MILWAUKEE – Another blown lead in Milwaukee came to mind as the Cubs squandered their six-run advantage to fall to the Brewers 8-6 in the series opener Monday.
The Brewers hadn’t overcome such a steep deficit in two years, dating back to the Cubs’ visit to American Family Field this same time of year. In 2021, that sweep in Milwaukee, capped by a seven-run blown lead, was part of an 11-game losing streak. The skid sunk the team’s contention aspirations and laid the groundwork for a dramatic teardown at the deadline.
The Cubs team that imploded in late-innings on Monday may still have time. And they have three more games against the Brewers.
“We’ve got to bounce back tomorrow,” said third baseman Nick Madrigal, who went 1-for-2 with a two-run double but exited early due to a tight hamstring. “There’s no pouting about it, putting our heads down. We’ve got to get right back in there because these are important games.”
As the Cubs dragged themselves out of the doldrums of May, the bullpen transformed into a strength last month. Settling into revised roles, and benefitting from the domino effect of the rotation’s return to health, Cubs relievers carried into Tuesday an MLB-best 1.06 ERA over their last 17 games.
On Tuesday, however, they couldn’t hold the game within reach.
“Nine free passes [as a team] with a six-run lead early on just just can’t happen,” manager David Ross said. “We’ve got to throw strikes, challenge guys, make them earn it.”
Ross pulled starter Drew Smyly, who was responsible for three of the walks, with two outs in the fourth inning.
“I was a little erratic and walked three too many people,” Smyly said. “But besides that, they only always squared up a couple balls.”
Those were William Contreras’ RBI double and Willy Adames’ RBI single in the third inning. The other two hits he allowed found holes or got under gloves.
When Smyly left the game, before he could face Contreras for a third time, another bizarre wrinkle came into play.
Madrigal, feeling a tug in his hamstring as he chased after a couple popups in foul territory, left at the same time as Smyly. And Christopher Morel, who was serving as the designated hitter, replaced him at third. With the move, the Cubs gave up their DH.
Ross also considered moving Jared Young from first base to third and putting Trey Mancini in at first base but decided against it.
“JY had played hardly any third base [this year],” Ross said. “Just killed the DH there and tried to manage it accordingly. And we just didn’t throw strikes.”
Veteran right-hander Michael Fulmer started off the bullpen on the right foot, tossing 2 ⅓ shutout innings despite issuing two walks. He also became just the second Cubs pitcher, joining former Cubs reliever David Robertson, to hit since MLB adopted the universal DH before the 2022 season.
Julian Merryweather replaced Fulmer in the seventh inning and loaded the bases. Lefty Anthony Kay took over for him and, on the first pitch he threw, gave up a three-run double to Jahmai Jones. Right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. got the Cubs out of the inning with a punch out, but then he gave up two runs in the eighth inning.
“The guys down there have been throwing the ball really well the whole month of June,” Fulmer said. “We had our talks before June, and telling ourselves that we needed to pick it up, and today’s just a blip in the road.”
The Cubs have lost seven of their past eight games. They have less than a month until the trade deadline, and only a week to course correct before the All-Star break.
“I hate to say it, but I think they’re must-win games,” Fulmer said.