*Photo from the San Diego Union Tribune*
The Chicago Cubs have been riding a serious hot streak lately, to the tune of first place in the NL Central. Looking to sweep the San Diego Padres, they didn't step off the gas. Anthony Rizzo hit a two run double, Javier Baez homered, and the Cubs cruised past the Padres with a 6-1 win Wednesday afternoon.
Cubs manager David Ross said "I think we're pretty damn good, yeah. I do. The guys in that room believe in themselves. They believe in each other. You see it on a daily basis. We've got some really good players, a lot of hardware that floats around that room."
After the Padres took a 1-0 lead, Rizzo scored on a fielding error in the 4th inning, tying the game at 1-1. In the 5th, Rizzo doubled to the left-center field gap, scoring Joc Pederson and Nick Martini and giving the Cubs a 3-1 lead. In the 7th, Sergio Alcantara scored on an error, and Baez cranked a two run homer, making it a 6-1 Cubs lead, sealing the win.
Rizzo said "I don't think we've really proven much. It's June 2. We've proven to each other how much fun we're having and how good we are. But we've got four more months left. Stories were written about how good and bad people were this time last year after 60 games. But it's 162. And we're definitely not going to get too high and say, 'We're proving everyone wrong,' because we've got a long season left. It's day by day. And tomorrow will be another big game for us."
Adbert Alzolay got the start for the Cubs, and also got the win, holding the powerful Padres offense to just one run on 3 hits and one walk, while striking out 7 hitters over 5 innings pitched. After Alzolay left, the bullpen relief of Rex Brothers, Brad Wieck, Tommy Nance, and Dan Winkler all held the Padres scoreless in their appearances.
Alzolay said of the Cubs hot streak that "Right now we're the best team in this division, to be honest. If you see this whole team all the way around, you'll see that we have the whole talent to compete, to win another World Series for this city. I think that's the mindset right now."
Pierce Johnson got the loss for the Padres, allowing two runs in 2/3 of an inning of work. Dinelson Lamet got the no decision in his start, holding the Cubs to one run on 4 hits and one walk, striking out 6 hitters in 4 innings pitched. Tim Hill, Miguel Diaz, and Austin Adams also pitched.
Padres manager Jayce Tingler said of going through adversity that "We’re built for this. We’re going to go through moments, we’re going to go through pockets where we have times like this. This isn’t a first. It’s not going to be the last. This thing’s going to turn. I know it just because of the way guys are competing and the talent we have."
The Padres host the Mets tonight, with Yu Darvish getting the start as the Padres look to get back on track. The Cubs look to stay hot against the Giants, with Zach Davies getting the start.
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