The Cubs entered this game riding a 3 game losing streak. The Giants entered this game riding a 3 game win streak. If the Giants won this game they would sweep the series but if the Cubs won they would lose the series 3-1. The Giants would attempt to get the sweep with LaMonte Wade Jr. (1B) hitting leadoff, Buster Posey (C) hitting 2nd, Alex Dickerson (LF) hitting 3rd, Wilmer Flores (3B) hitting cleanup, Steven Duggar (CF) hitting 5th, Donovan Solano (2B) hitting 6th, Mike Tauchman (RF) hitting 7th, Mauricio Dubón (SS) hitting 8th, and last but not least, Johnny Cueto (P) hitting 9th. The Cubs lineup had Anthony Rizzo (1B) hitting leadoff, Kris Bryant (LF) hitting 2nd, Ian Happ (CF) hitting 3rd, Javier Báez (SS) hitting cleanup, Jason Heyward (RF) hitting 5th, Patrick Wisdom (3B) hitting 6th, Eric Sogard (2B) hitting 7th, PJ Higgins (C) hitting 8th, and Kyle Hendricks (P) hitting last. For the Cubs to win they needed to hit well off of Johnny Cueto, limit Giants homers, and find a nice game out of Kyle Hendricks. For the Giants to win they needed to get walks, hit homers, and find a nice start out of Johnny Cueto. Would the Giants get the sweep or would the Cubs steal a game? To the game!
The first pitch of the game was a ball to Anthony Rizzo. Rizzo ended up popping out to Wilmer Flores. Then Kris Bryant struck out swinging. After that Ian Happ doubled. To end the inning Javier Báez grounded out to Donovan Solano. Kyle Hendricks’ first pitch was hit by LaMonte Wade Jr. for a leadoff home run to left field. To follow that up Buster Posey singled. Then Alex Dickerson flew out to Jason Heyward. After that Wilmer Flores lined out to PatrickWisdom. Steven Duggar then walked putting a runner in scoring position for Donovan Solano. Solano executed on his opportunity with a single to right field scoring Posey and advancing Duggar to 2nd. To end the inning Mike Tauchman lined out to Kris Bryant. This was a great inning for the Giants where they took an early lead. The Giants led 2-0 after the 1st inning.
To leadoff the 2nd inning Jason Heyward grounded out to Wilmer Flores. Then Patrick Wisdom hit a solo homer to center field. To follow that up Eric Sogard grounded out to Donovan Solano. To end the inning PJ Higgins struck out looking. To start the bottom of the 2nd Mauricio Dubón doubled. Then Johnny Cueto grounded out to Eric Sogard advancing Dubón to 3rd. After that LaMonte Wade Jr. struck out swinging. Buster Posey then doubled scoring Dubón. To follow that up Alex Dickerson singled but Posey was thrown out at home ending the inning. This was a nice inning from both offenses each with a run scored. The Giants led 3-1 after the 2nd inning.
To start the 3rd inning Kyle Hendricks grounded out to Mauricio Dubón. Then Anthony Rizzo hit a grounder to LaMonte Wade Jr. who tossed the ball to Johnny Cueto for the 2nd out. To end the inning Kris Bryant lined out to Steven Duggar. To leadoff the Giants half of the inning Wilmer Flores popped out to Anthony Rizzo. Then Steven Duggar doubled to right field. After that Donovan Solano grounded out to Javier Báez advancing Duggar to 3rd. To end the inning Mike Tauchman struck out swinging. This was a great inning from Johnny Cueto with a 1, 2, 3 inning and a decent inning from Kyle Hendricks letting 0 runs in despite letting a runner on 3rd. The Giants still led 3-1 after the 3rd inning.
To leadoff the 4th inning Ian Happ walked. Then Javier Báez flew out to Mike Tauchman. After that Jason Heyward grounded out to LaMonte Wade Jr. advancing Happ to 2nd. Patrick Wisdom then hit his 2nd homer of the game to center field scoring 2. To follow that up Eric Sogard singled to right field. To end the inning PJ Higgins struck out swinging. To leadoff the of the 4th Mauricio Dubón struck out swinging. Then Johnny Cueto lined out to Anthony Rizzo. After that LaMonte Wade Jr. walked. To end the inning Buster Posey popped out to Eric Sogard. This was a great inning for the Cubs where they tied the game up. The Giants and Cubs were tied 3-3 after the 4th inning.
To leadoff the 5th inning Kyle Hendricks doubled to left field. Then Anthony Rizzo singled up the middle advancing Hendricks to 3rd. After that Kris Bryant struck out swinging. Next Ian Happ walked to load the bases. Javier Báez then reached base on an error by Buster Posey scoring Hendricks and leading the bases once more. Following that Conner Menez entered the game for Johnny Cueto to pitch the 5th inning. Menez started by getting Jason Heyward to strikeout swinging. To end the inning Patrick Wisdom struck out swinging. To start the bottom half of the 5th Alex Dickerson struck out on a foul tip caught by Wilson Contreras. Then Wilmer Flores lined out to Javier Báez. To end the inning Steven Duggar grounded out to Javier Báez. This was a great inning for the Cubs where they took the lead and held the Giants to a 1, 2, 3 inning. The Cubs led 4-3 after the 5th inning.
