Swanson, Cubs catch favorable wind to capture series finale vs. San Diego
Dansby Swanson has now hit 2 career home runs at Wrigley Field. He did it in 2019 when he played for Atlanta and added his first homer with the Cubs on Thursday.
Someday, Swanson hopes to reach the actual bleachers. He admitted both of his Wrigley home runs landed in the basket.
"People were giving me a hard time about 'basket-ball' player," Swanson said. "In my next life, that's definitely what I want to be, a corner 3 specialist. It was really cool."
The Cubs hit a total of 3 home runs Thursday to beat the San Diego Padres 5-2, winning the series and finishing the homestand with a 3-4 record. This felt like a bit of a pivotal game, because a 2-5 homestand might create some pessimism.
"I think we all believe we can continue to get better," Swanson said. "I feel it was a good confidence booster for all the guys who threw today."
This game featured a radical shift in weather. After consecutive night games with first-pitch temperatures of 41 and 43 degrees, Thursday's high climbed to 62 with a crosswind from right field.
It was more conducive to home runs and Manny Machado connected in the second inning to give San Diego an early lead.
But in the bottom of the inning, Eric Hosmer beat the wind and dropped his second home run of the season to center field, then Nelson Velazquez followed with a blast to left, putting the Cubs up 2-1.
The third run of the inning scored on a different weather issue. Tucker Barnhart lifted a fly ball to center and Padres outfielder Trent Grisham barely had to move, but lost it in the sun.
Nick Madrigal ran full-speed from first base with two outs and was able to score on the miscue. Ian Happ added an RBI single in the fifth and Swanson's homer in the seventh made it 5-1.
Starting pitcher Hayden Wesneski (2-1) threw 5 innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 run with 3 strikeouts. His season ERA is still lagging a bit at 5.24, but the Cubs have gone 4-1 on the days Wesneski pitches.
"We're getting close," he said. "Not the best outing of my career, but we're inching more and more to a better Hayden."
Wesneski talked about adjusting his pregame preparation on advice from teammate Marcus Stroman. The idea is to do less and save your best stuff for the game, even if it means not having perfect control of every pitch during pregame warmups.
"I kind of lean on Stro a little bit with certain things because me and him are similar pitchers," Wesneski said. "We do similar things and he's been there, done that. We have been minimizing a little bit, like, 'Hey, do I really need that in my routine?' We're getting ready for the game, not the bullpen."
Madrigal made an important play at third base in the seventh inning. The Padres put two runners on with two out and the hot-hitting Fernando Tatis Jr. at the plate. Manager David Ross brought in Keegan Thompson, who coaxed a high bouncer. Madrigal charged aggressively and made the throw just before running across the mound.
"I thought initially off the bat, I would have no chance at him at first," Madrigal said. "I had a good read on it. In those situations, you've got to want the ball hit to you. Luckily, it just worked out for us."
The Cubs (14-10) have yet to officially announce Saturday's starting pitcher in Miami, though there's been speculation Caleb Kilian will be called up from Iowa.
Hendricks hit hard in rehab start:
Kyle Hendricks made his first start for the Triple A Iowa Cubs on Thursday and it didn't go great. Hendricks went just 1⅔ innings, giving up 6 runs, 6 hits, 3 strikeouts and a walk in 54 pitches. He's has been out since last July with a right shoulder strain.
At the same time, it wasn't exactly a pitchers' day in Des Moines. Iowa rallied to beat Louisville 18-16. The I-Cubs hit 7 home runs, including 2 by Christopher Morel and one from Matt Mervis.
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