Cody Bellinger’s return to Dodger Stadium couldn’t have carried out out loads higher.
He acquired a pregame tribute and cheers Friday, robbed Jason Heyward of a home run Saturday and slugged a no-doubt homer Sunday as part of the Chicago Cubs’ assortment win in the direction of the Los Angeles Dodgers. His homer Sunday, the second of back-to-back residence runs with Patrick Knowledge, stood as a result of the worthwhile run in a 3-2 victory.
Bellinger’s 422-foot residence run at 108.1 mph was his hardest-hit ball of any kind since 2020.
“I had loads of enjoyable and I attempted to take pleasure in each second of it,” Bellinger talked about. “You solely come again for the primary time one time. I actually simply needed to soak within the second and to have a enjoyable time with the followers.”
Though his second teenager is due any day, Bellinger talked about after the game he nonetheless consider to fly with the crew Sunday night to Oakland.
“We have to preserve that (bun) within the oven and let that settle in whereas he’s rolling,” supervisor David Ross joked.
Whereas the Cubs head to Oakland winners of three consecutive assortment, the White Sox have however to win a set this season as they navigate spherical accidents to third baseman Yoán Moncada and shortstop Tim Anderson.
Each Monday all via the season, Tribune baseball writers will current an exchange on what occurred — and what’s ahead — for the Cubs and Sox.
Yan Gomes, the (selective) base stealer
Yan Gomes’ spotless occupation stolen-base doc stays intact, a tidbit that shocked the veteran catcher.
Gomes, 35, isn’t recognized for his offense, though even in 12 months 12 of his big-league occupation he nonetheless possesses some pop in his bat. He recorded his seventh occupation multihomer recreation and second with the Cubs when he slugged two homers as part of a three-hit recreation Friday at Dodger Stadium.
However perhaps further impressively, Gomes stole second base throughout the third inning. It prepare the Cubs’ first run of their 8-2 win, with Gomes scoring on Ian Happ’s two-out double. The steal improved Gomes to 8-for-8 in his occupation.
“I believed for positive I’ve gotten thrown out earlier than,” Gomes talked about. “However on the an identical time, I don’t go very loads. Shoot, this a couple of years throughout the large leagues and getting solely eight baggage I don’t assume is one factor to be terribly happy with, however it’s 100%.
“There’s a lot that, clearly not being a base stealer, goes into it. (First base coach Mike Napoli) tells you to go, you’re like, ‘Oh, my gosh, are you positive I ought to go? I really feel like he’s going to choose me off though there’s not a lot of a risk there.’”
Gomes grew to develop into the sixth major-league catcher since 1901 to tally not lower than three hits, two residence runs and a stolen base in a single recreation and the first since Ivan Rodriguez did it for the Texas Rangers on Aug. 16, 1999, in Cleveland. Gomes is the first Nationwide League catcher to carry out the feat given that Philadelphia Phillies’ Darren Daulton on Aug. 17, 1985, at Wrigley Subject.
Gomes’ manufacturing out of the No. 9 spot in Friday’s victory supplied a pleasing enhance, though the Cubs haven’t gotten consistently reliable manufacturing from Gomes or fellow catcher Tucker Barnhart. That’s not why they’re on the crew, though. Gomes, who’s 8-for-34 (.235) with no walks and 6 strikeouts to start the season, services his every day take care of the pitching staff.
He found that methodology when he acquired right here up with Cleveland beneath supervisor Terry Francona.
“I used to be taking delight in that,” Gomes talked about. “If I do some on the plate, nice. Clearly it’s going to get identified. But when we’re celebrating after the sport with the win, I really feel like all of us did our jobs.”
How are the Sox addressing early wildness?
Sox reliever Aaron Bummer issued a bases-loaded stroll to the Baltimore Orioles’ Cedric Mullins throughout the sixth inning of Saturday’s recreation at Assured Fee Subject.
One inning later, Sox reliever Kendall Graveman walked Ryan O’Hearn with the bases loaded.
That’s normally not a recipe for achievement — nevertheless the Sox found a method to win 7-6 in 10 innings no matter strolling 10 batters.
It marked their first victory with not lower than 10 walks since Sept. 14, 2020, after they issued 10 in a 3-1 win in the direction of the Minnesota Twins.
