National League Championship Series
Chicago Cubs at New York Mets
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Murphy’s Law
The Mets knew that they needed to get off to a good start, and they did just that. The first inning was all Daniel Murphy, and for him, what went up didn’t come down. At least not anywhere the Cubs could play it. The soon to be free agent drove up his value, as he caught Dexter Fowler’s lead off grounder, and followed that up with a 2 RBI blast behind David Wright’s RBI double. Just one pitch earlier, he nailed a ball to the very same area just inches foul, a prediction of what came next.
Jake Arrieta struggled in his second straight start for the Cubs, allowing 3 quick hits, and giving up 3 runs, before he got a single out. For their part, the Mets were more than happy to exploit Arrieta’s lack of command early.
In the second, Castro went after Noah Syndergaard for 7 pitches, but ultimately grounded out. It was Coughlan who seemed to have a beat on Thor early, as he blasted a ball way out to right, that likely would have been gone. Sadly, Curtis Granderson made an unreal catch that really got the crowd roaring.
Arrieta got some breathing room with three outs in the bottom of the second, and Syndergaard’s effort in the third did not seem as crisp as the two prior innings. He walked one, but ultimately got out of the inning unscathed.
Walk On
Unfortunately, the control that Arrieta usually commands was left in Chicago, as he started off the third with a walk, and intentionally walked Murphy to get to Cespedes. The plan was questioned by Arrieta, but he went with it. Cespedes hit an RBI single driving in Granderson, and moving Murphy to third. It could have been much worse, but Lucas Duda (in at first today) and Travis d’Arnaud each hit into an out, ending the inning with only one run scored.
The fourth and fifth innings provided back to back 1-2-3 innings, but that would be the end of Arrieta’s work for the night. He left the game with 4 earned runs, on 4 hits and 2 walks, striking out 8 in five innings of work. Tonight’s game marked his shortest start since all the way back in June, and his second straight sub-par start, in this post season. It would also end up being his first loss since July 25th, which is a truly remarkable stretch, even though his night was unremarkable.
Fowler reached on a ground ball single, with one out in the sixth. With two outs, Kris Bryant came in and drilled a double to left for the RBI, to bring the score to 4-1. It was Bryant’s second hit off Syndergaard, and would spell the end of Thor’s night with 5.2 innings of work with 1 earned run, on 3 hits and 1 walk. He also had 9 strike outs.
No Aces But A Winning Hand For The Mets
Neither starting pitcher brought their best games tonight, but the bats for the Mets were alive, in spite of the 40 degree temperature and the winds whipping through. They got everything they needed early, and hung on through a couple of late threats by the Cubs. In fact, Cespedes came really close to adding to their lead, but was robbed by the Cobra, Chris Coghlan. Coghlan returned the favor with a very similar leap, snatching the ball out of the air as Granderson had done on his blast in the second.
There was not another hit until the top of the 8th when Dexter Fowler had a base hit to center with two outs off of Tyler Clippard, but Kyle Schwarber was unable to help him, as he popped up for the last out of the inning. Clayton Richard and Pedro Strop would split the work in the eighth with one hit, and no damage done.
The final inning was all Jeurys Familia, who gave up a base hit, but was never really threatened by the Cubs offense to close out the game.
For the Cubs, it was a cold night, and the chill seemed to have a firm hold on the arm of their ace and the bats for the Cubs normally strong offense. They will return to Wrigley on Tuesday to the warmth of the Friendly Confines in the hopes that it can spark their offense and give their starters a boost.
Player of the Game: Daniel Murphy
Murphy was the hero of the game once again. He went 2-3 with a 2-run home run. He is hitting .429 in the NLCS with 2 home runs and 3 RBI.
Game 3 (Mets lead 2-0)
Wrigley will host games 3-5, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with Kyle Hendricks getting the nod for the Cubs. For the Mets, it will be Jacob deGrom. It is a must win for the Cubs against one of the Mets’ best starters. An uphill climb, but if the bats come alive at Wrigley, anything is possible for these Cubs. Their youth carries with it a naivete, and with Joe Maddon at the helm they believe they can do anything. To have a fighting chance, they will have to.
The Mets will look to ride the wave they started in the first two games and look for deGrom to go deep into the game as their bullpen saw a lot of work tonight. deGrom is more than capable of delivering what the Mets need. He will be coming in with a two game cushion, so the pressure is all on the Cubs for game 3.
