Game Recap: Cubs win second straight over Dodgers |
Dustin Riese
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- 8 hours ago
MESA - For the second time in as many days, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs squared off for some Cactus League action. This time, it was the Sloan Park opener for the Cubs as the Cubs and Dodgers are getting very familiar with each other opening the Spring portion of their season.
Whether it be another strong pitching performance or a balanced attack that clicks much faster than expected, the Cubs took down the Dodgers 7-3. After posting more of a prospect-only lineup on Thursday, Craig Counsell returned to more of their opening-day lineup on Friday as several new faces took their first swings in the spring. The same can be said about the pitching staff, as Jordan Wicks took the ball against Tony Gonsolin. One of the many pitchers competing for the fifth starter spot this season, Wicks is looking for a bounce-back showing in 2025, and after tossing a pair of scoreless frames with two punchouts, he is off to a great start. As good of a start as it was, Wicks did have to pitch around significant trouble in the second inning as he allowed a trio of singles to load the bases, but managed to wiggle his way out of trouble to keep the Dodgers off the board. That led to the game's first run in the bottom of the second as a leadoleadoffby pitch to Miguel Amaya set the stage, with Jon Berti following that up with a single. Two batters later, Jonathon Long pushed across the game's first run as his RBI groundout gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead. With Caleb Kilian on to pitch the third, the Dodgers looked to cash in after letting a golden opportunity slip away in the second. Once again, the Dodgers offense put the pressure on Cubs pitching as Mookie Betts and Tommy Edman led things off with a pair of singles before the Michael Conforto walk loaded the bases with no outs. Austin Barnes kept the line moving with a sharply hit single to push home the tying run, but that was all the Dodgers managed to push across as Kilian responded with an inning-ending double play to strand the bases loaded and gave the Cubs plenty of life heading into the dugout. It's amazing how one play can often change the outcome of a game, as that double play was the momentum shift the Cubs needed. All it took for the Cubs to grab the lead for good was a leadoff double by Ian Happ as the Cubs threatened again. Happ had a great first start to the season as he delivered two hits and picked up a walk in his three plate appearances. Standing on third with two outs, Happ gave the Cubs the lead for good as he came home on a wild pitch to make this a 2-1 game. Chicago wasn't done making the Dodgers work in the bottom of the third. An opposite-field Pete Crow-Armstrong double kept the inning alive before Miguel Amaya delivered the game-winning two-run blast, putting the Cubs in front 4-1. PCA ropes a double for his first hit of Spring Training 🚀 pic.twitter.com/CjhusJ02Oi "This one's for you on the lawn!" (Miguel Amaya probably) pic.twitter.com/5S3hYIdUqh Those two will play a massive role in the Cubs' success this season as they look to build on their strong second halves. Like in their first meeting on Thursday, once the Dodgers scored their first run of the game, their offense went cold as the Cubs' pitching continued to impress. With Gage Workman extending the lead to 5-1 off a fourth-inning sacrifice fly, it was time for a lot of new faces to take their turns on the mound with the hopes of impressing this spring. Former Dodger Phil Bickford was one of those guys, as was Brandon Hughes, as both of them got off to great starts to begin their outings only to load the bases with two outs. However, both pitchers managed to avoid damage as they kept the Cubs in front 5-1 entering the bottom of the sixth. It was in the bottom half of that inning when the Cubs offense got back to work, with the bench starting to come through. That rally started with a hustling infield single from Workman, who wound up advancing to second off a costly throwing error. A few pitches later, Kevin Alcantara came through with his second RBI in as many games and went the opposite way for the ground-rule double to make this a 6-1 game. Kevin Alcántara laces an RBI double and steals third base shortly after 🐆 pic.twitter.com/MQBl3nQV41 Alcantara would come in to score later in the inning off the Seiya Suzuki sacrifice fly, as it was all Cubs at this point, 7-1. Looking to keep the pressure on in the seventh, the Dodgers refused to go away and had the Cubs on the ropes again. With AJ Puckett on the mound for the first time this spring, you couldn't have asked for a much worse outing as a one-out walk was followed by the Chris Okey homer, and just like that, this was a 7-3 game. Things only got worse for Puckett from there, as he would put two additional runners on base later in the inning before giving way to Nick Hull. For the third time in the game, it was the Dodgers finding a way to load the bases, but once again, it was the Cubs making the big pitch when they had to, as the Dodgers wasted another clutch scoring chance. It was the final chance that either team would have the rest of the way as Kipp went on to toss a scoreless eighth before handing things off to Tyler Santana to finish the game off in the ninth. For the second time in as many games, the Cubs pounded double-digit hits with 11 as Happ, Alcantara, and Amaya led the way with two. The Cubs will look to make it three straight on Saturday as they face off against the Chicago White Sox.
