Cubs starting pitcher Cole Hamels was at the center of a controversial beaning. (Credit: Isaiah Downing-USA TODAY Sports)
Mile-high magic: Cubs come alive at plate, clobber Rockies |
by Cole Little
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Senior Writer
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Wed Jun 12 18:48:57 GMT-05:00 2019
DENVER — Pounding out 10 runs on 12 hits and five walks on Wednesday afternoon, the Chicago Cubs (38-29) responded in a major way after getting handily defeated by the Colorado Rockies (35-32) on Tuesday night. Two tape-measure homers hit by Kyle Schwarber and Javier Baez, respectively, highlighted the offensive onslaught put on by the Cubs at Coors Field that culminated in a commanding 10-1 victory. With the win in the series finale against the Rockies, the Cubs snapped a 5-game road losing streak and avoided suffering their second straight 3-game sweep away from home.
Unfortunately, drama involving possible intentional beanings largely overshadowed a lot of the offensive excitement in the contest. With banged-up star Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant missing the game after getting unintentionally hit by two pitches in the previous matchup, star Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado seemed to get intentionally hit on the first pitch that he faced on Wednesday. In the bottom of the third, Cubs starter Cole Hamels drilled Arenado on the left forearm with a pitch that was headed for Arenado's midsection before the infielder jumped back in an attempt at avoiding it. Arenado was livid after being hit with the 90-mile-per-hour fastball and left the game due to injury soon afterward.
Four different batters were hit by pitches on the afternoon, including Hamels, who was beaned in the seventh inning. Warnings were eventually issued to both dugouts, but no ejections took place. Aside from the potential vigilantism that injured an opposing player, Hamels was outstanding, as he struck out nine batters in seven scoreless innings of work. Rockies starter Antonio Senzatela did not fare well, though, with the Cubs racking up eight hits and six runs against him.
A 5-run second inning provided the Cubs with an early lead that the Rockies never seriously threatened to cut into. Jason Heyward tabbed a 2-run base knock in the top of the second, and, later in the inning, Schwarber went deep for the 14th time this season with a 432-foot 3-run bomb to right. Hamels, who singled in the second, was plated as a result of the home run. Entering the day having gone 0-for-21 at the plate in 2019, Hamels went 2-for-3 and drove home a pair of runs with another single in the fifth. Also in the fifth, Schwarber recorded his fourth RBI via a sacrifice fly that put the Cubs up 8-0.
In the eighth, Baez took advantage of the Denver altitude and smashed a 460-foot moonshot that sailed out to left. "El Mago" admired his 17th homer of the year as it left the bat, with the 2-run jack increasing the Cubs' sizable lead to 10 runs. The Cubs have never shut the Rockies out in Colorado, and they nearly achieved a mile-high milestone by doing so on Wednesday. However, the Rockies were able to tack on an insignificant run in the bottom of the ninth to break up the shutout. Nevertheless, by way of the 10-1 win, the Cubs snapped out of their losing skid on the road and dodged being on the wrong end of a sweep.
| Chicago Cubs at Colorado Rockies |
| Jun 12, 2019 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
R |
H |
E |
| Chicago (38-29) |
0 |
5 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
10 |
12 |
0 |
| Colorado (35-32) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
7 |
1 |
| W: Cole Hamels (6-2) L: Antonio Senzatela (5-5) |