“We did stroll loads of guys, however we made pitches after they needed to be made,” supervisor Pedro Grifol talked about Sunday morning. “(The Orioles went) 1-for-14 with runners in scoring place. Which means you’re making pitches and also you’re enjoying protection.”
The Sox walked 26 throughout the assortment, their most in a three-game span since June 21-23, 1996 (moreover 26).
“Clearly we have to do a greater job staying within the strike zone and attacking guys,” catcher Yasmani Grandal talked about Sunday. “The great factor is it’s occurring now and never later within the yr. We’re going to deal with that early as a substitute of late.”
The Sox had success in that area the sooner assortment, limiting the Twins to five walks in three video video games. However the Orioles have confirmed why they rank throughout the excessive 5 throughout the majors in walks.
Getting into Sunday, the Sox had allowed 74 walks this season. Solely the Oakland Athletics (79) had issued further.
Grifol talked about one secret’s attacking the strike zone earlier with a goal of throwing two strikes throughout the first three pitches of an at-bat.
“We win the two-out-of-three battle for the day, we in all probability have a very good probability to win a baseball sport,” Grifol talked about. “If we lose that battle, we’re going to be in bother. Video games like (Saturday), you don’t come out on the proper facet of these sorts of video games. We did as a result of we confirmed grit, we confirmed the flexibility to come back again 4 totally different instances.”
Week ahead: Cubs
The Cubs have been one out from a three-game sweep of the Dodgers and carry momentum into their three-game set in Oakland, a fundamental different to win one different assortment.
The Cubs have carried out successfully in the direction of good teams, nevertheless the gathering in the direction of the Athletics provides one different check out: Can they beat up on unhealthy teams? It’s a ought to within the occasion that they’re extreme about contending for the postseason, and no crew has been worse to start the 12 months than the A’s (3-13).
A scheduling quirk means the Cubs acquired’t wait prolonged to see the Dodgers as soon as extra. The four-game assortment that begins Thursday at Wrigley Subject will drawback the Cubs pitching staff to proceed to hunt out success in the direction of a Dodgers lineup that failed to realize better than two runs in all three video video games over the weekend.
Sunday’s starter, Drew Smyly, wasn’t wanting too far ahead no matter determining his subsequent start moreover may be in the direction of the Dodgers. He held them to not less than one run and 4 hits in 5⅔ innings throughout the victory. He relied a lot much less on his curveball than in his first two begins, incorporating his sinker and cutter further frequently.
Smyly didn’t want to provide away an extreme quantity of notion into his methodology sooner than seeing them as soon as extra in 5 days.
“The plan was to be very aggressive within the zone,” Smyly talked about. “This crew’s clearly tremendous proficient and so they’re very disciplined. They’re recognized to not likely chase a lot and make pitchers work. So my mindset was let’s simply come out as aggressive as may be, attempt to get strike 1, strike 2 to maintain them on their heels.”
- Monday: at Athletics, 8:40 p.m., Marquee
- Tuesday: at Athletics, 8:40 p.m., Marquee
- Wednesday: at Athletics, 2:37 p.m., Marquee
- Thursday: vs. Dodgers, 6:40 p.m., Marquee
- Friday: vs. Dodgers, 1:20 p.m., Marquee
- Saturday: vs. Dodgers, 1:20 p.m., Marquee
- Sunday: vs. Dodgers, 1:20 p.m., Marquee
Week ahead: Sox
Jake Burger lined the first pitch he seen Friday over Assured Fee Subject’s left-field wall for a solo residence run throughout the second inning in the direction of the Orioles.
“It is available in waves, and proper now I really feel fairly good and really feel like I’m controlling what I can management and placing my greatest on swing on each ball,” Burger suggested the Tribune sooner than Saturday’s recreation. “It’s all the time been part of my sport. I’ve all the time hit balls arduous. Any manner I can contribute to the crew and assist us win ballgames is all the time a plus.”
The infielder homered as soon as extra Saturday, a two-run blast throughout the sixth that helped the Sox regain momentum. And he went deep throughout the first inning Sunday for his fourth homer of the season, second on the crew.
