Back to the brink
The Cubs offense returned to October Mode at the worst possible time
We do a live RECRAP postgame pod after every Cubs playoff game. Let's hope we get to do them after tonight.
Yesterday I went through all of the ignominious streaks of postseason offensive futility the Cubs broke with their 3-1 win over the Padres in game one of the Wild Card series. But now, there's a new set. Because game one was on September 30, you can just go back and revise the language. They currently are on a 23 inning October scoreless streak in the playoffs, etc. Let's not do that.
Game two was played with a strange sense of urgency. It was an elimination game for the Padres, and the Cubs didn't want this to go on, either. But Craig Counsell didn't seem to know whether to treat it like one, or not.
The guys in the vaunted pitch lab cooked up a plan to help Shōta Imanaga avoid the dangerous top of the Padres batting order, and hopefully avoid his own first inning struggles (7.20 ERA in the first inning this year), by having Andrew Kittredge pitch the first.
I guess I kind of get the logic of having a high leverage reliever take the first inning at bats of the Padres two best hitters, right handed batters Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado. But I don't get how having Shōta hang out in the bullpen for an inning would avoid him having a first inning.
But what I really didn't get was that if Craig was worried that Shōta couldn't handle Tatis and Machado in the first, why he was fine with having him face them (for a second time in the game) in the fifth? Shōta walked Tatis and then with two outs and first base open he gave up a bomb to Machado and the Padres lead went from the most comfortable 1-0 lead in recent playoff history to an insurmountable (for the Cubs) 3-0 lead.
By not being able to decide whether they were afraid of having Shōta face those guys, the Cubs gave up a run in the first when he didn't and then two in the fifth when he did. Pick a lane.
