BOX SCORE

CHICAGO — The Cubs entered Wednesday on a high from an emphatic ninth-inning comeback the night before, but the 3-1 loss to the Miami Marlins showed that the effects of a walk-off hangover were still lingering. 

A massive night from Marlins breakout star Kyle Stowers (triple, two homers) was too hot for the Cubs to handle, and the only response they could muster was Seiya Suzuki’s solo shot in the fourth. 

Here are three takeaways as the Cubs (25-19) dropped the finale to the Marlins (16-26) on a fog-ridden night at Wrigley Field.

Jamo’s woes

Jameson Taillon had an excellent April. He pitched to a 2.76 ERA in his five starts, striking out 25 across 29 ⅓ innings. He gave up just three home runs in the process, bouncing back from his first start on March 28 in which he allowed six earned runs over 4 ⅓ innings in Arizona.

May hasn’t been quite the same for Taillon, who has already allowed eight home runs in just 16 innings pitched this month. Seven of those have come in his last two starts: four to the Mets on Friday and three to the Marlins on Wednesday. 

The righty was able to limit the damage to just the long ball Wednesday, as his six-inning start was otherwise solid. He allowed only one hit outside the home runs and struck out seven. 

We need to talk about Tuck

The numbers don’t lie: Kyle Tucker is slumping. Entering Tuesday, he was just 2-for-24 (.083) in his last seven games, and the larger picture is underwhelming: he’s hitting just .221 with a .746 OPS in his last 30.

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In Tucker’s defense, the numbers also say he’s been slightly unlucky over this slump — per Statcast, his expected batting average (xBA) in his last 112 at-bats is .274, a .051 difference from his actual .223 over that span. The average major leaguer’s xBA is typically only .009 higher than his actual.

Wednesday could be a turning point in luck for Tucker, whose awkward half-swing in the sixth turned into a double down the left field line. 

Close, but no cigar

Since the Cubs swept the Athletics in early April, they’ve had five more chances to break out the brooms. Three of those have been at home. 

They haven’t been able to do that yet — the Cubs now hold a 1-5 record when up 2-0 in a three-game series this year. 

Wednesday represented that new chance to win a series finale and complete a three-game sweep of the Marlins, but — like in the previous instances — the Cubs fell just short of collecting that elusive third win and starting a healthy winning streak. 

Another chance will come the Cubs’ way when the White Sox, who hold last place in the AL Central, visit over the weekend. But to pull off a sweep of the rebuilding South Siders, the Cubs will have to step up and take their chances when they present themselves.

The Cubs will have an off day Thursday before welcoming the Sox to Wrigley Field for the Crosstown series beginning Friday at 1:20 p.m. CT. Craig Counsell has yet to announce pitching probable for the North Siders, while the White Sox will send a strong trio in Shane Smith (1-2, 2.08 ERA), Sean Burke (2-4, 4.15 ERA) and Jonathan Cannon (2-4, 4.09 ERA) to the mound.