BOX SCORE

Some games have you on the edge of your seat. Others make it easy to relax long before they’re over.

The latter was the case for the Chicago Cubs (75-55) on Saturday, whose 12-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels (61-69) secured their third straight series win and became their first road series win since they bested the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field in late July.

Here are three things we learned from a long-awaited offensive explosion:

Twice as nice

When Kyle Tucker was asked on Friday how it felt to homer for the first time since July 19, he got straight to the point.

“It was nice to be back doing that and helping us win.”

What was even nicer was the fact that Tucker did it again on Saturday. 

Following up a two-out double from Michael Busch in the third inning, Tucker dug in and delivered his second bomb in as many games. It was a sinker over the heart of the plate that he crushed 399 feet, and the Cubs suddenly had an early 2-0 lead at the hands of a guy who, before the series in Anaheim began, had looked completely lost at the plate over the last month. 

And then, he did it again.

The sweet swings kept coming for Tucker, who added a 104.3-mph double in the fifth inning to make it a 2-for-3 night and only his third multi-hit game in August. But it was his sixth-inning swing that really did the damage.

Tucker crushed another one, this time a three-run home run. Saturday became the day he hit his first multi-home run game in a Cub uniform.

That first home run for Tucker was also his 20th of the season, making him the second Cub after Pete Crow-Armstrong this year to reach the 20-home run, 20-stolen bases mark — and it’s also the first time the Cubs have ever had two players reach that milestone in the same season. 

CaliforniCADEtion

No surprise here: Cade Horton is still rolling. 

Some would even say he was absolutely dominant on Saturday. 

Mike Trout probably would, because Horton struck the future Hall-of-Famer out three times over the course of his sixth scoreless start of the season. 

Horton started out on an absolute heater: Through three innings, he had thrown just 23 pitches — 22 of them for strikes. 

Horton is, of course, still on an innings limit, which is why manager Craig Counsell pulled him after six innings while the Cubs led 10-0. But Horton has undoubtedly looked like the best pitcher in the Cubs’ rotation over the last month: He has a 0.95 ERA in August, and that is counting his last start against the Milwaukee Brewers, which he exited after 2.2 innings with a blister on his throwing finger. 

Horton finished his night in line for the win, striking out seven Angels over his six frames and allowing just three hits. 

Horton’s rapid improvement is more than evident. On June 27, his ERA was 4.80. 

Now, it stands at 2.88 after his first 93.2 big-league innings.

Grand opening 

The Cubs didn’t exactly lock down a win on Friday until the top of the ninth inning, when Crow-Armstrong’s go-ahead home run gave them — and Daniel Palencia — the breathing room needed to secure the series opener. It was a nail-biter — a one-run win that the Cubs are quite familiar with this year. 

Reese McGuire was determined to give the Cubs a little more than that on Saturday. 

When McGuire stepped up to the plate with two outs in the fourth inning, he had the bases juiced for him. It was an opportunity that felt like the Cubs had squandered a lot over the last month — but this time, they cashed in at maximum value. 

McGuire crushed the 1-2 offering, sending it 100.2 mph off the bat to right-center. His first career grand slam made it 6-0 in the Cubs’ favor.

Just as Tucker and Crow-Armstrong seemed to wash away their woes this series, that one had to feel good for McGuire, who was riding an 0-for-11 streak at the plate in the last six games he played. 

Sunday’s series finale will be a matinee, with the first pitch slated for 3:07 p.m. CT.

Jameson Taillon (8-6, 4.26 ERA) will take the mound for the sweep-vying Cubs, who will face an old friend in Kyle Hendricks (6-8, 4.93 ERA) in the latter’s first appearance against his former team. 

Coverage begins at 2 p.m. CT on Marquee Sports Network.