Burger returned to the Sox from Triple-A Charlotte on April 5 when Eloy Jiménez went on the injured report, and he spent some time at designated hitter. He moreover has crammed in at third base with Yoán Moncada out with a sore lower once more. Burger is slashing .350/.391/1.050 in his first eight video video games.
“He didn’t make the crew out of spring coaching and he’s are available and been an enormous a part of this membership the final week and a half,” Grifol talked about Sunday morning.
As of Sunday afternoon, the Sox have been tied for 14th throughout the majors with 17 homers. For distinction, the Tampa Bay Rays led the big leagues with 36. The teams have a weekend assortment starting Friday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Burger has been an occasion of the Sox depth, which has been examined early with the accidents to Jiménez (who returned Friday), Moncada and Tim Anderson.
Lenyn Sosa has gotten an extended check out second base with Elvis Andrus shifting to shortstop to fill in for Anderson.
“Clearly the depth of the 40-man (roster) is vital,” Grifol talked about. “We really feel like we’re in a reasonably great place. Clearly our starters are our starters and we would like these guys again as quickly as potential, however within the meantime these guys are fairly rattling good too, so we’re comfortable about that.”
- Monday: vs. Phillies, 6:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Tuesday: vs. Phillies, 6:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Wednesday: vs. Phillies, 1:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Thursday: off
- Friday: at Rays, 5:40 p.m., NBCSCH
- Saturday: at Rays, 3:05 p.m., Fox-32
- Sunday: at Rays, 12:40 p.m., NBCSCH
What we’re finding out this morning
This week in Chicago baseball
April 18, 1991: New Comiskey Park opens
The brand new interval launched 30 years up to now, on April 18, 1991, with Gov. James Thompson tossing out the ceremonial first pitch and totally different luminaries in attendance.
The great vibes pale shortly, nonetheless, as a result of the Sox misplaced 16-0 — no, that isn’t a typo — to the Detroit Tigers. To say the Sox and their followers anticipated increased is inserting it mildly, significantly considering the Sox have been 6-1 moving into the game and had ace Jack McDowell on the mound; he had gone the area and struck out 10 in every of his begins to that point.
April 20, 1946: Cubs make their TV debut
“Tv Eye to Comply with Cub Fortunes Right now: Complete Recreation Will Be Seen in Broadcast” be taught the Tribune headline on the morning of April 20, 1946.
WBKB, Chicago’s first industrial TV station, had its cell unit at Wrigley Subject for the defending NL champion Cubs’ residence opener in the direction of the St. Louis Cardinals.
WBKB staff announcer Jack Gibney was behind the microphone, and the images regarded all correct leaving Clark and Addison, or not lower than just about nearly as good as is probably anticipated with a Nineteen Forties digital digital camera and no zoom lens.
However anyone at residence hoping to see the ballgame, a 2-0 loss for the Cubs’ first defeat of the season, was in for an unpleasant shock.
“Fail in Effort to Televise Cubs’ Recreation,” the next day’s Tribune headline talked about. See, a humorous issue occurred once more at station headquarters at State and Lake, nonetheless the home of ABC-7 instantly.
April 21, 2012: Philip Humber pitches good recreation
For just some seconds, Philip Humber’s good recreation bid was out of his arms.
”Go get it,” Humber talked about as catcher A.J. Pierzynski chased down an errant slider that pinch hitter Brendan Ryan was dominated to have swung at. “Throw him out.”
As rapidly as Pierzynski retreated and achieved his throw to first base to complete the twenty seventh consecutive out, the most recent chapter in Humber’s fantastic ascent was achieved.
Simply 15 months after Humber wanted to earn his means onto the Sox’s 2011 opening-day roster, he threw the twenty first good recreation in major-league historic previous with an setting pleasant 4-0 victory over the Mariners.
Quotable
“He’s a employee. He’s been round a extremely very long time. The expectation is he’s going to proceed to belief in himself, which I do know he does. We belief in him. … No person’s excellent. Guys have robust days. It’s baseball. I don’t assume we had been anticipating him to hit .400 all yr. I don’t know in case you had been, however we weren’t.” — Cubs supervisor David Ross on Dansby Swanson’s highly effective assortment at Dodger Stadium, the place he went 3-for-13 with eight strikeouts.
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