Assad, Thompson lead Cubs to another series win, Brewers up next
PITTSBURGH - While away from the Cubs for three months in the minors, pitcher Keegan Thompson made good use of the weight room. Teammate Michael Fulmer mentioned the new physique before Sunday's series finale in Pittsburgh.
"Yeah, I worked out quite a bit when I as down in Triple A and put on about 10, 15 pounds," Thompson said. "So I came back a little stronger and everyone's kind of mentioned it to me."
Thompson looked good in his first major league appearance since May 17, allowing just 1 hit with 5 strikeouts in 2 innings. Thompson and Javier Assad combined to shut down the Pirates and lead the Cubs to a 10-1 victory at PNC Park.
The Cubs won three out of four this weekend, improving to 10-1-1 in their last 12 series. They completed a stretch of 12 straight games against teams that were at least 10 games below .500 with an 8-4 record, reaching a season-high of 8 games above .500 at 69-61.
Next up is a chance to climb the ladder in the NL Central, with Milwaukee visiting Wrigley Field for a three-game series beginning Monday.
"I think we're looking forward to it," Cubs manager David Ross said. "I think we're looking forward to getting them at home, (in front of) that crowd."
Many thought the Cubs would make up ground on the first-place Brewers during these two weeks. But after getting swept by the Dodgers on the road, Milwaukee reeled off an eight-game winning streak against the Rangers, Twins and Padres. The Brewers are 12-3 in their last 15 games.
So the Cubs will start the series 4 games behind Milwaukee for the division lead. They still hold the second wild card slot, with Arizona and Cincinnati close behind,
"It's going to be a fun series," Cody Bellinger said. "Wrigley will be rocking and continue playing our game, that's our goal."
There were twin storylines this weekend. One was homegrown pitching success as Assad and Jordan Wicks were sharp while starting the past two games. But also, Thompson made his return and Adbert Alzolay converted his 17th consecutive save Saturday. Add Justin Steele to the list of successful pitchers who began their careers with the Cubs and this is something the franchise hasn't had for a few decades.
"I felt great today," Assad said through a translator. "I feel like I had a great day, I feel like all my pitches were really successful, so I had a lot of confidence in myself. Overall, just a great day."
Maybe Assad drew inspiration from his hometown Little Leaguers. He said he spent the past week following Tijuana's run in the Little League World Series, which ended just short of the international title game.
Another positive angle is the hot hitters. Cody Bellinger went 3-for-5 Sunday with 2 doubles and 5 RBI. Jeimer Candelario hit a 2-run homer, Nico Hoerner had 3 hits and Seiya Suzuki doubled twice.
By game's end, Bellinger held the MLB lead in RBI since the all-star break with 41. Since being benched for four games earlier this month, Suzuki is hitting .390. Over the last 10 games, he's at .432.
"I don't know if it's confidence, but I just feel really good," Suzuki said through a translator. "I think I'm being very aggressive at the box and taking good swings, so I just want to make sure I try to continue this."
After both teams scored in the first inning, the Cubs took a 3-1 lead in the fourth on Candelario's 19th home run of the season into the left-field corner. It was just his fourth homer batting right-handed, however.
Thompson pitched like an all-star candidate in April with a 1.80 ERA, only to soar to 9.95 in May. Then he had some rough outings for Triple A Iowa after being sent down and missed some time with a back injury. But he said Sunday's outing felt like he was back to his April form.
"Yeah, it really did," Thompson said. "Couldn't be more pleased with how it went and just very excited for the next series. I had some butterflies when I first went out there, but kind of settled in after the first few pitches and just felt good to be back out there."
With Fulmer on the injured list with a forearm strain, a return to form from Thompson would be a nice boost for the Cubs.
Asked if he craves getting back to the high-leverage situations he filled the past two seasons, Thompson said, "Yeah, I do. I love those situations. Any chance I get to pitch, I'm just going to do what I can to get back in there."
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