Chicago Cubs at Toronto Blue Jays
· Major League Baseball5 - 4
Morel gets winning hit in 9th as Cubs improve to 8-3 in August, beat Blue Jays 5-4
Dansby Swanson added a three-run home run as the Cubs (61-56) improved to 8-3 in August and won for the 18th time in 24 games.
Whit Merrifield hit a two-run home run, but Toronto (65-54) lost for the fourth time in five games after winning its previous four.
Chicago’s Cody Bellinger doubled off right-hander Jordan Hicks (1-7) to begin the ninth and came around to score what turned out the be the winning run on Morel’s one-out double to left field.
“Belli has been our most valuable player,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “That leadoff double was huge.”
Morel leads the Cubs with eighth RBI in the ninth inning this season.
“One through nine we have a really, really deep lineup,” Bellinger said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s the heart of the order, the bottom of the order, we’ve got a bunch of guys that can get the job done.”
Former Blue Jays right-hander Julian Merryweather (4-0) worked one inning for the win and righty Adbert Alzolay finished for his 16th save in 17 chances.
“Julian has been kind of the stabilizer in our bullpen,” Ross said. “He’s just really been a guy that we can rely on.”
Bellinger went 2 for 4 with an RBI for the Cubs, who have won six of their past eight meetings with Toronto. Chicago is 9-5 against AL East opponents.
“Bellinger is probably the best hitter in the game for the last two months,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “They’ve got power, they’ve got speed, they’ve got guys that are above average in a lot of different ways. They’re scoring a ton of runs right now. They’re a hot team.”
After Vladimir Guerrero Jr. opened the scoring with an RBI single in the third, Chicago replied with four runs in the fourth off Blue Jays right-hander Chris Bassitt. Nico Hoerner led off with a double and Ian Happ walked before Bellinger tied it with an RBI single.
Swanson followed with a second-deck home run, his 18th. The 429-foot homer was Swanson’s longest of the season.
Merrifield cut Chicago’s lead to 4-3 with a homer off left-hander Justin Steele in the fifth, his 11th, and Toronto tied it 4-all on Santiago Espinal’s two-out RBI double off Mark Leiter Jr. in the sixth.
Seeking to extend his career-best streak of four consecutive winning starts, Steele allowed three runs and six hits in five innings. He walked none and struck out seven.
“It looked like the slider had real depth today,” Ross said. “That’s as good as I’ve seen it in a little while. Looked sharp, velocity was back up.”
Bassitt allowed four runs and four hits in six innings. He walked two and struck out six.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Cubs: RHP Marcus Stroman (right hip) felt good one day after throwing around 50 pitches in a bullpen session and could return to the rotation Wednesday against the White Sox, Ross said.
Blue Jays: RHP Jordan Romano (back) allowed two hits in one scoreless inning in a rehab appearance at Triple-A Buffalo. Romano could rejoin the Blue Jays Tuesday. … Toronto put RHP Hagen Danner on the 15-day IL because of a strained left oblique and recalled RHP Nate Pearson from Triple-A. Danner had to leave his big league debut Friday after seven pitches.
LEVELLING UP
An emotional José Bautista was joined by his family, as well as several former teammates, coaches and managers, for a pregame ceremony that saw him become the 11th person added to Toronto’s Level of Excellence. Bautista and fellow former slugger Edwin Encarnación received huge cheers from the sellout crowd of 42,585, as did former Toronto managers John Gibbons and Cito Gaston. Bautista threw out the first pitch to current Jays slugger and fellow Dominican star Guerrero.
NOT SO POPULAR
Fans booed Blue Jays chairman Edward Rogers when he was introduced as one of the guests at Bautista’s ceremony.
RUN PRODUCER
Guerrero, 24, reached 70 RBI for the third straight season. He’s the first player in Blue Jays history to drive in 70 or more three times before the age of 25.
UP NEXT
LHP Hyun Jin Ryu (0-1, 4.00 ERA) starts as the Blue Jays seek to avoid a sweep in Sunday’s series finale. RHP Jameson Taillon (7-6, 5.17) goes for the Cubs. Taillon is 4-1 with a 3.19 ERA in six career starts in Toronto.
