Top 10 Games of 2020: Historic day for Cubs outfield
The 2020 Cubs season may have been shorter than normal, but it was packed with huge moments and thrilling games. Marquee Sports Network is counting down the Top 10 games of the year — featuring a new Top 10 game each weeknight in November on our network.
No. 7 – Cubs at Reds (Aug. 30)
As the Cubs took down the Reds in a 10-1 win in Cincinnati, each Chicago outfielder notched a multi-homer game – the first time any team has accomplished that in Major League Baseball history.
The Cubs entered the game looking for their 20th victory of the season and to split the four-game weekend set with the Reds.
Tyler Chatwood got the ball, making his second start since coming off the Injured List after a back issue kept him out a couple weeks.
The Cubs were high on Chatwood entering the season, betting on a big year in the rotation. He rewarded their faith in the early going, with a 2-0 record, 0.71 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 12.2 innings in his first 2 starts.
But then the back issue cropped up and in this game against the Reds, Chatwood walked off the mound after only 33 pitches. The team initially feared an elbow injury, though it was later classified as a forearm strain and Chatwood wound up missing the rest of the season.
Colin Rea came in to bail out Chatwood in the 3rd inning and in the process, picked up his first MLB win since 2016 after a long road back from injuries of his own. José Quintana helped provide some heavy lifting out of the bullpen with 6 strikeouts over and only 1 run allowed in 3 innings.
Offensively, the outfield stole the show with their historic performance.
Reds starter Luis Castillo is one of the best pitchers in the National League and boasts arguably the game’s top changeup. He allowed only 5 home runs all season, but 3 of those longballs came in this game.
Kyle Schwarber and Jason Heyward both took Castillo yard in the 4th inning off his dynamic changeup and Ian Happ added a 2-run shot in the 5th inning.
Heyward (6th inning) and Happ (7th) tallied insurance runs with solo homers before Schwarber put the game away with a grand slam in the 9th inning.
In the hundreds of thousands of MLB games throughout the sport’s rich history – including all the big-time home run numbers over the last few decades – no team had ever seen all three members of its starting outfield hit multiple homers in the same game.
Highlights
4th inning | Jason Heyward goes deep
7th inning | Ian Happ connects on his second blast