NO RUNS MEANS NO VICTORY
Cubs’ offense had better wake up before it’s too late
ST. LOUIS— Hello, bats?
Ground control to major bats: Where are you? Did termites turn Cubbie lumber into sawdust?
It’s true Cubs pitchers sort of blew up in the eighth inning Friday of Game 1 of the National League Division Series, giving up three runs to the St. Louis Cardinals on two gigantic home runs, one served up by starter Jon Lester and one by reliever Pedro Strop.
But the next time you win a game with zero runs, let me know.
The Cubs’ 4- 0 defeat to this Cardinals monster is just one loss in the NLDS. But it’s a tough one because, in all honesty, the Cubs could play forever and never win anything if they hit like they did Friday.
The Cubs had three hits in 28 at- bats, all singles, with one of those being a 60- foot bunt by right fielder Kyle Schwarber. Schwarbs also had another hit and is batting .667 in the postseason.
Dexter Fowler went hitless, but he still has a .375 average in the playoffs, based on what he did in the wild- card game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Shortstop Addison Russell, who got the only other hit against the Cardinals, is hitting a decent .286. Miguel Montero is hitting .250. And there you have it. The end. Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Starlin Castro, Chris Coghlan, David Ross, Austin Jackson, Chris Denorfia, Tommy LaStella and, of course, all the pitchers are batting .000 this postseason.
‘‘ I anticipated low scoring,’’ Cubs manager Joe Maddon said after the game.
He knew 36- year- old Cardinals starter John Lackey had gotten stronger as the season wore on and was a stud. And he believed in Lester, his big- time lefty who struck out nine before tiring badly.
And, hello, Maddon knows about the Cardinals.
People were scoffing at the Cardinals after the Cubs won that wild- card game Wednesday. The Cubs are so hot they will win the NLDS in four games, folks declared. They’ll win in two!
That was the Jake Arrieta effect, a single pitcher who could strike out any human, robot or velociraptor right now. But Arrieta can’t pitch every game. And the Cubs still must hit.
‘‘ You expect it to be a good series,’’ said Cubs catcher Montero, who sat out Game 1 in favor of Ross. ‘‘ Obviously, we didn’t do much. I will always believe that hitting is contagious. When you get a couple in a row, guys get in a groove. When you can’t get a hit, guys start pressing and can’t hit.’’
Hitting in bunches is the way to go. In the wild- card game, Fowler and Schwarber— the No. 1 and No. 2 hitters— had five hits and two home runs between them. The rest of the Cubs managed only two singles. That’s bunching.
‘‘ Clusters’’ is what Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer calls it.
‘‘ That’s the nature of baseball,’’ he said. ‘‘ There is a lot of randomness to the game, and you have to have some luck along the way.’’
The Cubs will need that against this red monolith. The Cardinals didn’t win a major- league- best 100 games this season or reach the NL Championship Series five times in the last five seasons by accident.
The trembling Cubs Nation is wildly excited by its star rookies, of which Schwarber is one. But you don’t think the Cardinals have rookies, too?
After more injuries at key positions than any other team in baseball, the Cardinals plugged in rookies and roared. Outfielder Randal Grichuk tied for second on the team in homers with 17. Then there are rookies Stephen Piscotty and Tommy Pham.
How did they do Friday? They hit homers in the eighth that traveled a combined 836 feet.
So get with it, Cubs offense. You’d better.
The Cardinals have lots of pitchers, and Arrieta likely will pitch only once in this series.
‘‘ We came up together,’’ Pham said, referring to himself and Piscotty. ‘‘ For us to be on this stage, helping out the team, it’s wonderful.’’
Why are the Cardinals always just reloading, never rebuilding?
‘‘ In the minor leagues, we are groomed,’’ Pham said. ‘‘ There’s no secret about it.’’
There’s no secret about no runs scored, either.