How can I watch Chicago Cubs vs. Toronto Blue Jays?
- TV Channel: Cubs at Blue Jays 2022 MLB Baseball, is broadcasted on MLB.tv.
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Matchup Prediction
Scoring Summary
9th Inning | Merrifield lined out to center. | |
9th Inning | Varsho grounded out to first. | |
9th Inning | Belt struck out looking. | |
9th Inning | Alzolay relieved Merryweather | |
9th Inning | Belt hit for Espinal | |
9th Inning | Suzuki flied out to right. |
Statistics
CHC | TOR | |
---|---|---|
1 | Games Played | 1 |
1 | Team Games Played | 1 |
0 | Hit By Pitch | 0 |
7 | Ground Balls | 5 |
9 | Strikeouts | 11 |
5 | Runs Batted In | 4 |
0 | Sacrifice Hit | 0 |
7 | Hits | 8 |
0 | Stolen Bases | 0 |
3 | Walks | 3 |
0 | Catcher Interference | 0 |
5 | Runs | 4 |
2 | Ground Into Double Play | 0 |
0 | Sacrifice Flies | 0 |
32 | At Bats | 34 |
1 | Home Runs | 1 |
0 | Grand Slam Home Runs | 0 |
8 | Runners Left On Base | 13 |
0 | Triples | 0 |
1 | Game Winning RBIs | 0 |
0 | Intentional Walks | 0 |
3 | Doubles | 3 |
16 | Fly Balls | 18 |
0 | Caught Stealing | 1 |
149 | Pitches | 161 |
0 | Games Started | 0 |
0 | Pinch At Bats | 1 |
0 | Pinch Hits | 0 |
0.0 | Player Rating | 0.0 |
1 | Is Qualified | 1 |
0 | Is Qualified In Steals | 1 |
13 | Total Bases | 14 |
35 | Plate Appearances | 37 |
162.0 | Projected Home Runs | 162.0 |
4 | Extra Base Hits | 4 |
3.1 | Runs Created | 3.9 |
.219 | Batting Average | .235 |
.000 | Pinch Hit Average | .000 |
.406 | Slugging Percentage | .412 |
.281 | Secondary Average | .235 |
.286 | On Base Percentage | .297 |
.692 | OBP Pct + SLG Pct | .709 |
0.4 | Ground To Fly Ball Ratio | 0.3 |
3.1 | Runs Created Per 27 Outs | 3.9 |
36.0 | Batter Rating | 33.0 |
32.0 | At Bats Per Home Run | 34.0 |
0.00 | Stolen Base Percentage | 0.00 |
4.26 | Pitches Per Plate Appearance | 4.35 |
.188 | Isolated Power | .176 |
0.33 | Walk To Strikeout Ratio | 0.27 |
.086 | Walks Per Plate Appearance | .081 |
.063 | Secondary Average Minus Batting Average | .000 |
10.0 | Runs Produced | 8.0 |
1.0 | Runs Ratio | 1.0 |
0.5 | Patience Ratio | 0.5 |
0.3 | Balls In Play Average | 0.3 |
81.3 | MLB Rating | 80.3 |
0.0 | Offensive Wins Above Replacement | 0.0 |
0.0 | Wins Above Replacement | 0.0 |
Game Information
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Attendance: 42,585 | Capacity:
2024 National League Central Standings
TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Milwaukee | 93 | 69 | .574 | - | L1 |
St. Louis | 83 | 79 | .512 | 10 | W1 |
Chicago | 83 | 79 | .512 | 10 | L1 |
Cincinnati | 77 | 85 | .475 | 16 | W1 |
Pittsburgh | 76 | 86 | .469 | 17 | L1 |
2024 American League East Standings
TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
New York | 94 | 68 | .580 | - | W1 |
Baltimore | 91 | 71 | .562 | 3 | W3 |
Boston | 81 | 81 | .500 | 13 | W1 |
Tampa Bay | 80 | 82 | .494 | 14 | L1 |
Toronto | 74 | 88 | .457 | 20 | L3 |