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  1. <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  2. <feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xml:lang="en">
  3.  <title>Bleed Cubbie Blue -  All Posts</title>
  4.  <subtitle>A Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005</subtitle>
  5.  <icon>https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47557/cubbieblue.png</icon>
  6.  <updated>2025-07-06T11:00:00-05:00</updated>
  7.  <id>http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/rss/current/</id>
  8.  <link type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/" rel="alternate"/>
  9.  <entry>
  10.    <published>2025-07-06T11:00:00-05:00</published>
  11.    <updated>2025-07-06T11:00:00-05:00</updated>
  12.    <title>SB Nation Reacts: Jaxon Wiggins is the prospect Cubs fans want to keep</title>
  13.    <content type="html">  
  14.  
  15.    &lt;figure&gt;
  16.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NrEsnZ4lFHXPpW0r6mM0xoDQoxY=/140x923:3295x3026/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164850/2209832000.0.jpg" /&gt;
  17.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Durochik/Diamond Images via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  18.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  19.  
  20.  &lt;p&gt;Good pitching prospects are hard to find.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="79tZYs"&gt;The Cubs will be making trades soon. Of that, you can be almost certain. &lt;/p&gt;
  21. &lt;p id="58jctu"&gt;The team could use at least one more starting pitcher, perhaps two now that Jameson Taillon is on the shelf for a month. They also could be looking at picking up a third baseman.&lt;/p&gt;
  22. &lt;p id="ByuiE7"&gt;In making trades like that, good prospects will likely go to other teams. In &lt;a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/1/24459196/sb-nation-reacts-survey-cubs-prospect-would-you-rather-the-team-didnt-trade"&gt;last week’s SB Nation Reacts survey&lt;/a&gt;, I asked you which of several prospects was the one you LEAST wanted to give up.&lt;/p&gt;
  23. &lt;p id="CtAxkq"&gt;The result should not really surprise you:&lt;/p&gt;
  24. &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  25.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/V6qnvFK_HLchJxOgm0Y9qZUv4gY=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26048316/ChicagoCubs_1_070125.png"&gt;
  26.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  27. &lt;p id="T7bx5T"&gt;This is the correct answer, I think. Jaxon Wiggins has the chance, at least, to become a No. 1 starter. Those guys are, as you know, hard to find. It would be difficult to give up someone like that. Of the other four prospects I listed, all of them are very good minor league hitters, but all do have some flaws in their game. Nevertheless, they’d all likely be attractive to certain other teams.&lt;/p&gt;
  28. &lt;p id="GIYwQi"&gt;We are 25 days from the trade deadline. I suspect the Cubs will lay low until at least the All-Star break. As always, we await developments.&lt;/p&gt;
  29. &lt;p id="wvnhkS"&gt;Also at the All-Star break, MLB’s annual Draft will happen. We’ll have more Draft coverage here as the time approaches, but in the meantime, here’s the answer to the national question posed in the last SB Nation Reacts survey:&lt;/p&gt;
  30. &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  31.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/uV5GTsryaoElu7Lo9aFErQPe9kA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26048320/_National_1_070125.png"&gt;
  32.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  33. &lt;p id="UTaY2n"&gt;I’m pretty much in that 62 percent group. Once the Cubs have a draft class, then I’m more interested in seeing who’s in it and how their professional careers begin.&lt;/p&gt;
  34. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="WRZDlq"&gt;
  35. &lt;p id="FRE8TY"&gt;&lt;a href="https://sportsbook.fanduel.com/navigation/mlb"&gt;&lt;em&gt;This week’s SB Nation Reacts survey is sponsored by FanDuel.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  36.  
  37. </content>
  38.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462424/sb-nation-reacts-jaxon-wiggins-cubs-prospect"/>
  39.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462424/sb-nation-reacts-jaxon-wiggins-cubs-prospect</id>
  40.    <author>
  41.      <name>Al Yellon</name>
  42.    </author>
  43.  </entry>
  44.  <entry>
  45.    <published>2025-07-06T09:00:00-05:00</published>
  46.    <updated>2025-07-06T09:00:00-05:00</updated>
  47.    <title>2025 Cubs Heroes and Goats: Game 89</title>
  48.    <content type="html">  
  49.  
  50.    &lt;figure&gt;
  51.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/wZsg5bGpr8-y5vR-L3cAwlPkFcw=/0x0:5646x3764/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164712/usa_today_26504681.0.jpg" /&gt;
  52.        &lt;figcaption&gt;David Banks-Imagn Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  53.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  54.  
