn't likely to play Sunday. Kyle Tucker (calf strain) is on the injured list. So the Cubs might have to bring Kevin Alcantara right back from Triple-A or use Willi Castro in right field and hope nothing else bad happens.
The bright spot right now is Ballesteros. Now in his third stint in the majors this season, the Venezuela native is 3-for-7 with a triple and home run the past two days.
“What we know is he's an offensive threat, there's no doubt about it,” Counsell said. “He's a talented, talented young hitter, getting a chance to play in some big moments. With the status of our roster right now, he's going to continue to get some chances here. That's important and he's making the most of them.”
Ballesteros started 1-for-12 at the plate when he first came up in May. Since then, he's gone 6-for-13 and struck out just once in 28 plate appearances.
“I definitely feel more comfortable up there. I don't feel as much pressure,” Ballesteros said with help from translator Fredy Quevedo. “It's just trusting your tools. The first time you come up here, you have the adrenaline, excitement, you're trying to be too perfect.”
Amaya to Iowa:
The final week of the Triple-A season is about to start, so the Cubs plan to send catcher Miguel Amaya to Iowa on Tuesday, even though he's not fully recovered from a left ankle sprain suffered Aug. 13. It's now or never, essentially, if Amaya is to be considered for the postseason roster.
Counsell said the plan is to use him at designated hitter early in the week, then see if he's able to do some catching.