Roark on Cubs walking Harper: "I think it's scared baseball" |
Cubs super utility player
Javier Baez hit a walk-off solo homer in the 13th inning against the Nationals on Sunday.
The 418 ft. homer gave the Cubs a 4-3 win, the four-game series sweep of the Nationals and the Cubs have won 24 out of 30 games to start the season. However, starting pitcher Tanner Roark thought that the Cubs were terrified to pitch to Nationals' right fielder Bryce Harper. "I think it's scared baseball," Roark told reporters after Sunday's game. 15% of the Cubs pitchers' walks this year (13 out of 88) have been to Bryce Harper. Here is Bryce Harpers' stat line for the four-game series versus the Cubs: BB, BB, single, BB, out, K, K, BB, BB, Sac Fly, BB, IBB, BB, BB, IBB, HBP, BB, IBB, IBB. Bryce Harper walked six times including three intentional and was hit by a pitch on Sunday. He is the first player in the last 100 years to reach base seven times without an official at-bat according to ESPN Stats. The Cubs strategy worked well as Ryan Zimmerman left 14 runners on base on Sunday alone.