  55.  &lt;p&gt;The Cubs bullpen has a rare bad game, resulting in an 8-6 loss. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="OkLDlf"&gt;Every time your bullpen falters late and costs you a game, it is unfortunate. This one feels a little more unfortunate. Obviously, you hate to ever yield the Cardinals even an inch. But more so, this weekend has been Michael Busch’s explosion weekend. Four homers in two days. Seven hits. Six runs driven in. Four runs scored. There are some really great players who never do that over two consecutive games in their career. A couple of homers against lefties. What a weekend for the Cubs first baseman. &lt;/p&gt;
  56. &lt;p id="1onM0F"&gt;A 5-3 lead wasn’t any kind of gimme. But it was easy to feel that with that lead heading to the eighth and then turning the ball over to Brad Keller to be followed by Daniel Palencia, you are in really good shape. But it just wasn’t to be. Keller allowed two runs in a March outing, five runs (four earned) in an April appearance, nothing in May, one run in June. and this outing today. I was amused to read on social media that Keller has been struggling. I realize he allowed two runners on July 2, one on July 1, one on June 29. But holy cow, 28  outings since April 22 when he had his other nightmare outing. Over those 28 innings, three runs, two earned. 30⅓ innings, two earned runs. If he was a guy you were worried about, quit your fandom. &lt;/p&gt;
  57. &lt;p id="YI5tt1"&gt;I hate to be that way, but the guy has been absolute nails. It’s been hard to pick one guy out of the group of relievers as a key guy. But I certainly wouldn’t have said you were wrong if he was your guy. It happens. Tomorrow’s going to come and when Keller’s tomorrow comes, I’m going to assume he’ll be lights out again. &lt;/p&gt;
  58. &lt;p id="HB5kx6"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Key Storylines:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  59. &lt;ol&gt;
  60. &lt;li id="B4I4jC"&gt;Starting Pitching: Using this for Chris Flexen who was the “bulk” guy in this one and may, at least temporarily, slide into the rotation. Chris recorded 11 outs out of 15 batters faced. Four hits, one run, two strikeouts. The one run was a solo homer. Good outing. Gave the Cubs a chance to win. &lt;/li&gt;
  61. &lt;li id="CZoLgF"&gt;Relief Pitching: Hat tip to the Cardinals, they scored off of Drew Pomeranz, who hadn’t allowed an earned run this year, Flexen (who still has an ERA under 1.00) and Keller, who was under 2.00. Three of the most effective relievers in baseball this year all allowed runs. It is at least a little wild to me that as good as this team is, when they do allow bullpen runs they generally lose. &lt;/li&gt;
  62. &lt;li id="EJuW2b"&gt;Homer Over Reliance: Two homers, both solo shots. Six runs scored. Nine total hits, three doubles. They drew six walks. Stole two bases. Just the kind of game that scores a bunch of runs and six isn’t bad. Some manufacturing was done. &lt;/li&gt;
  63. &lt;li id="7TXGn6"&gt;Third Base Production: No hits in three plate appearances. But one steal. &lt;/li&gt;
  64. &lt;li id="wuA19H"&gt;Dansby Swanson:  Batted fifth. One hit in five at bats. Strikeout with bases loaded and two outs. Single bases empty. Ground out bases empty. Strikeout leading off inning. Fly out leading off inning. Can’t pin it on one guy, but strikeout with the bases loaded and one out is crippling. &lt;/li&gt;
  65. &lt;li id="HX0o0f"&gt;Opposing Starter: Lefty. They managed four hits, four walks and two runs off of him. PCA walk and Busch homer and double off the lefty are enormous moments. Steven Matz is lefty. One hit and two walks among eight batters. JoJo Romero is lefty. One hit and one unearned run in five batters. Seiya Suzuki with the key hit, nothing new there. It’ll get lost in the mist, but there are some good things here. &lt;/li&gt;
  66. &lt;/ol&gt;
  67. &lt;p id="IQEi8g"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Pitch Counts: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  68. &lt;ul&gt;
  69. &lt;li id="yRmAWr"&gt;Cardinals: 171, 43 BF&lt;/li&gt;
  70. &lt;li id="awM9XI"&gt;Cubs: 168, 40 BF&lt;/li&gt;
  71. &lt;/ul&gt;
  72. &lt;p id="BJ8WUm"&gt;The offenses won the day. Both teams made the other team’s pitching staff work very hard. 171 is right at 19 pitches per inning. 168 is an eyelash under. So on both sides, the teams made each other work really hard to get through innings. &lt;/p&gt;
  73. &lt;p id="wKu4kX"&gt;For the Cardinals, Matz threw 31 pitches. He’s the only Cardinal that feels unlikely to be available Sunday. The rest of these guys didn’t throw in a blowout the day before and were under 20 pitches. For the Cubs, even if they wanted him, Flexen would be unavailable. Pomeranz threw 25. He probably could, but it seems unlikely we’ll see him. But Jordan Wicks almost certainly has to be available. Keller is almost definitely unavailable. So I think just six relievers available for the Cubs and at least seven for the Cardinals. &lt;/p&gt;
  74. &lt;p id="bvAhqa"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Three Stars:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  75. &lt;ol&gt;
  76. &lt;li id="0feEyS"&gt;Busch is the offensive star. Homer, double, single, two runs, RBI. &lt;/li&gt;
  77. &lt;li id="Qi60EH"&gt;Flexen, one out shy of four innings, one run allowed. Kept the Cubs in the game long enough for the offense to get going. &lt;/li&gt;
  78. &lt;li id="Fos3Xw"&gt;Carson Kelly. Homer, double, two runs, RBI. &lt;/li&gt;
  79. &lt;/ol&gt;
  80. &lt;p id="M2YaCw"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Game 89, July 5: &lt;/strong&gt;Cardinals 8, Cubs 6 (53-36)&lt;/p&gt;
  81. &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  82.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ua2ljgAD3s6DzQghCaOos4vi01k=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26048197/chart__2_.png"&gt;
  83.      &lt;cite&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Fangraphs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/cite&gt;
  84.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  85. &lt;p id="LnE2Sv"&gt;Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.&lt;/p&gt;
  86. &lt;p id="ctC8dj"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THREE HEROES:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  87. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="viHtT0"&gt;
  88. &lt;strong&gt;Superhero: &lt;/strong&gt;Michael Busch (.413). 3-5, HR, 2B, RBI, 2R&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  89. &lt;p id="N6Mj8y"&gt;*10th best WPA game score of the year by a Cub.&lt;/p&gt;
  90. &lt;ul&gt;
  91. &lt;li id="vWsfqZ"&gt;
  92. &lt;strong&gt;Hero: &lt;/strong&gt;Nico Hoerner (.202). 1-3, BB, RBI, R&lt;/li&gt;
  93. &lt;li id="g8vYVU"&gt;
  94. &lt;strong&gt;Sidekick: &lt;/strong&gt;Ryan Pressly (.094). IP, 3 BF, H, K&lt;/li&gt;
  95. &lt;/ul&gt;
  96. &lt;p id="SjDJe6"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THREE GOATS:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  97. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="PkRMRd"&gt;
