Game Recap: Horton continues to make history, but Braves top Cubs |
Dustin Riese
· · 5 hours ago
CHICAGO - As nice as it would've been for the Chicago Cubs (80-60) to open this six-game homestand with a sweep, they still managed to take two of three from the Atlanta Braves (63-77), which is all you can ask for this late in the season. With a firm grip on the top Wild Card spot and a chance to host the Wild Card round at Wrigley Field, the Cubs' goal for September is to win every series or as many series as they can.
With Cade Horton putting out another impressive outing on the mound, the Cubs had a chance to sweep the Braves as Atlanta was held without a hit through six innings. Then came the seventh, where one swing from Ha-Seong Kim flipped the score in favor of the Braves and ignited what wound up being a four-run seventh inning as the Braves salvaged the series finale with the Cubs 5-1. We have seen how good Horton can be all season, but it is his body of work since the All-Star break that stands out, as he is now emerging as the favorite to win the National League Rookie of the Year. Across his five shutout innings, Horton held the Braves without a hit, walking one and striking out six to lower his season ERA to 2.78. That ERA is even lower since the All-Star break, as his 0.66 ERA since the All-Star break is the lowest in MLB history for a rookie and is putting him in Jake Arrieta territory. While Horton has been trending in the right direction for quite some time, Bryce Elder has not, as the 2025 season has been a struggle for the right-hander. Entering his start with a 6.14 ERA over his last 10 outings and a 1-6 record, Elder picked the perfect time to twirl arguably his best outing of the season, giving the Braves seven innings of one-run, four-hit baseball, striking out six and walking none. The run he allowed was also unearned, which makes his final line look even better. As mentioned, the Braves were not hit through six innings as the lone baserunner they would get off Horton came on the Matt Olson first inning walk in what was otherwise a quiet night against the Cubs righty. The same can be said for the Cubs' offense against Elder, but it was the Cubs who opened the scoring in the second as Ian Happ got things started with a perfectly placed bloop single down the left field line. Happ managed to reach third on the playoff, a costly throwing error as the Cubs had a runner on third and no outs. In danger of being stranded on third, Willi Castro came through in the clutch as he delivered a hard line drive single to right to bring Happ home and put the Cubs in front 1-0. Little did Chicago know that would be the only run of the game for them, as they had just two more hits the rest of the game. One of those hits came on a leadoff bunt single from Reese McGuire to begin the third, with Matt Shaw picking up the Cubs' final hit with a fifth-inning single. Still trailing by that score in the sixth and without a hit, the Braves were relieved to see Horton lifted from the game as Craig Counsell turned to Ben Brown in relief. Brown wasn't as sharp at times as he wanted to be, walking Nacho Alvarez to end a long stretch of Braves hitters not getting on base, only to deliver three huge strikeouts. If you had to guess which Braves player put an end to the no-hitter, Ozzie Albies would be the one that most fans would say. The long-time second baseman has been a Cubs killer his entire career, and with a leadoff single to begin the seventh, Atlanta had the tying run on base. Following a one-out walk to Marcell Ozuna, Counsell went back to his pen and called on Drew Pomeranz to take over as the lefty was thrown into a tight spot. Pomeranz nearly found a way to get out of the inning without damage, retiring the first hitter he faced before Kim turned on a Pomeranz offering, powering it out to deep left for the three-run shot to put Atlanta in front for good, 3-1. Pomeranz continued to struggle in his second appearance in as many days, allowing a pair of singles to Eli White and Alvarez as the Alvarez single drove home the Braves' fourth run of the inning and made this a 4-1 game. After putting an end to the no-hitter in the seventh with a single, Albies continued to do what he has always done against the Cubs, taking Taylor Rogers deep in the eighth to cap off the scoring for Atlanta as they were now in front 5-1. As bad as things have gone for Atlanta this season, their bullpen has been one of their saving graces, and with Tyler Kinley tossing a scoreless inning, the Cubs were three outs away from losing this game and had tons of work to do. With Raisel Iglesias on the mound to pitch the ninth, the Cubs did their best to make things interesting as a pair of two-out walks from Seiya Suzuki and Happ kept the pressure on, only to have Carlos Santana strike out to end the game. The Cubs will now enjoy the day off on Thursday before welcoming in the Washington Nationals for the first of three on Friday.
