Series 8, 9, 10, 11 Cubs against Braves, Reds, Dodgers, and Pirates

    As my life has gotten busy and out of hand I've missed a couple series. I quickly recapped them to get back on track and hopefully be more diligent as the season goes on. So here are the last four series for the Cubs.

    Cubs at Braves Series

    This series was rough for the Cubs. Another bad outing from Davies had the Cubs playing catch-up in game 1. They would tie it at 5 but a Freeman 3 run homer gave the Braves the lead for good as the Cubs dropped game one. Then the offense produced zero runs in the next 2 games while the pitching gave up 15. The Cubs would salvage the last game in the series with a good outing from Alzolay and a balanced offense producing 9 runs.

    Cubs at Reds Series

    The Cubs would jump out to an early 2 run lead in game 1 only for it to be evaporated. The Reds tallied 7 runs off of Arrieta through 4 innings and that was the game. The Cubs clawed back to within 2 but their rally fell short in the ninth as Bote grounded out with the bases loaded and 2 outs. In the second game, the Reds jumped out to an early lead with 2 runs in the first. Davies only lasted 4 innings but gave up only 2 runs. The Cubs fought their way back as the bullpen held the Reds scoreless. Hoerner delivered a key 2 RBI single in the sixth to give the Cubs a 1 run lead to win the game. Game 3 was a slugfest with both teams mashing and the lead changing often. The Reds would eventually go up 12-8 in the seventh but the Cubs countered with 4 in the eighth to tie it. It would go into extra innings where the Cubs couldn't score and the Reds managed a walk-off single from Castellanos. The series was a difficult one to lose being in all three games.

    Dodgers at Cubs Series

    This is where the Cubs got going. Game one was rained out so that meant a doubleheader to start the series. The Cubs jumped on Kershaw in game one as he had the shortest outing of his career lasting only 1 inning. Hendricks looked strong and had a shutout bid denied in the seventh on a solo homer. The second game was much closer. Each team could only muster a solo homer to send the game to the eighth inning. The Dodgers would get 2 in the top and the Cubs answered with 2 of their own on a huge Baez homer. The game went to the ninth tied where Steele shut down the dodgers to give way to Big hit Bote delivering the game-winning single in the bottom half. Game 3 was a back and forth affair as well. Both starters looked great early but got into a little trouble in the middle innings. The Dodgers would take a 3-2 lead after the sixth though. The Cubs got the tying run in the eighth to send another game to extra innings. Each team would score one the tenth to send it to the eleventh still tied. The Dodgers scored a run in the top. The Cubs got the tying run and then Rizzo hopped in on his off day to become the hero with a walk-off single to completed the sweep.

    Pirates at Cubs Series

    Davies finally showed his potential in game 1. He had a solid and effective 7 shut-out innings. The Cubs scored 1 in each of the first 3 innings to give them a 3-0 lead for most of the game. The bullpen was wobbly at the end as the Pirates scored 2 in the ninth before Brothers came on to get the last out and secure a series-opening win. Williams was inefficient as he only lasted 4 innings in game 2 but only gave 2 runs on a Tom homer. The Cubs tied it in the fourth and Keegan Thompson came in to throw 3 scoreless innings. The. Duffy continued his hot hitting with a key pinch-hit RBI single to give the Cubs the lead. They would hold on to take game 2 of the series. Hendricks would again get rocked in the first inning as the Pirates jumped to a 4 run lead in the top of the first. The Cubs got a run back in the second but the Pirates responded with 2 more in the third to effectively seal the game. The Cubs would mount a strong rally in the ninth to get within a run. The rally would end there as the Cubs couldn't complete the sweep and settled for a second series win in a row and a .500 record.

    The outlook

     The season looked liked it was going sideways there for a second when the Dodgers rolled into town. The offense was still sputtering and the pitching had gotten rocky. The next two series turned it around though. As the starters were holding offenses the bullpen continued to impress. The offense woke up and has us fans believing again. Bryant is rolling and Alzolay is showing he's got the stuff of a solid starter. Getting Arrieta back will be key as the season continues. The Cubs are showing they have some life and that can't be counted out yet though. Hendricks continued struggles to start games is concerning though along with some hitters not getting going yet.

    Looking ahead

    The Cubs have a quick 2 game series against the Indians before going to face the lowly Tigers for 3. It will be nice to reminisce about the World Series title in 2016 clinched in Cleveland on the trip. Getting a split there and winning the series against the Tigers seems like a solid realistic goal for this short road trip. The Cubs don't avoid Bieber so the second game becomes more important as Bieber is a tough one to beat. The off-day on Monday and Thursday this week helps as the Cubs continue to have a 4 man rotation until Arrieta comes back.