  98. &lt;strong&gt;Billy Goat: &lt;/strong&gt;Brad Keller (-.794). IP, 8 BF, 5 H, 0 BB, 5 ER, K (L 3-1)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  99. &lt;p id="tXiIu3"&gt;*2nd worst WPA game score of the year by a Cub.&lt;/p&gt;
  100. &lt;ul&gt;
  101. &lt;li id="5obT5Q"&gt;
  102. &lt;strong&gt;Goat: &lt;/strong&gt;Matt Shaw (-.191). 0-3, SB&lt;/li&gt;
  103. &lt;li id="7HivBu"&gt;
  104. &lt;strong&gt;Kid: &lt;/strong&gt;Dansby Swanson (-.142). 1-5&lt;/li&gt;
  105. &lt;/ul&gt;
  106. &lt;p id="8gRSXE"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;WPA Player of the Game: &lt;/strong&gt;Nolan Gorman batted with runners on first and second and one out, the Cardinals down one. He singled. A run scored and tied the game. (.309)&lt;/p&gt;
  107. &lt;p id="Kt2NK0"&gt;*Cubs Play of the Game: Nico Hoerner batted with runners on second and third in the sixth, the Cubs down one. He singled and tied the game. (.123)&lt;/p&gt;
  108. &lt;p id="Wsus7S"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Cubs Player of the Game: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  109. &lt;div id="E0domj"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="poll:12654206"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  110. &lt;p id="3gShly"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Yesterday’s Winner: &lt;/strong&gt;Michael Busch received 227 out of 292 votes. &lt;/p&gt;
  111. &lt;p id="FolS5q"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Rizzo Award Standings: &lt;/strong&gt;(Top 5/Bottom 5)&lt;/p&gt;
  112. &lt;p id="9Hn1A3"&gt;The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.&lt;/p&gt;
  113. &lt;ul&gt;
  114. &lt;li id="eJ6uBo"&gt;Kyle Tucker +26&lt;/li&gt;
  115. &lt;li id="rYrr8V"&gt;Matthew Boyd +15&lt;/li&gt;
  116. &lt;li id="UcLxRI"&gt;PCA 14.5&lt;/li&gt;
  117. &lt;li id="hSdFQ3"&gt;Shōta Imanaga +13&lt;/li&gt;
  118. &lt;li id="IMLGik"&gt;Jameson Taillon/Miguel Amaya +11&lt;/li&gt;
  119. &lt;li id="VBxvoB"&gt;Matt Shaw -10.33&lt;/li&gt;
  120. &lt;li id="GULlv5"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Julian Merryweather -15&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  121. &lt;li id="HTCTJh"&gt;Ben Brown -17&lt;/li&gt;
  122. &lt;li id="GMNlO5"&gt;Seiya Suzuki -19&lt;/li&gt;
  123. &lt;li id="3jtyl3"&gt;Dansby Swanson -25.33&lt;/li&gt;
  124. &lt;/ul&gt;
  125. &lt;p id="yJq6v1"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Up Next: &lt;/strong&gt;The third and final game of this series Sunday evening on ESPN (a reminder of the unusual 5:10 p.m. CT start time). Matthew Boyd (8-3, 2.65, 98⅔ IP) has been the most effective of the starters and he’ll look to keep that going. He’s won his last two starts, including a very good one against Cleveland and a dominant one against the Cardinals in St. Louis. He’s 4-1 with a 1.66 over his last seven. The most innings he’s thrown since 2019 and he’s getting better. Hats off. He’s 7-0 at Wrigley, accounting for all of his wins except that one in St. Louis. But he’s been good everywhere and in pretty much every situation. &lt;/p&gt;
  126. &lt;p id="HQKmNM"&gt;Erick Fedde (3-8, 4.56, 92⅔ IP). Those numbers aren’t bad. He’s 0-5 with a 5.86 ERA over his last seven. Among those is two starts ago when the Cubs scored seven runs off him in 3⅔ innings. He followed that up allowing seven runs in five at Pittsburgh. He’s been better on the road (3.86) than home (5.65). But also better during the day (3.93) than at night (5.40). &lt;/p&gt;
  127. &lt;p id="qEM2tn"&gt;One bad inning happens. You don’t get to erase it. No excuses. Also, save for that one inning, the Cubs have dominated these first two games. Without the eighth inning, the Cubs win 5-3 on the back of an 11-3 win. This has all of the looks of two teams moving in different directions. But also, that one inning happened. Let’s take the momentum back, win the series and leave the Cardinals battered on their way out. &lt;/p&gt;
  128. &lt;p id="rOMqFP"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  129.  
  130. </content>
  131.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462318/2025-cubs-heroes-and-goats-game-89"/>
  132.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462318/2025-cubs-heroes-and-goats-game-89</id>
  133.    <author>
  134.      <name>Thomas Smith</name>
  135.    </author>
  136.  </entry>
  137.  <entry>
  138.    <published>2025-07-06T07:00:00-05:00</published>
  139.    <updated>2025-07-06T07:00:00-05:00</updated>
  140.    <title>Cub Tracks comes up short</title>
  141.    <content type="html">  
  142.  
  143.    &lt;figure&gt;
  144.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/RTEH9HZgYq49ve020myT5YU59go=/625x832:7020x5095/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164597/2223054530.0.jpg" /&gt;
  145.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  146.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  147.  
  148.  &lt;p&gt;The #1 source for #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB news and notes. The Cubs couldn’t quite recover after the Cardinals had a five-run eighth and so the meatloaf weighs in the balance.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="MNw6Vh"&gt;The going is weird. &lt;strong&gt;Cub Tracks™&lt;/strong&gt; turned pro a long time ago. &lt;strong&gt;Cub Tracks™&lt;/strong&gt;. &lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9hU3KJekfA"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Where the great ones run&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;away&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;em&gt;.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  149. &lt;p id="ZoX7SS"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Any MLB team can beat you. The good teams WILL beat you.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  150. &lt;div id="M34WE1"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jjHw_FJySg4?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  151. &lt;div id="EWlwuU"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/m/pete-crow-armstrong-greets-wrigley-field-workers" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  152. &lt;p id="lSAylS"&gt;&lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fpete-crow-armstrong-greets-wrigley-field-workers&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;PCA says hey&lt;/a&gt;. [VIDEO]&lt;/p&gt;
  153. &lt;p id="QhcFZ4"&gt;Drew Pomeranz had a little trouble as the opener and Chris Flexen had to come in with one out and the ponds full of birds. Pomeranz has now given up two runs this year. The Cubs came back to take the lead, so Pomeranz gets a no-decision. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fwillson-contreras-strikes-out-swinging-huhkzt&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Flexen did very well indeed&lt;/a&gt;. Brad Keller had a less-than-great outing, and coughed up the lead. The Cubs did rally. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fjojo-romero-in-play-run-s-to-seiya-suzuki&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Seiya doubled Tucker in in the eighth&lt;/a&gt;. But that was all she wrote, and the Cubs will have to capture the meatloaf today.&lt;/p&gt;
