NEW YORK — Seiya Suzuki blasted a home run over the left-field wall in the ninth inning to keep alive the Cubs’ hopes of a comeback that ultimately fell short.
With the Cubs’ 4-3 loss to the Mets, they ended their streak of six consecutive series wins.
Suzuki made a triumphant return to the starting lineup Wednesday after being out of it for the last four games, with right-handed opposing starters on the mound. He had one pinch-hit at-bat in that time, striking out on a half swing. He walked up to the plate with a different kind of conviction on Wednesday.
In his first at-bat, he drove a triple the other way and popped up at third base pointing to the dugout. He pulled a line-drive single in the fourth inning to keep the inning alive with two outs. And in the ninth, he trimmed the Mets’ lead to one run.
After Suzuki’s home run, Jeimer Candelario and Mike Tauchman reached on a single and a walk, respectively. Pinch hitter Nick Madrigal moved them both over with a sacrifice bunt. With two men in scoring position and one out, Christopher Morel struck out. Nico Hoerner drew a walk to load the bases.
Switch-hitter Ian Happ stepped up to the plate with the game in the balance. He struck out.
“We fight,” manager David Ross said. “This group’s fought all year long.”
Triple-A depth
Bullpen depth will be important as the Cubs continue to chase a playoff spot. Senior vice president of pitching Craig Breslow does believe there’s probably a pitcher in Triple-A who can contribute to the major league team this season.
“I don’t know exactly who it will be,” he said. “I don’t know when they will emerge. But there’s enough overall talent to believe that there are guys that are coming through that should be able to help us.”
The Cubs’ Triple-A staff has seen some movement lately. Right-hander Ryan Jensen hadn’t fixed his walk rate after revamping his delivery last year, and the Mariners claimed him off waivers Tuesday.
“Everyone here has invested deeply in him and cares deeply about him, and he’s a tremendously talented pitcher,” Breslow said. “Kind of ran out of time, in that there are constraints that go along with being on a 40-man roster that don’t provide nearly as much flexibility as otherwise would be the case.”
With the Cubs competing for a playoff spot, it became clear that he wouldn’t be major-league ready by the end of the year.
Right-hander Ben Brown, another pitcher the Cubs protected from the Rule 5 Draft last winter by putting him on the 40-man roster, was turning heads before the Iowa Cubs put him on the IL with a left oblique/lat injury last week.
“Happy with the progress,” Breslow said. “Fortunately, seems to be something that, independent of the timeline, doesn’t carry any kind of long-term concern. We’ll see where we are as he starts throwing again, and how quickly he responds and ramps back up.”
One recent addition to the Triple-A roster is Cade Horton, the Cubs’ 2022 first-round draft pick.
“We laid out the idea that we should try to add a breaking ball and add a changeup, and that probably puts the finishing touches on his development at least from a repertoire standpoint,” Breslow said of Horton’s rise through the farm system. “Didn’t imagine that it would happen so quickly. And that’s a testament to him, his aptitude, his willingness.”
