Cubs Takeaways: What we learned as long ball powers shutout of Red Sox
CHICAGO — Since last year, Cubs fans have grown accustomed to treating Shota Imanaga start days as de facto win days.
Saturday was a prime example why.
The left-hander twirled another gem as the Cubs beat the Boston Red Sox 6-0 at Wrigley Field. The Cubs (59-39) took the three-game set with the win and will look to complete a series sweep – and pick up their fifth straight win – in Sunday’s finale.
Here are three takeaways from Saturday’s victory:
First things first
The Red Sox put the pressure on Imanaga from the outset.
Rob Refsnyder hit the first pitch of the game into the left-center gap for a double and looked prime to take an early lead. But Imanaga hunkered down, inducing a ground ball to first base from Alex Bregman and then struck out Romy Gonzalez and Roman Anthony to end the frame, stranding Refsnyder at third and letting out a small fist pump after the final punchout.
It’s hard to quantify or show momentum in baseball, but the bottom half of the frame is about as close as you’ll find in the game.
Michael Busch – the Cubs’ new leadoff hitter against righties after Ian Happ’s struggles – took the first pitch he saw into the right field bleachers to give the Cubs a quick lead.
The first baseman might not seem like a typical leadoff hitter, but his profile fits the mold of the modern-day No. 1 hitter. He gets on base (.375 on-base percentage), can hit for power (20 home runs and 38 extra-base hits) and can work an at-bat (4.03 pitches per plate appearance). The pop can lead to fast starts, like it did on Saturday.
Throw in Kyle Tucker – who hit a home run immediately after – and it creates a nice one-two punch at the top of the Cubs lineup.
Goin’ deep
The Cubs ended their night much like they started it – by hitting back-to-back home runs.
Pete Crow-Armstrong and Happ hit consecutive blasts in the eighth inning, bookending their offensive frames with big sequences.
Crow-Armstrong’s home run was his seventh against a left-hander and his 26th of the season, tying Kris Bryant for the most home runs in a single season by a Cub at age 23 or younger.
The center fielder has been the story of the year this season for the Cubs, and it was fair to wonder if he could pick up where he left off after starting in the All-Star Game earlier in the week.
Two games in and we know the answer so far – the Cubs will gladly take that, too.
Sho-Time
Imanaga’s return before the All-Star break was a big lift to a Cubs’ rotation that has been crushed by injuries this season. But his last three starts, he’s really settled into a groove and pitched like the starter who was a Cy Young candidate for swaths of 2024.
He’s allowed just three runs across 20 innings in that span and has struck out 11 over his last two starts. That’s more like the Imanaga Cubs fans have grown accustomed to watching.
There was naturally an adjustment period after he returned from his hamstring injury in late June, and he was effective but wasn’t striking out hitters like he had in the past. The last two starts have been more reminiscent of the Imanaga Cubs fans have gotten used to.
And when he settles into a groove, man, is it fun to watch.
After allowing a lead-off walk in the fourth, Imanaga retired the next 11 hitters he faced and kept the Red Sox at bay. The Cubs will be in the market for starting pitching before the end of the month, but getting Imanaga back into his old self is as good as any addition they make.