  154. &lt;div id="FHguIS"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lAmh69WvIuo?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  155. &lt;p id="UdZPH5"&gt;Plenty of highlights. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fmichael-busch-homers-18-on-a-fly-ball-to-center-field&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Michael Busch went deep again&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fnico-hoerner-singles-on-a-fly-ball-to-center-fielder-victor-scott-ii-cars&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Nico Hoerner drove one in with a single&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fkyle-leahy-ball-to-matt-shaw-6qf17y&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Busch scored on a wild pitch to tie the game&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fmatthew-liberatore-in-play-out-s-to-ian-happ-vhlq0l&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Ian Happ grounded out for an rbi&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fsteven-matz-in-play-run-s-to-carson-kelly&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Carson Kelly left the yard&lt;/a&gt;. Plus &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fmatthew-liberatore-ball-to-ian-happ-vc7seu&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;base-stealing&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fchris-flexen-in-play-out-s-to-lars-nootbaar-gj5nni&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;defense&lt;/a&gt;, and &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fvideo%2Fpedro-pages-flies-out-to-right-fielder-kyle-tucker-kupxc2&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;more defense&lt;/a&gt;.. Quite the show.&lt;/p&gt;
  156. &lt;div id="lcGF8j"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v54RUqUtaAY?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  157. &lt;div id="SocEla"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_kAeJxCuj6s?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  158. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="k5KBLM"&gt;*means &lt;em&gt;autoplay on&lt;/em&gt;, (&lt;a href="https://7labs.io/tips-tricks/remove-browser-adware.html"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;). &lt;strong&gt;{$}&lt;/strong&gt; means paywall. {$} means limited views. &lt;em&gt;Italics &lt;/em&gt;are often used on this page as&lt;em&gt; sarcasm font. &lt;/em&gt;The powers that be have enabled &lt;em&gt;real sarcasm font&lt;/em&gt; in the comments.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  159. &lt;div id="4Rz1WM"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5l6K1IBQRb0?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  160. &lt;div id="lfa0TT"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xK0wC5pGZdA?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  161. &lt;div id="OAdyWU"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RZlbrqI68PQ?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  162. &lt;div id="6YX02H"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8gkzV5wb_Yg?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  163. &lt;ul&gt;
  164. &lt;li id="zu68qR"&gt;Zoe Grossman (Marquee Sports Network*): &lt;a href="https://www.marqueesportsnetwork.com/chicago-cubs-score-highlights-st-louis-cardinals-michael-busch-drew-pomeranz/"&gt;Cubs takeaways: What we learned in late loss to Cardinals at Wrigley&lt;/a&gt;. “They’ll have a chance to take the series in the rubber match Sunday night...”&lt;/li&gt;
  165. &lt;li id="PRDN2J"&gt;Zoe Grossman (Marquee Sports Network*): &lt;a href="https://www.marqueesportsnetwork.com/jameson-taillon-injury-update-chicago-cubs-probable-pitchers-drew-pomeranz/"&gt;Jameson Taillon injury: Cubs pitcher vows ‘best case’ diagnosis in update&lt;/a&gt;. “We’re going to try to try to keep my arm conditioned, do some throwing off my knees,” he said.&lt;/li&gt;
  166. &lt;li id="h7m1xh"&gt;Tommy Birch (Des Moines Register* {$}): &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.desmoinesregister.com%2Fstory%2Fsports%2Fbaseball%2Fiowa-cubs%2F2025%2F07%2F03%2Fkevin-alcantara-iowa-cubs-chicago-cubs-mlb-pipeline-anthony-rizzo%2F84466753007%2F&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F6%2F24462125%2Fcub-tracks-comes-up-short" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;Iowa Cubs outfielder Kevin Alcántara playing best baseball of his Triple-A career&lt;/a&gt;. “Over the last two and a half weeks, he’s really started to turn it on,” said Iowa manager Marty Pevey.&lt;/li&gt;
  167. &lt;li id="PbylAP"&gt;Sean Hammond (Chicago Tribune* {$}): &lt;a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/05/chicago-cubs-kyle-tucker-jed-hoyer-contract/"&gt;Will Chicago Cubs re-sign Kyle Tucker? ‘You must have your limits’ in contract talks, Jed Hoyer notes&lt;/a&gt;. “You go into negotiations wanting to keep him,” Hoyer said.&lt;/li&gt;
  168. &lt;li id="5UZMXc"&gt;Zoe Grossman (Marquee Sports Network*): &lt;a href="https://www.marqueesportsnetwork.com/mlb-all-star-game-roster-seiya-suzuki-chicago-cubs-pete-crow-armstrong/"&gt;Cubs teammates back Seiya Suzuki MLB All-Star bid with slugger on tear&lt;/a&gt;. “... Suzuki is more than just making a case for his name to be emblazoned on the NL roster.”&lt;/li&gt;
  169. &lt;/ul&gt;
  170. &lt;p id="v5ZG2A"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Food for thought:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  171. &lt;div id="jH1scv"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3VRjtLsBii0?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  172. &lt;div id="OVuoWb"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lGhhLTtDjiU?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  173. &lt;div id="VLo2ny"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mDCKKUvhCA4?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  174. &lt;p id="rfyB6w"&gt;Please be reminded that &lt;a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/cub-tracks"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Cub Tracks&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; and &lt;a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Bleed Cubbie Blue&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; do not necessarily endorse the content of articles, podcasts, or videos that are linked to in this series. We are 100% in favor of human sportswriting and will not wittingly publish A. I. - driven articles or content.&lt;/p&gt;
  175.  
  176. </content>
  177.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462125/cub-tracks-comes-up-short"/>
  178.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462125/cub-tracks-comes-up-short</id>
  179.    <author>
  180.      <name>Duane Pesice</name>
  181.    </author>
  182.  </entry>
  183.  <entry>
  184.    <published>2025-07-06T06:00:00-05:00</published>
  185.    <updated>2025-07-06T06:00:00-05:00</updated>
  186.    <title>Can you guess this Cubs right-hander in today’s in-5 trivia game?</title>
  187.    <content type="html">  
  188.  
  189.    &lt;figure&gt;
  190.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FSxaC1G27Atijevm1rKeHmMC2nU=/250x0:2950x1800/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164528/bcb.0.png" /&gt;
  191.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  192.  
