PITTSBURGH — For a long while this season, something like an errant flip to a reliever covering first with the bases loaded in the late innings — causing said reliever to tumble awkwardly into the dirt as not one, but two runs cross the plate — would have spelled unthinkable disaster for the Cubs.
Fans would have bitterly tweeted. Writers would have unsheathed their poison pens. Talk-radio hosts would have barked at the moon.
But as well as things have been going for the Cubs lately? One of the worst-looking defensive plays of the season barely broke their stride in an 8-3 win against the Pirates that completed a three-game sweep at PNC Park. Flipper Trey Mancini probably didn’t feel too good about it, but flippee Mark Leiter Jr. laughed in the clubhouse after missing Mancini’s high delivery and twisting into a crash landing on his left hip, with his left (non-pitching) arm bending at a scary-looking angle.
“I thought it looked bad, too,” manager David Ross said.
Somehow, Leiter, who got out of the seventh inning with a three-run lead, wasn’t hurt. Or even shaken up. Or even requiring a single warmup pitch before stepping back on the rubber.
That’s life during what might be a season-saving hot streak.
The Cubs left here for London, where they’ll take on the Cardinals in a pair of weekend games, in as chipper a mood as a 36-38 team can be in. They’ve won 10 of their last 12 games. They’re stringing quality at-bats together and dominating with starting pitching. They’re making moves in the National League Central standings, though, let’s face it, nobody’s gaining on the first-place Reds, whose 11-game winning streak is their longest since 1957.
But the Cubs are only 2½ games behind the Brewers and 3½ behind the Reds, who face stern tests — the Braves and Orioles — in their next two series. And for those who believe in run differential, consider that the Cubs are, at plus-26, the only team in the black for the season. The rest of the division is in the red, with the feel-good bunch from Cincy still at minus-14 and maybe, just maybe, due for a reality check.
Cubs starting pitchers lead the NL in quality starts with 35 and in ERA at 3.77. The latter number has been dropping fast, with Marcus Stroman in the best statistical stretch of his career, Justin Steele in a breakout season and Kyle Hendricks, who gave up two hits and one earned run in 6⅓ innings Wednesday, rounding into form after a long injury absence. Hendricks (4-2) is 3-0 with a 1.40 ERA over his last three starts.
“Just trying to roll off the [last] guy, you know?” Hendricks said. “It’s kind of like a friendly competition in a way, to do better than the guy before you, but we’re all following ‘Stro’ right now. It’s unbelievable what he’s doing.”
With two days off before the first game at London Stadium, Ross shuffled the rotation so that Stroman — 7-0 with a 1.29 ERA over his last seven starts — could follow Steele against the Cardinals on normal rest. Stroman leads the NL with a 2.28 ERA, and Steele ranks third at 2.71. Steele will oppose Adam Wainwright, and Stroman will go against Jack Flaherty, in what should be a fun two-day spectacle.
“I’ve never been to Europe, and I think a lot of the guys haven’t,” Hendricks said, “so the vibes are pretty good. We’re excited to go over there.”
The hitters are holding up their end of the deal, too. Against 43-year-old ex-Cub Rich Hill, a three-run third inning was a perfect example of how in tune this offense can be. Miguel Amaya started the rally with a double — and Nico Hoerner’s two-run double was the big blow — but key as well were Mike Tauchman’s walk, Nick Madrigal’s sacrifice bunt and Seiya Suzuki’s sacrifice fly.
Ian Happ doubled home a pair of runs off Hill in the sixth to make it 5-1, Hoerner greeted reliever Roansy Contreras with his first career opposite-field homer in the seventh and Madrigal lined a two-run hit the opposite way in the eighth.
The Pirates (34-39) have lost nine in a row and clearly are coming undone, but still — that was some impressive stuff by the visitors.
“We’re trying to play our best brand of baseball,” Ross said, “and we’re doing a little of that right now.”
