Taillon makes needed adjustments, but Cubs can’t score in loss to Angels

The Cubs should be fine with Jameson Taillon becoming a different style of pitcher, as long as he doesn't repeat what happened in spring training.

Taillon did well in his first start of the season, but the Cubs couldn't manage any offense against Angels right-hander Jose Soriano and lost 2-0 at Wrigley Field on Tuesday.

The Cubs finished the night with 4 singles and 4 walks. Soriano was dominant, pairing a knuckle curve with a 97-mile-per-hour fastball. He held the Cubs to 2 hits over 6 scoreless innings, the same line he posted on Opening Day against Houston.

This night featured what had to be one of the all-time temperature drops at Wrigley Field. Tuesday's first-pitch temperature was listed at 44 degrees, after it was 77 degrees the previous night.

Taillon threw 4 2/3 innings, allowing no runs, 2 hits and 4 walks. Not perfect, but light years better than the 17.55 ERA he posted in the spring.

“Spring training, obviously, pretty atrocious, can't really get any worse,” Taillon said after the game. “But I think in the back of my mind, I always was just telling myself, 'Let's get out of Arizona, let's get to Chicago, get to Wrigley.' Just get where it matters and we're game-planning a little more. So glad to see that I wasn't crazy for thinking that the whole time.”

One possible cause for concern was Taillon's velocity. His four-seam fastball averaged 90.8 miles per hour Tuesday, after clocking in at 92.3 mph last season. Early in his career, Taillon went a couple seasons throwing 95.

“It's definitely down,” he said. “Hoping it's going to come, and also that was part of my problem in spring was that it was down and I was trying really, really hard to find it and throw harder.”

The four-seam was also his most frequently-used pitch, during all nine seasons he's pitched in the majors. Against the Angels, he threw the cutter most often, 25 times; compared to 21 fastballs. Taillon also used a sweeper, change, sinker and curve. He coaxed a swinging strikeout of Jorge Soler on a nice sweeper to end the first inning.

Now 34, maybe Taillon will pivot to using his full pitch mix and rely less on the fastball.

“I feel like that's a strength of mine,” he said. “I throw six different pitches. When I was younger, I got by throwing two, mostly, my first year in the big leagues. Then I added a slider in my third year, then last year I started throwing a kick change.

“My cutter was really good for me in 2024, not as good last year. So it's just evolving and finding a way as you go.”

Taillon gave up a double to Oswald Peraza in the fifth, putting runners on second and third with one out. He then got another clutch strikeout, freezing Zach Neto with a 3-2 four-seam at the knees. Hoby Milner came in and ended the inning with a ground out.

The sixth inning is where things went awry for the Cubs. Reliever Phil Maton gave up a leadoff walk, then two-time ex-Cub Jeimer Candelario hit a sinking line drive to center field that got past the sliding Pete Crow-Armstrong for a double.

With runners on second and third, no outs, Maton struck out Jo Adell, then froze the runners on a one-hopper to the mound for the second out. Maton then went 1-2 on Logan O'Hoppe, who then ripped the next pitch past Alex Bregman for a 2-run single.

“(Soriano) is challenging for sure, but regardless, you've got to put more pressure on a pitcher in any situation,” manager Craig Counsell said. “We just we just didn't apply any pressure tonight.”

One unique move by the Cubs, Counsell sent catcher Carson Kelly to pinch-hit for Michael Busch in the eighth inning against former Cubs lefty Drew Pomeranz. Then Kelly went in to play first base for the first time in his MLB career in the top of the ninth.