  193.  &lt;p&gt;Think you can guess which Cubs player we’re talking about? You’ll get five clues to figure him out.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="c9eLNL"&gt;Good morning! We’re back for another day of the Bleed Cubbie Blue In-5 daily trivia game. The objective is to guess the correct active OR retired Cubs player in as few guesses as possible. Full game instructions are at the bottom.  Feel free to share your results in the comments and feedback in &lt;a href="https://forms.gle/aw4rQhbR8aCaFTcV8"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;this Google Form&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  194. &lt;h2 id="NqYsa4"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Today’s Bleed Cubbie Blue In-5 Game&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  195. &lt;div id="5ZUyjq"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://games.voxmedia.com/networks/bcb/07-06-2025" width="100%" height="750" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" style="margin-bottom: 25px;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  196. &lt;p id="ALRmcX"&gt;If you can’t see the game due to Apple News or another service, &lt;a href="https://bleedcubbieblue.com/games/in-5"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;click this game article&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  197. &lt;h2 id="mFAKgG"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Previous Games&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  198. &lt;p id="7OpD8r"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/games/in-5/07-05-2025?itm_medium=site&amp;amp;itm_source=article&amp;amp;itm_campaign=in-five"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Saturday, July 5, 2025&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/games/in-5/07-04-2025?itm_medium=site&amp;amp;itm_source=article&amp;amp;itm_campaign=in-five"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Friday, July 4, 2025&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  199. &lt;h2 id="nmFa5U"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Play more SB Nation In-5 trivia games&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  200. &lt;p id="eYul3Q"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nfl-games"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;NFL in-5&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/mlb-games"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MLB in-5&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/mma-games"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MMA in-5&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  201. &lt;h2 id="p5PojY"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Bleed Cubbie Blue In-5 instructions&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  202. &lt;p id="W0BSQ4"&gt;The goal of the game is to &lt;strong&gt;guess the correct Cubs player&lt;/strong&gt; with the help of up to five clues. We’ll mix in &lt;strong&gt;BOTH ACTIVE AND RETIRED PLAYERS&lt;/strong&gt; each week. It won’t be easy to figure it out in one or two guesses, but some of you might be able to nail it. The game will appear in the No. 3 slot of the Bleed Cubbie Blue layout each day this week and as noted above, will appear in this article exclusively. &lt;/p&gt;
  203. &lt;p id="UzewZY"&gt;After you correctly guess the player, you can click “Share Results” to share how you did down in the comments and on social media. We won’t go into other details about the game as we’d like your feedback on it. How it plays, what you think of it, the difficulty level, and anything else you can think of that will help us improve this game. You can provide feedback in the comments of this article, or you can fill out &lt;a href="https://forms.gle/aw4rQhbR8aCaFTcV8"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;this Google Form&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  204. &lt;p id="G1NBFl"&gt;Enjoy!&lt;/p&gt;
  205. &lt;p id="z0iWCO"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  206. &lt;p id="LylOnD"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  207.  
  208. </content>
  209.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462373/sb-nation-cubs-daily-trivia-in-5"/>
  210.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/6/24462373/sb-nation-cubs-daily-trivia-in-5</id>
  211.    <author>
  212.      <name>Sara Sanchez</name>
  213.    </author>
  214.  </entry>
  215.  <entry>
  216.    <published>2025-07-05T21:19:00-05:00</published>
  217.    <updated>2025-07-05T21:19:00-05:00</updated>
  218.    <title>Minor League Wrap: Owen Caissie homers twice in I-Cubs 8-4 loss to Omaha</title>
  219.    <content type="html">  
  220.  
  221.    &lt;figure&gt;
  222.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ecBOIHJ6URPuf802ZXJK8sWr8RY=/1832x842:8219x5100/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164329/usa_today_25796494.0.jpg" /&gt;
  223.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Owen Caissie | Cody Scanlan/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  224.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  225.  
  226.  &lt;p&gt;Iowa, Knoxville and South Bend lose. Myrtle Beach is rained out. Mesa wins. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="6NovZk"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Iowa &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Cubs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  227. &lt;p id="U5JiZs"&gt;The Iowa Cubs were &lt;a href="https://www.milb.com/gameday/cubs-vs-storm-chasers/2025/07/05/780738/final/box"&gt;drenched by the Omaha Storm Chasers (Royals), 8-4.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  228. &lt;p id="29u5NB"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Kenta Maeda&lt;/strong&gt; started and took the loss after allowing four runs on six hits over 4.1 innings. Maeda struck out four and walked one.&lt;/p&gt;
  229. &lt;p id="wDgcaG"&gt;For the second time in three games, DH &lt;strong&gt;Owen Caissie&lt;/strong&gt; hit two home runs. Both of them were solo shots and the first one came in the second inning and the second one was in the ninth. Caissie went 2 for 4.&lt;/p&gt;
  230. &lt;p id="aLUqza"&gt;Iowa had four hits tonight. Catcher &lt;strong&gt;Moises Ballesteros&lt;/strong&gt; hit a two-run double in the eighth inning. He was 1 for 4. &lt;/p&gt;
  231. &lt;p id="WRSWiu"&gt;Caissie’s first home run.&lt;/p&gt;
  232. &lt;div id="5OGTxA"&gt;
  233. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  234. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;OC goes deep again!  &lt;a href="https://t.co/N0xmEVTtju"&gt;pic.twitter.com/N0xmEVTtju&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/IowaCubs/status/1941646044707582004?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 5, 2025&lt;/a&gt;
  235. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  236. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  237.  
  238. &lt;/div&gt;
  239. &lt;p id="whtK4u"&gt;Caissie’s second home run.&lt;/p&gt;
  240. &lt;div id="25Klz8"&gt;
  241. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  242. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Owen Caissie again! &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Cubs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Cubs&lt;/a&gt;' top prospect (.933 OPS) posts his second multihomer game for the Triple-A &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/IowaCubs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@IowaCubs&lt;/a&gt; in the past three days: &lt;a href="https://t.co/wONQ1GP4L0"&gt;pic.twitter.com/wONQ1GP4L0&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1941674926030872836?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 6, 2025&lt;/a&gt;
  243. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  244. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  245.  
  246. &lt;/div&gt;
  247. &lt;p id="GxUlqV"&gt;Ballesteros’ two-run double.&lt;/p&gt;
  248. &lt;div id="1HjsPm"&gt;
  249. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  250. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Bally doubles home a pair! &lt;a href="https://t.co/6okvA8Kico"&gt;pic.twitter.com/6okvA8Kico&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/IowaCubs/status/1941668982756434046?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 6, 2025&lt;/a&gt;
  251. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  252. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  253.  
