Two teams seeking to add some offensive fireworks to a series that’s so far been highlighted by a canceled drone show and a near-no-hitter are scheduled to complete a three-game set Sunday when the visiting Chicago Cubs go for a sweep of the San Francisco Giants.
Less than 24 hours after they were disappointed to learn that the club’s popular postgame drone light display was being postponed due to technical difficulties, Giants fans had to sit and watch their team get just one hit off Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks in a 4-0 defeat Saturday.
In 18 innings in the series so far, the clubs have totaled just 20 hits, 13 of which have been singles. The Cubs own the only two home runs, with Matt Mervis and Christopher Morel contributing solo shots to Hendricks’ gem Saturday.
The Cubs also got a quality start from Marcus Stroman and a key two-run, pinch-hit single from Nico Hoerner on Friday, two of the three elements Chicago manager David Ross believes his team will need to make a run at the National League playoffs after a slow start.
“To win games, we’re going to have to pitch, play defense, get some clutch hitting, which we haven’t had,” Ross said. “I think that’s indicative of our record.”
Right-hander Hayden Wesneski (2-2, 4.72 ERA) hasn’t helped — or been helped — much of late, either. The 25-year-old is winless in his past five starts, going 0-1 with a 4.26 ERA, with the Cubs having scored a total of 13 runs in those game — all losses.
Wesneski is coming off a 7-4 road loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday in which he allowed two earned runs in 4 2/3 innings.
He has faced the Giants just once previously in his two-year career, that coming in his second game last season, when he was charged with three runs in 3 2/3 innings in a 4-2 home loss. Thairo Estrada and Wilmer Flores homered off him in the Wrigley Field game.
For the second straight game, the Giants will start John Brebbia (2-0, 3.38), who tossed two scoreless innings as an opener on Saturday. He threw 19 pitches and struck out one.
The Giants caught a break when Jakob Junis and Sean Manaea were able to cover the final seven innings of Saturday’s loss. The rest of the bullpen, with the exception of the injured Scott Alexander, will be available in the series finale.
Brebbia will be throwing to either prized rookie Patrick Bailey or versatile Blake Sabol behind the plate. They’ve combined to go 0-for-8 so far in the series.
Manager Gabe Kapler said former top prospect Joey Bart, who completed an injury-rehab stint Friday and was assigned to Triple-A Sacramento, will be staying in the minors for now.
“We want him to be a good all-around baseball player,” Kapler said of Bart, who was hitting .231 in 26 games before suffering a strained right groin in mid-May.
“He’s been working toward that and made some significant strides that of course we appreciate,” Kapler added. “To be a good all-around major-leaguer — hitter, offensive player — you need to make consistent, solid contact and control the strike zone, and those are still areas that Joey’s working on. Not 100 -percent there yet.”
–Field Level Media
