NEW YORK – Cubs lefty Drew Smyly walked in a run to end a start Monday that served as a microcosm of his recent poor results.
Surrendering seven runs to the Mets in five-plus innings, Smyly did give up hard contact. Pete Alonso’s pair of home runs were the most obvious examples. But those blasts hurt because they came with men on base.
Since the All-Star break, Smyly has been focussing on shifting to an attacking mindset with his fastball. And his strikeout numbers have been up. But he’s given up five home runs in his past two outings.
“I know I can pitch better,” Smyly said after his last start.
And he has this year. He infamously took a perfect game bid into the eighth inning against the Dodgers in mid-April. The Cubs are trying to tap into his early success, but so far the results haven’t fallen into line.
In the first inning Monday, Smyly issued a walk to Francisco Alvarez after throwing two straight sinkers for strikes to begin the at-bat. Then, Francisco Lindor hit a single through the right side of the field to put two runners on for Alonso’s first homer.
Lindor found another gap in the third inning to single before Alonso’s next homer.
Smyly settled in for the next two innings and took the mound for the sixth. But he issued three straight hits, including a comebacker bunt and an infield single to load the bases. He wrapped up his night walking in a run with no outs.
Next step for Stroman
Right-hander Marcus Stroman is set to throw a bullpen Tuesday in New York, his first bullpen since landing on the 15-day injured list with inflammation in his right hip last week. Stroman said he had cortisone shot to treat the injury last Wednesday. He remains on track for about a minimum IL stint, manager David Ross said.
Rain delay
A downpour halted the game after six innings. But after a two-hour rain delay, play resumed. Cubs rookie Caleb Kilian, who faced two batters in relief of Smyly and recorded three outs, likely would have thrown multiple innings under normal circumstances. But the long intermission forced Ross to dip deeper into his bullpen. Daniel Palencia took the mound coming out of the delay in the seventh.