Sho Time: Imanaga impressive in Cubs win over Nationals |
CHICAGO—Now that the Chicago Cubs (80-76) are officially eliminated from playoff contention, expect a lot of different-looking lineups the rest of the way. Whether that be the everyday players getting days off or some of the AAA prospects getting an opportunity, things could look different for the Cubs in the coming days.
You started to see some of that on Sunday against the Washington Nationals (69-87) at Wrigley Field as three of the Cubs regular starters had the day off. However, despite all the changes happening one thing the Cubs can count on is that every fifth day it will be SHO-Time as Shota Imanga takes the ball every fifth day. With this being his second to last start of the season, Imanga continued to impress as he gave the Cubs seven innings of work for the fourth time in his past four starts, striking out four and allowing no runs as the Cubs took care of the Nationals 5-0. Imanga is now 15-3 on the season with a sparkling 2.91 ERA, as the Cubs are also 23-6 in the games he starts. Imanga got off to a great start by retiring the Nationals in order in the first, while the offense gave him all the support he needed in the bottom of the first, as the Mike Tauchman leadoff homer would be all the Cubs needed. That was the first of three homers that Jake Irvin would allow as the right-hander was touched up for five runs in four innings. The Cubs kept the pressure on in the first, with Dansby Swanson working a walk immediately after the homer and then stealing second base. A few pitches later, Seiya Suzuki cashed in with a clutch RBI single as the Cubs doubled their lead to 2-0. That was only the start for the Cubs offense off of Irvin as they responded from two scoreless to touch him up for three runs in the fourth. For the second time in the game, it was a long ball that got the party started, with Michael Busch unloading for his 21st homer of the season to push the Cubs' lead to 3-0. A two-out walk from Pete Crow-Armstrong extended the inning for the Cubs' offense, which was crucial as Miguel Amaya connected for the Cubs' second homer of the inning and broke the game open 5-0. It was all the offense the Cubs would need as they didn't score the rest of the way, but they didn't have to when you look at how good Imanga was. Through four innings, Imanga allowed just two hits, but in the fifth, the Nationals finally started to get to him as they set themselves up with their first scoring chance. A pair of two-out singles from Jacob Young and Nasim Nunez played a role in that, but as he has so often, Imanaga stranded both runners on base to keep the Cubs in front 5-0. With Tauchman working a leadoff walk to begin the bottom of the fifth, the Cubs once again had a runner on base with a two-out Busch double, moving both runners into scoring position only to come away empty. With Imanga done after seven brilliant innings, it was up to the Cubs bullpen to keep the shutout intact, as Ethan Roberts took over in the eighth. Craig Counsell has been using Roberts far more frequently than in the past, and for the most part, he has pitched well, sporting a 2.55 ERA for the season. A one-out single from Dylan Crews gave the Nationals another baserunner before a James Wood single put two runners on with Joey Gallo coming to bat. Already with multiple three-run shots in the series, one swing from Gallo would've drastically changed the game, but it was Roberts who won the battle. He escaped the eighth inning with no runs allowed and the Cubs still leading 5-0. Trey Wingenter took care of the rest from there, retiring the Nationals in order in the ninth to lock down the 5-0 victory. With the win, the Cubs closed out their season series with the Nationals 6-1, which will go down as their best performance against this team in over a decade. Chicago had seven hits in the game, with Amaya and Busch leading the way with four hits and three combined RBIs. The Cubs will embark on their final road trip of the season, kicking off a three-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday. Philadelphia is in the running for the Top seed in the NL, so expect them to be motivated to pick up some wins.
