The Chicago Cubs failed to take advantage of an excellent start from starter Matthew Boyd, as the team was shut out for the first time since May 4th in a 2-0 affair with the Washington Nationals.
One silver lining out of Wednesday's loss came with the return of Kyle Tucker to the plate. A finger injury has held the slugger out of the lineup for the first two games in Washington, but he returned to pinch-hit in the ninth inning. Down to the final out of the game, Manager Craig Counsell wasn't afraid to deploy his best hitter in a last-gasp effort to avoid a shutout.
The drawback is a look into just how different the Tucker-less Cubs are as a team. He is what makes the team go, and another reminder of how crucial it is to have him around for a long time.
Letting a solid start from Boyd go to the wayside is not something the 2025 team has been commonly doing.
Tale of the Tape
The best chance at winning this game could have very well been in the 1st inning. With three straight singles off MacKenzie Gore, the Cubs had the bases loaded with nobody out. In a rare display of failure, the Cubs were unable to capitalize and left the inning with no runs.
On the other hand, Boyd was dominant right out of the gate. Through 5 innings, the crafty lefty gave up no hits or walks, and the veteran continued to be one of the bright spots for this team. Having a 4th starter who can cruise through his starts is a luxury that not too many teams have.
As Genesis Cabrera took the mound in the eighth inning, he did his best to try to keep the Cubs in the game. With a 2-0 score, it didn't seem the game was that far out of reach.
But after a terrible at-bat from Pete-Crow Armstrong to lead off the 9th, it was evident that it wasn't going to be one of those nights of the typical 2025 Cubs. Even with hits by Dansby Swanson and Michael Busch in the ninth inning, Washington's closer, Kyle Finnegan, barely broke a sweat. The National's top reliever was calm and collected by the time a returning Kyle Tucker made it to the plate, and he induced a routine groundball to second base off the Cubs' slugger.
Takeaways
Wednesday was one of those games that the Cubs had right in front of them. A silent offense is unfortunate to watch. Still, a nice cushion atop the NL Central (4.5 games) provides the team with a bigger margin of error.
At the same time, the team still cannot rest on its laurels as that lead can eventually evaporate. If the team can move forward and continue to do what they do best, this game can be easy to overcome, especially if plays like what Crow-Armstrong made will be a continued trend.
What's On Tap Next?
The Cubs still have a chance to win their seventh consecutive series in Thursday's finale in Washington. The team is sending Drew Pomeranz to the mound in what will likely be another opener assignment before Colin Rea gets the ball. Pomeranz delivered a scoreless first inning in last Saturday's contest with the Cincinnati Reds before Ben Brown logged six scoreless innings.
Rea struggled in his last two starts against Cincinnati, where he gave up six earned runs in each game. Counsell is hoping that the opener experiment can work in a similar way it did last time with Brown.
Opposing the veteran lefty is RHP Jake Irvin, who has been a solid member of the Nationals' rotation with a 3.93 ERA this year. First pitch is at 5:45 PM on Marquee Sports Network.
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