  254. &lt;/div&gt;
  255. &lt;p id="z3vUaf"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Knoxville Smokies&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  256. &lt;p id="nV04Cg"&gt;The Knoxville Smokies were &lt;a href="https://www.milb.com/gameday/trash-pandas-vs-smokies/2025/07/05/782482/final/box"&gt;extinguished by the Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels), 2-1.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  257. &lt;p id="pzqwuL"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Chris Clarke&lt;/strong&gt; was strong in a rehab appearance, throwing five scoreless innings and allowing just three hits. Clarke struck out five and walked no one.&lt;/p&gt;
  258. &lt;p id="kcPEBQ"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Frankie Scalzo Jr.&lt;/strong&gt; gave up a solo home run in the seventh inning and took the loss. Scalzo’s final line was one run on one hit over two innings. He struck out two and walked one.&lt;/p&gt;
  259. &lt;p id="SOKAtX"&gt;Knoxville had five hits tonight and shortstop &lt;strong&gt;Reivaj Garcia&lt;/strong&gt; had four of them, going 4 for 4 with an RBI single in the fourth inning.&lt;/p&gt;
  260. &lt;p id="ATjdmL"&gt;RBI single for Garcia.&lt;/p&gt;
  261. &lt;div id="Lk3Dov"&gt;
  262. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  263. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Bally doubles home a pair! &lt;a href="https://t.co/6okvA8Kico"&gt;pic.twitter.com/6okvA8Kico&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/IowaCubs/status/1941668982756434046?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 6, 2025&lt;/a&gt;
  264. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  265. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  266.  
  267. &lt;/div&gt;
  268. &lt;p id="lDcnXC"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;South Bend Cubs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  269. &lt;p id="u7Jlm9"&gt;The South Bend Cubs were &lt;a href="https://www.milb.com/gameday/chiefs-vs-cubs/2025/07/05/784784/final/box"&gt;demoted by the Peoria Chiefs (Cardinals), 5-2.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  270. &lt;p id="7H3DJV"&gt;Starter &lt;strong&gt;Ryan Gallagher&lt;/strong&gt; took the loss after getting knocked around for five runs one ten hits over 6.1 innings. Gallagher struck out six and walked one. He also hit one batter. &lt;/p&gt;
  271. &lt;p id="KLGzgh"&gt;Third baseman &lt;strong&gt;Drew Bowser&lt;/strong&gt; hit a two-run double in the second inning. Bowser was 2 for 3. &lt;/p&gt;
  272. &lt;p id="7dQsMC"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Myrtle Beach Pelicans&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  273. &lt;p id="cgrHId"&gt;Rained out. No makeup date has been set yet. &lt;/p&gt;
  274. &lt;p id="pcFKe0"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ACL Cubs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  275. &lt;p id="fco1lb"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.milb.com/gameday/acl-reds-vs-acl-cubs/2025/07/05/807921/final/box"&gt;Beat the Reds, 6-5.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  276.  
  277. </content>
  278.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/5/24462290/chicago-cubs-minor-league-owen-caissie-kenta-maeda-reivaj-garcia-ryan-gallagher-drew-bowser"/>
  279.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/5/24462290/chicago-cubs-minor-league-owen-caissie-kenta-maeda-reivaj-garcia-ryan-gallagher-drew-bowser</id>
  280.    <author>
  281.      <name>Josh Timmers</name>
  282.    </author>
  283.  </entry>
  284.  <entry>
  285.    <published>2025-07-05T17:15:00-05:00</published>
  286.    <updated>2025-07-05T17:15:00-05:00</updated>
  287.    <title>Cardinals 8, Cubs 6: Well, that was ugly, despite another great game from Michael Busch</title>
  288.    <content type="html">  
  289.  
  290.    &lt;figure&gt;
  291.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/AS0Ciu98hHuY1kdabKw-lwXLUEU=/104x150:5692x3875/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164158/2223058400.0.jpg" /&gt;
  292.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  293.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  294.  
  295.  &lt;p&gt;A stirring comeback went for naught when the Cubs bullpen blew up in the eighth.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="Ec1OI6"&gt;The Cubs bullpen has been so good this year that having an inning like the one Brad Keller had in the eighth inning of &lt;a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&amp;amp;xs=1&amp;amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fgameday%2Fcardinals-vs-cubs%2F2025%2F07%2F05%2F777229%2Ffinal%2Fbox&amp;amp;referrer=sbnation.com&amp;amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleedcubbieblue.com%2F2025%2F7%2F5%2F24462207%2Fcubs-cardinals-recap-michael-busch-carson-kelly-mlb-scores" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"&gt;the Cubs’ 8-6 loss to the Cardinals&lt;/a&gt; is, frankly, shocking.&lt;/p&gt;
  296. &lt;p id="xwjNp8"&gt;It turned on one play in that inning, and I’ll get to that, but first things first.&lt;/p&gt;
  297. &lt;p id="b5q4YW"&gt;The Drew Pomeranz opener strategy, which had worked well twice before this year, didn’t. Pomeranz issued a pair of walks and a single and the Cardinals kept fouling off pitches and made him throw 25 pitches while recording only one out. That forced Chris Flexen into the game likely before Craig Counsell wanted to use him. With the bases loaded, Flexen gave up a single to Thomas Saggese that scored two runs.&lt;/p&gt;
  298. &lt;p id="g187Nh"&gt;That was the end of Pomeranz’ 0.00 ERA for the season — you knew it couldn’t last forever — and also this, from BCB’s JohnW53:&lt;/p&gt;
  299. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  300. &lt;p id="SOsNuM"&gt;Drew Pomeranz’s start was the 201st by a Cubs pitcher since 1901 or one out or fewer. It was just the 10th this century.&lt;/p&gt;
  301. &lt;p id="oYMM3P"&gt;The others, in order: Julian Tavarez (2001), Steve Smyth (2002), Randy Wells (2010), Carlos Silva (2010), Ryan Dempster (2011), Brett Anderson (2017), Jaime Garcia (2018), Alec Mills (2022) and Drew Smyly (Oct. 1, 2023).&lt;/p&gt;
  302. &lt;p id="CfSU30"&gt;All got one out except Wells, who gave up five runs on six hits. Mills was injured after facing two batters. All the others faced at least four. Dempster faced 10.&lt;/p&gt;
  303. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  304. &lt;p id="s5XcuD"&gt;Flexen settled down and wound up throwing 3⅔ innings and allowing just one further run, a home run by Nolan Gorman leading off the fourth. In the third, &lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/a700596f-ce287480-a6c765b4-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4"&gt;Flexen had some defensive help from Matt Shaw [VIDEO]&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  305. &lt;div id="OpZlMq"&gt;
