Chicago Cubs bats finding a way
Tuesday was hardly a night for hitters at Wrigley Field.
After basking in 80-plus-degree warmth on their off-day Monday, the Chicago Cubs returned to cold reality 24 hours later, when the hawk returned in the form of a 16-mph wind out of the north, turning a gametime temperature of 40 into a 34-degree wind chill.
Neither the Cubs nor the Brewers could get much going on offense, and that's understandable.
Addison Russell broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning with a 2-run triple, and the Cubs went on to beat the Brewers 4-3. The Cubs are 15-5, the franchise's best start since the 1907 club went 16-4.
There has been not a whole lot wrong with the Cubs' offense when it comes to the end result. They entered Tuesday with a run differential of plus-68.
The paradox is that the offense has yet to hit its full stride, and a few blowouts helped to fuel the big run differential. That seemed just fine to manager Joe Maddon.
"The thing is, you look at the runs scored and you would think we're just absolutely crushing the baseball," Maddon said. "We haven't been. There's as lot of guys, there's a lot of room for elevation regarding their numbers. We've had a lot of line drives caught. I think last week (Jason) Heyward and Addison were victimized as much as anybody. (Anthony) Rizzo started hitting some home runs, but his numbers have not been really that good. (Ben) Zobrist really hasn't caught fire yet."
Leadoff man Dexter Fowler has been the most consistently good hitter in April. As for the rest of the lineup's success, Maddon cited an important factor, one that can be important on cold nights.
"I just think it's been the residue of working good at-bats," he said. "That's what I think. The approach has been working. I think the difference is we're scoring runs with hits, not just homers. Basehits. Double in the gap. Accepting a walk. Scoring a runner with an out.
"I think we're moving the baseball in situations more than we had last year. I still don't think we've hit anywhere close to what we're capable of hitting the baseball. We've been very good regarding approach."
The Brewers took a 1-0 lead against Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks in the second on a sacrifice fly by Aaron Hill. The Cubs tied it in the fifth against Milwaukee starter Jimmy Nelson on a bases-loaded sac fly by Fowler. That came one batter after Hendricks was pulled for a pinch hitter as the Cubs were trying to get as much as they could. Hendricks would up with a no-decision, but he was more than fine with Maddon's move.
"Tough day out there to hit," Hendricks said. "Really cold, wind blowing in. How many chances are you going to get? I completely understand. I prepare myself to go deep into games, but sometimes situations happen like that. It's a team game. Just hand it off to the next guy in line, and it worked."
In the sixth, Kris Bryant reached on a fielding error by third baseman Hill leading off. One out later, Zobrist walked. After Jorge Soler flied out, Russell tripled to the gap in right-center.
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