Morel’s sacrifice fly beats Brewers
Cubs rookie Christopher Morel took a deep breath before delivering a walk-off sacrifice fly Wednesday against the Brewers.
He said after the Cubs’ 4-3, 10-inning win that he was taking catcher Willson Contreras’ advice: “Hey, breathe, take your time.”
Morel had fouled off the first two pitches of the plate appearance. He watched a changeup that fell out of the strike zone. Then he drove the fourth pitch to center field, and it was just deep enough for Jason Heyward to tag up at third and score.
Morel’s teammates ran out to greet him on the field, throwing water and cheering.
“He’s been coming through for us for a while now in a lot of different ways,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “He’s one of those guys you just can’t wait till he gets back up, the top of the lineup turns over, and he’s that spark.”
It’s felt like a while, but Morel has only been in the big leagues for two weeks.
Morel also extended his on-base streak to 15 games in the first inning Wednesday as he drew an eight-pitch walk.
The night before he’d set the franchise record for the longest on-base streak to start a career.
“That’s awesome,” Contreras said when he learned Morel had broken the record Contreras set in 2016. “Morel brings the energy. He brings a lot of things to the table. What I like the most is that he’s never mad, he’s never concerned about anything. That’s one thing that lets him play the way he’s playing right now. He deserves to stay here.”
Heyward reinstated
Heyward returned to the roster and the field on Wednesday, as the Cubs activated him off the COVID-19 related injured list.
To make room for Heyward on the 40-man roster, the Cubs recalled Manuel Rodríguez from Triple-A and placed him on the 60-day IL with a right elbow strain.
To clear a spot on the active roster, they optioned rookie Nelson Velázquez to Triple-A. Velázquez made his MLB debut Monday and logged a hit in each of the games he played.
“It was awesome to watch him play,” Ross said. “I told him things that stood out to me in his game really early on, and the things I love, and keep working. We’re trying to build a championship-caliber team here with championship players, and I think he can be a big part of that with the way he’s grown.”
Smyly to IL
Before Wednesday’s game, the Cubs placed left-hander Drew Smyly (right oblique strain) on the 15-day IL, retroactive to Tuesday.
“He’s going to be out a little bit,” Ross said, adding that Smyly feels better than what the imaging suggests. “He’s had a little bit of this before and feels like it may not be that bad. But we’ll let the trainers do their job.”
The Cubs also activated reliever Michael Rucker (turf toe) from the 15-day IL.