To leadoff the 6th inning Eric Sogard grounded out to Mauricio Dubón. Then PJ Higgins grounded out to Wilmer Flores. To end the inning Kyle Hendricks struck out looking. To leadoff the bottom of the 6th Donovan Solano struck out swinging. Then Mike Tauchman hit a grounder to Anthony Rizzo who tossed the ball to Kyle Hendricks for the 2nd out of the inning. To end the inning Mauricio Dubón lined out to Anthony Rizzo. This was a wonderful inning from both pitchers each with a 1, 2, 3 inning. The Cubs still led 4-3 after the 6th inning.
To leadoff the top of the 7th Anthony Rizzo popped out to Mauricio Dubón in foul territory. Conner Menez was taken out of the game for Dominic Leone to finish the inning. Leone started off by giving up a single to Kris Bryant. Then Ian Happ flew out to Steven Duggar. To end the inning Javier Báez grounded out to LaMonte Wade Jr. at 1st base. Sergio Alcantára replaced Javier Báez to play shortstop. Thairo Estrada pinch hit for Dominic Leone and grounded out to Sergio Alcantára. Then LaMonte Wade Jr. walked. Ryan Tepera came into the game for Kyle Hendricks to finish the inning. After that Buster Posey singled advancing Wade Jr. to 2nd. Next was Alex Dickerson who flew out to Jason Heyward letting LaMonte Wade Jr. tag up and advance to 3rd. To end the inning Wilmer Flores flew out to Jason Heyward. This was a disappointing inning for the Giants as they were unable to tie the game despite having runners on 1st and 3rd with 2 out. The Cubs once again led 4-3 after the 7th inning.
Jarlin García entered the game for Dominic Leone to pitch the 8th inning. To start the inning Jason Heyward grounded out to García. Then Patrick Wisdom struck out swinging. To end the inning Eric Sogard grounded out to LaMonte Wade Jr. at 1st base. Andrew Chafin came into the game for Ryan Tepera to pitch the bottom of the 8th. Austin Slater pinch hit for Steven Duggar and singled to start the bottom of the inning. After that Donovan Solano grounded into a double play. To end the inning Mike Tauchman grounded out to Patrick Wisdom. This was a great inning from both pitchers each facing only 3 batters. The Cubs were still winning 4-3 after the 8th inning.
Austin Slater remained in the game in center field. To leadoff the top of the 9th PJ Higgins lined out to Mike Tauchman. Following that out Zack Littell entered the game for Jarlin García and Jason Vosler replaced Mike Tauchman in right field. Then Wilson Contreras singled up the middle. After that Anthony Rizzo grounded into an inning ending double play. Craig Kimbrel entered the game for Andrew Chafin to close the game. To leadoff the bottom of the 9th Mauricio Dubón flew out to Kris Bryant. Then Jason Vosler struck out swinging. To end the game LaMonte Wade Jr. struck out looking. The Cubs won 4-3.
Leo’s Extra Inning: This win for the Cubs meant that they had avoided the sweep but had still lost the series 3-1. The Cubs were led by Patrick Wisdom in this game with a mind blowing 2 hits, 2 runs scored, 3 RBIs, a 2 run homer, and a solo homer in 4 at bats. Ian Happ had a nice game too going 1 for 2 with a run scored and 2 walks. Kyle Hendricks chipped in as well going 1 for 3 with a run scored. Hendricks didn’t pitch his best game giving up only 7 hits, 3 earned runs, 3 walks, and a homer in 6 1/3 innings. Hendricks also had 5 strikeouts and got the win. The Cubs bullpen pitched well though in 2 2/3 innings giving up only a combined 2 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, and 0 home runs. Ryan Tepera and Andrew Chafin each had 0 strikeouts and a hold as well. Craig Kimbrel also had 2 strikeouts and a save. Buster Posey led the Giants in this game going 3 for 4 with a run scored and an RBI. LaMonte Wade Jr. played well too going 1 for 3 with a run scored, an RBI, a walk, and a solo home run. Donovan Solano had a nice game as well going 1 for 4 with an RBI. Johnny Cueto pitched a bit of a disappointing 4 1/3 innings giving up 6 hits, 4 runs, 3 earned runs, 2 walks, and 2 home runs. Cueto also had 4 strikeouts and got the loss. For the Giants to win they needed to 4 pitchers pitching 4 2/3 innings and giving up a combined 2 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, and 0 homers. The Giants bullpen also had a combined 4 strikeouts and 4 no decisions. Overall, this was a disappointing loss for the Giants that lost them the sweep.
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