Bullpen implodes as Cubs win streak ends at 11 games
The Chicago Cubs bullpen has been beleaguered of late.
On Saturday, it was beat up.
The St. Louis Cardinals rallied for 8 late runs after Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks went 7 strong innings to beat the Cubs 8-4 at Wrigley Field and snap the Cubs' winning streak at 11 games.
Cubs manager Joe Maddon was severely limited with his bullpen options. Setup man Pedro Strop already is on the disabled list, and former closer Hector Rondon needed another day to rest his sore triceps.
Maddon also wanted to stay away from a couple other relievers.
Normally reliable rookie Carl Edwards Jr. came on to pitch the eighth inning, but he gave up a hit and 4 walks. Joe Smith relieved Edwards, but he wasn't much relief as he gave up a grand slam to Randal Grichuk.
"That's an example of what the team looks like without Strop and Rondon," said Maddon, whose team fell to 73-42 but still has a comfortable 13-game lead over the Cardinals in the National League Central. "Listen, regardless, I felt good about C.J. (Edwards) in that moment. He's been outstanding. He gets that first out quickly. The walk, then a groundball gets through and he lost his command, obviously, a little bit. The way he's been pitching, nobody's perfect. I think he's been outstanding. It just didn't play out tonight."
Smith is another story. Obtained in a trade with the Angels on Aug. 1, the sidearming right-hander has an 8.10 ERA in 5 games with the Cubs. He also has given up 3 home runs.
"I haven't been good," Smith said. "Just keep working. Come out here tomorrow. Just missing. When I miss, they seem to hit it over the wall. I haven't had that problem in my career yet, either. Sometimes this game is crazy, and it doesn't go the way you want it to go."
The Cubs gave Hendricks a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Ben Zobrist led off with a double, and he rode home on Addison Russell's 14th home run of the season. It came against Cardinals rookie Luke Weaver, who was making his major-league debut.
Hendricks struck out six in the first 2 innings on his way to 12, tying his career best. In his 7 innings, he gave up 5 hits and 2 runs as his ERA ticked up slightly from 2.17 to 2.19.
He was coming off a performance of 7⅓ innings in his previous start and a complete-game shutout on Aug. 1. Maddon has allowed Hendricks to work deeper in games more often this season, and he seems to have benefited mentally and physically from that.
"I would say both of those things," he said. "But the only way I've been doing that is by using my curveball more and my four-seam (fastball) so I'm not giving guys the same look every at-bat they get up there. It's just helping me get through that third time through the lineup, sometimes fourth, this year."
The Cardinals needed to win at least three of four to think about having a serious chance in the division. All they can manage now is a split after the Cubs won the first two games of this series.
"We had a pretty good streak going there," Russell said. "It's a pretty cool feat to have that we can look back at the end of the year and say that we got to do that."