  306. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2Fa700596f-ce287480-a6c765b4-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  307. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  308. &lt;/div&gt;
  309. &lt;p id="kmp0Du"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  310. &lt;p id="Bz4iFV"&gt;Meanwhile, the Cubs had a home run of their own, &lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/e5a81805-300606ef-2b2dbf9c-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4"&gt;another one from Michael Busch leading off the second [VIDEO]&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  311. &lt;div id="mu7sbo"&gt;
  312. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2Fe5a81805-300606ef-2b2dbf9c-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  313. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  314. &lt;/div&gt;
  315. &lt;p id="Q8fnSU"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  316. &lt;p id="uDDmHZ"&gt;For Busch, that was his fourth home run in two games, and here’s more on that from BCB’s JohnW53:&lt;/p&gt;
  317. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  318. &lt;p id="DbmAA8"&gt;A Cub has hit three home runs in a game 42 times. Michael Busch today became only the seventh to hit a homer in his next game. The previous six:&lt;/p&gt;
  319. &lt;p id="rAbd4l"&gt;Ernie Banks, 1955&lt;br&gt;Lee Walls, 1958&lt;br&gt;Dave Kingman, 1978&lt;br&gt;Brant Brown, 1998&lt;br&gt;Sammy Sosa, 2002&lt;br&gt;Moises Alou, 2003&lt;/p&gt;
  320. &lt;p id="eQOSN7"&gt;Six more times, a Cub homered in the game before the one in which he homered three times. Billy Williams, in 1968, and Kingman, in 1979, hit two homers in the game prior to smacking three. In 1978, Kingman homered once in the games both before and after his game with three.&lt;/p&gt;
  321. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  322. &lt;p id="lLfRVG"&gt;It was also just the second home run this year by Busch off a lefthander. During this homestand Busch is now batting .550/.571/1.200 (11-for-20) with a double and four home runs. Sounds like a National League Player of the Week candidate to me.&lt;/p&gt;
  323. &lt;p id="Uc3xHU"&gt;Anyway, it’s 3-1 Cardinals heading to the bottom of the fourth. Busch led off again and doubled. Nico Hoerner walked and both runners moved up on a wild pitch.&lt;/p&gt;
  324. &lt;p id="4kMnYr"&gt;Busch then headed home on &lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/31e8270f-7fb6f0ba-8d4a3660-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4"&gt;this grounder by Shaw, a contact play, and was thrown out [VIDEO]&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  325. &lt;div id="9M4JTG"&gt;
  326. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2F31e8270f-7fb6f0ba-8d4a3660-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  327. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  328. &lt;/div&gt;
  329. &lt;p id="yde9GA"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  330. &lt;p id="RZCE53"&gt;&lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/ee490240-eac8b4cb-42c0ee17-csvm-diamondgcp-asset-4000K.mp4"&gt;Nico and Shaw executed a double steal, putting runners in scoring position again [VIDEO].&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  331. &lt;div id="MJ4Fj7"&gt;
  332. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2Fee490240-eac8b4cb-42c0ee17-csvm-diamondgcp-asset-4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  333. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  334. &lt;/div&gt;
  335. &lt;p id="9JmsLN"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  336. &lt;p id="3PIayp"&gt;&lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/4d4d1fb7-9e254492-1c4a931a-csvm-diamondgcp-asset-4000K.mp4"&gt;Ian Happ’s ground ball to third made it 3-2 [VIDEO].&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  337. &lt;div id="AkeAYz"&gt;
  338. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2F4d4d1fb7-9e254492-1c4a931a-csvm-diamondgcp-asset-4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  339. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  340. &lt;/div&gt;
  341. &lt;p id="12CkZG"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  342. &lt;p id="Uf96ts"&gt;Ryan Brasier threw a scoreless fifth, helped out by an inning-ending double play, and Caleb Thielbar had a 1-2-3 sixth. &lt;/p&gt;
  343. &lt;p id="t9VJbT"&gt;Then the Cubs took the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Kelly bounced a ball into the ivy in center field for a double and took third on a single by Busch, his third hit of the game. &lt;/p&gt;
  344. &lt;p id="CXUlzq"&gt;&lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/dc1bbf99-58e2eb55-dd2612c3-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4"&gt;Nico’s single tied the game 3-3 [VIDEO].&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  345. &lt;div id="8kD7rZ"&gt;
  346. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2Fdc1bbf99-58e2eb55-dd2612c3-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  347. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  348. &lt;/div&gt;
  349. &lt;p id="0xRoTF"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  350. &lt;p id="I8qv03"&gt;Busch held at third on that hit, and then &lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/e40e2879-aebbf9eb-edbe5abb-csvm-diamondgcp-asset-4000K.mp4"&gt;scored the lead run on this wild pitch [VIDEO]&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  351. &lt;div id="rHfbvV"&gt;
  352. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2Fe40e2879-aebbf9eb-edbe5abb-csvm-diamondgcp-asset-4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  353. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  354. &lt;/div&gt;
  355. &lt;p id="P6yOZB"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  356. &lt;p id="Fteflb"&gt;Ryan Pressly threw a scoreless seventh, helped out by yet another Cubs double play. And then the Cubs extended the lead to 5-3 on &lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/571a429f-f9b1a1bb-47f6e973-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4"&gt;a home run by Kelly, his 11th [VIDEO]&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  357. &lt;div id="0SsPyp"&gt;
  358. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2F571a429f-f9b1a1bb-47f6e973-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  359. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  360. &lt;/div&gt;
  361. &lt;p id="eQS6lG"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  362. &lt;p id="LqIsmW"&gt;Keller entered to throw the eighth. He’s been really good this year, as you know. And he started the eighth all right, with a fly to center by old friend Willson Contreras. Alec Burleson then homered to make it 5-4 and a single by Saggese — who only was in this game because Nolan Arenado was scratched with a shoulder issue — put the tying run on base.&lt;/p&gt;
