Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (8/31/22): Cubs 7, Blue Jays 5 – Bullpen Holds, Cubs Avoid Sweep in Toronto

The Cubs were hoping to avoid a three-game sweep by the Blue Jays on Wednesday night. A big offensive output and some timely relief pitching with just enough for a Chicago win.

The Cubs jumped all over Toronto starter Mitch White starting with an Ian Happ RBI single in the 1st inning. Alfonso Rivas got caught in a run down between first and second base long enough for Yan Gomes to come down from third and steal home in the 2nd.

Chicago built up a big lead in the 3rd when they scored three runs. Happ doubled to put men on second and third with two outs and Nico Hoerner followed with a two-run hustle double. Rafael Ortega added a bloop single to bring home Hoerner and make it 5-0.

Luke Farrell was very good in his first two innings spot starting but ran into trouble in the bottom of the 3rd. Cavan Biggio crushed a two-run home run and it was 5-2. Franmil Reyes got one of those runs back with an opposite-field solo homer in the 5th.

That tally turned out to be very important when Alejandro Kirk came up against Erich Uelmen with two on in the 6th. The Blue Jays catcher blasted a three-run bomb to make it just a 6-5 game.

Zach McKinstry added important Insurance with a run-scoring single in the 7th inning. The Cubs bullpen locked it down from there and Rowan Wick closed out the 7-5 victory. (Box score)

Why the Cubs Won

They came through multiple times with runners on base picking up four key hit with runners in scoring position.

Eye on the Future

• McKinstry looked good with a triple and the RBI single.
• Not a shock that Nico Hoerner had another big time hit.
• Manny Rodriguez threw two clean innings to pick up his first win.

Taking Note

• Ian Happ was productive as usual with two more hits on Wednesday.
• The Cubs finished the month of August with a 15-15 record, their first non-losing month since May 2021.

Bottom Line

It’s always nice to see the Cubs win and to get contributions from players like Nico Hoerner and Franmil Reyes who hopefully will be big factors in 2023. The bullpen additions will continue throughout the rest of the season and Wednesday happened to be a good day overall.

On Deck

After a day off on Thursday the Cubs kick off September with a three-game series in St. Louis starting Friday at 7:15pm CT. Adrian Sampson rejoins the team and faces off with Jordan Montgomery, who shut out Chicago just last week, in a game airing on Marquee Sports Network and 670 The Score.