Salvaged. No four-game sweep for the Reds, and the Cubs jump over the relatively low bar of late.
The bats showed up early in this one, with Ian Happ’s bases-clearing double the big blow in the first inning. Shōta Imanaga more or less took over from there (Ankin Law “Making It Personal” Player of the Game style), which was a good thing, since the bats decided they wanted hits and walks from there, so long as they did not score any additional runs.
Dansby Swanson stays hot, Seiya Suzuki is back and still hitting, and Ian Happ was on three times. Mark Leiter Jr. came into a big spot and did his job, Hector Neris pitched a drama-free(!) 9th inning, and that’s what really carried the day. Just enough offense, and some great pitching from Shōta Imanaga and Co.
Full box score.