  363. &lt;p id="oo20ta"&gt;Lars Nootbaar then laid down a bunt. This should have been an easy out, the second of the inning, putting a runner on second. &lt;a href="https://fastball-clips.mlb.com/777229/home/67b6b319-db56-311e-8b73-09d5e8e8fd42.mp4"&gt;Except... this happened [VIDEO].&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  364. &lt;div id="U1njUj"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/m/brad-keller-in-play-no-out-to-lars-nootbaar" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  365. &lt;p id="SxzKkm"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  366. &lt;p id="LCKqZ7"&gt;I’m not sure whose play that is — probably Kelly’s — but neither Kelly nor Keller could make the play and Nootbaar was given a hit.&lt;/p&gt;
  367. &lt;p id="BlTpwb"&gt;Obviously sequencing would have been different, but the next hitter, Gorman, hit a ball that’s likely an out if there’s a runner on second and two out instead of first and second with one out. The inning could have been over. Instead, the tying run scored and two Cardinals are still on base and, well, Keller must have been a bit rattled by then because Yohel Pozo put a ball on Waveland for a three-run homer.&lt;/p&gt;
  368. &lt;p id="5Tbv2f"&gt;Hey, you know what, things like this happen every once in a while even to good teams.&lt;/p&gt;
  369. &lt;p id="K2nePS"&gt;And the Cubs did attempt to mount a comeback. With two out in the eighth, Tucker reached on catcher’s interference. &lt;a href="https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2025/2025-07/05/d7893931-c90a0b68-96180346-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4"&gt;Seiya Suzuki scored Tucker with this double [VIDEO].&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  370. &lt;div id="51BdkK"&gt;
  371. &lt;div&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com%2FFORGE%2F2025%2F2025-07%2F05%2Fd7893931-c90a0b68-96180346-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4&amp;amp;key=9ef4a209439e42bc59783ba959d50197" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media *;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  372. &lt;script async="" src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/embed.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  373. &lt;/div&gt;
  374. &lt;p id="BWY0cy"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  375. &lt;p id="Aowl8O"&gt;So Pete Crow-Armstrong came to the plate as the potential tying run with chants of “PCA! PCA!” at Wrigley Field... but he bounced out to first base and that was that. The Cubs went down 1-2-3 in the ninth to Ryan Helsley, and the four-game winning streak came to an end.&lt;/p&gt;
  376. &lt;p id="FZ8QZ3"&gt;More from BCB’s JohnW53:&lt;/p&gt;
  377. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  378. &lt;p id="yppPjB"&gt;That was just the fourth game this season in which the Cubs led after seven innings and lost.&lt;/p&gt;
  379. &lt;p id="Qo6U2r"&gt;The Cardinals’ eighth inning was just the third of the season in which the Cubs have allowed exactly five runs. Opposing teams have batted in 791 innings. The Cubs also have suffered one inning each in which they allowed six, eight, nine and 10 runs, for a total of seven of five or more. The Cubs have had 17 innings of at least five: 10 of five, four of six, two of seven and one of eight.&lt;/p&gt;
  380. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  381. &lt;p id="Wn09br"&gt;In hindsight, this was going to be a tough one regardless. The Cubs were facing a left-handed starter who they did not do well against in St. Louis and opposing the Cardinals with a bullpen game. Nevertheless, they came back from one deficit and at least had a chance to come back from a second. I don’t think this will have any long-term effect on Keller, who has been so good most of this year. Here are some postgame comments from Keller:&lt;/p&gt;
  382. &lt;div id="XhtngZ"&gt;
  383. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  384. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;“I just gotta make better pitches in those moments.”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Brad Keller reflects on his outing. &lt;a href="https://t.co/rQQGf48D9Y"&gt;pic.twitter.com/rQQGf48D9Y&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1941613946810536299?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 5, 2025&lt;/a&gt;
  385. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  386. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  387.  
  388. &lt;/div&gt;
  389. &lt;p id="r94SwJ"&gt;At this writing, the Brewers and Marlins are tied 2-2 going to the eighth. If the Marlins can win that game, the Cubs’ NL Central lead will remain at 4½ games, otherwise it drops to 3½. They lead the Cardinals by 5½.&lt;/p&gt;
  390. &lt;p id="CYUJf6"&gt;The Cubs will go for the series win Sunday evening at Wrigley Field. Matthew Boyd will start for the Cubs and Erick Fedde goes for the Cardinals. Note carefully! Game time Sunday is 5:10 p.m. CT and the game is ESPN’s featured Sunday Night Baseball contest. The reason for the unusual start time is that ESPN is doing a doubleheader Sunday, with the other game, Rangers at Padres, scheduled for 8:10 p.m. CT.&lt;/p&gt;
  391.  
  392. </content>
  393.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/5/24462207/cubs-cardinals-recap-michael-busch-carson-kelly-mlb-scores"/>
  394.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/5/24462207/cubs-cardinals-recap-michael-busch-carson-kelly-mlb-scores</id>
  395.    <author>
  396.      <name>Al Yellon</name>
  397.    </author>
  398.  </entry>
  399.  <entry>
  400.    <published>2025-07-05T14:50:00-05:00</published>
  401.    <updated>2025-07-05T14:50:00-05:00</updated>
  402.    <title>Overflow thread: Cubs vs. Cardinals, Saturday 7/5, 1:20 CT</title>
  403.    <content type="html">  
  404.  
  405.    &lt;figure&gt;
  406.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/RSlLsBniRJOLJgZwcvJTV5fC4e8=/1x0:3343x2228/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/74164038/2222872960.0.jpg" /&gt;
  407.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by George Gaza/MLB Photos via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  408.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  409.  
  410.  &lt;p id="bPVD9e"&gt;——&lt;/p&gt;
  411.  
  412. </content>
  413.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/5/24460423/overflow-thread-cubs-vs-cardinals-saturday-7-5-1-20-ct"/>
  414.    <id>https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/7/5/24460423/overflow-thread-cubs-vs-cardinals-saturday-7-5-1-20-ct</id>
  415.    <author>
  416.      <name>Al Yellon</name>
  417.    </author>
  418.  </entry>
  419. </feed>
  420.  

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