Chicago Cubs Erupt in 10-4 Win Over Philadelphia Phillies

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The Chicago Cubs rebounded from last night’s loss that saw the Philadelphia Phillies clinch the NL East division crown with a 10-4 victory Tuesday night. With Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson opting for a bullpen game on the mound, the Chicago offense found a lot more success tonight than they did with Aaron Nola. After a successful opening inning for Tanner Banks, Banks, and Taijuan Walker allowed six runs to score for the Cubs, establishing a lead they would not surrender.

Justin Steele took to the mound for the Chicago Cubs in his final outing of the year. After being limited in his first start in over a month in his last outing, Steele largely maintained his workload against the Phillies. Steele worked four innings and got progressively better as the night wore on. His control improved on both his fastball and his slider, leaving 2024 on a good note after an injury-riddled season that Steele will look to rebound from next year.

Chicago Cubs Big Innings Carry Victory

After Philadelphia celebrated their first NL East division title in 13 years last night, they allowed the Chicago Cubs to take the second game of this three-game series 10-4. Chicago used two big innings to get their offense humming. Six runs came across to score in the second inning. Tanner Banks came back out after tossing a scoreless first inning and loaded the bases before handing the ball over to Taijuan Walker.

Walker couldn’t get out of the jam and ran into one he created later on in the inning. Walker walked the first two batters he faced, erasing a Philadelphia lead established in the first inning by a Bryce Harper solo home run. Dansby Swanson grounded a ball up the middle that was corralled by Edmundo Sosa, but Sosa had only one play and went to first to retire Swanson, allowing the third run of the inning to score.

The first hit off of Walker came from Seiya Suzuki. Suzuki roped a sinker left over the plate into left field, driving in two more runs. Cody Bellinger plated the final run of the inning by punching a ball past the infield, giving Suzuki enough time to come in and score, capping off a six-run frame for the Chicago Cubs that saw ten hitters come to the plate.

Chicago Pitching Staff Solid

Justin Steele took the mound with a big lead and managed it well. Over the next three innings, Steele kept a dangerous Philadelphia lineup at bay with the exception of an RBI bunt single. The Chicago southpaw ended his season with four innings of two-run baseball, giving up four hits, zero walks, and striking out three on 62 pitches. Craig Counsell gave the Chicago bullpen a 6-2 lead and five innings to manage.

Drew Smyly and Tyson Miller pitched scoreless frames to get the game into the seventh for Hayden Wesneski. Wesneski mirrored the first pair of relievers with a clean inning of work but ran into a familiar face for Chicago Cubs fans in the eighth inning in the form of Kyle Schwarber. Schwarber swung at a pitch level with his neck and belted it into the right-center field bleachers for a two-run home run. The long ball would’ve been a problem for the Cubs if they hadn’t extended their lead in the sixth inning.

Bellinger Leads Cubs Offense

Cody Bellinger got his chance to hit with the bases loaded and much like his first RBI hit of the night, it was not hit all that hard. Bellinger chopped a ball down the first base line and Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos assumed the ball would roll foul, but the ball stayed fair and trickled all the way to the wall before Castellanos, another former Cub, got to it and relayed it in back to the infield. In the meantime, all three baserunners were able to come in and score and Bellinger slid into third with a bases-clearing triple, giving him four RBI on the day.

Isaac Paredes drove in Bellinger on an RBI groundout to get the Chicago Cubs to double digits. After the Schwarber home run, Hayden Wesneski struck out the next three batters and gave the ball to first-day Cub, Enoli Paredes. Paredes was claimed off waivers from Milwaukee and added to the active roster. Paredes impressed in mop-up duty, working a one-two-three inning, striking out two.

Looking Ahead

The Philadelphia Phillies are still gunning for the first seed in the National League, battling the Dodgers. The Phillies are currently a full game back of the Dodgers in the race for the top seed. The Chicago Cubs are focused on less consequential accomplishments heading into the final game of this series. With the 10-4 victory Tuesday night, the Cubs clinch at least a .500 season, and they will go for an above-average season in the rubber match tomorrow at 5:05 PM CST before taking on the Reds in their final series of the year.

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Article originally written by Mathias Woerner.