The Cubs let a 4-3 lead slip away last night, marking the 67th time they’ve blown a lead this season across 56 different games. That’s not just a bad stat, it’s a full-blown collapse trend that’s got to be crushing the clubhouse.
The Bleeding Won’t Stop
It gets worse, folks. When they blow those leads, their record sits at a brutal 24-32. We’re talking about a team that has now lost three straight games, and an absolutely brutal 12 of their last 13 outings, with that slide starting way back on August 21. Think about that for a second: nearly a month of just constant struggle to close games out. What’s wild is they actually have a knack for fighting back, erasing two deficits just last night. They’ve erased a grand total of 70 deficits this season in 62 different games. But even when they fight like hell to get back into it, they’ve lost the last two of those comeback games, five of six, and seven of nine, all since that August 21 date. It feels like they just can’t catch a break, or maybe they just can’t finish the job.
Power Outage and Mound Mismatches
Remember when the Cubs went absolutely bonkers on August 31, setting a team record with nine homers against the Brewers? Yeah, that feels like a lifetime ago now. Since then, in 16 games, they’ve only managed to hit 16 total home runs. Last night’s solo shot from Ian Happ in the third inning was the only homer by either team, and it marked the ninth game in that stretch with just one dinger. They’ve hit two homers twice, three once, and struck out with zero home runs in four games. The power just isn’t there, and that’s a problem, especially when you consider their stellar 37-11 record when they out-homer opponents, or their 23-10 record when they don’t give up any long balls at all.
Tonight, the mound gets interesting with Matthew Boyd, a lefty, facing off against Reds’ lefty Nick Lodolo. Boyd’s ERA is totally unfair. The bullpen has let him down in each of his last three starts, allowing two inherited runners he left on base to score. So, his pitching has been way better than his numbers suggest. His only other start against the Reds this year, back on July 12 in Cincinnati, saw him give up four runs in 6.1 innings, with a couple of those coming from traditional Eugenio Suárez bombs. Keeping Suárez in the yard is gonna be key for Boyd. On the other side, Lodolo was a first-round pick, a top prospect, but he’s having the worst year of his career thanks to injuries and just general ineffectiveness. He held the Cubs to two runs in five innings on July 11, then got sidelined with a blister issue. Since returning last month, his stats are ugly: a 6.09 ERA and a 1.529 WHIP in seven starts. And get this: he’s given up 10 home runs in just 34 innings! That’s a massive red flag.
Tonight’s game is gonna be a battle, especially with a chance of storms in the Cincinnati area, making things even more unpredictable. Can the Cubs finally put a stop to this lead-blowing madness, or will Lodolo’s struggles give their bats a much-needed jolt? You can catch all the action live on Marquee Sports Network. Let’s see if they can turn this ship around, because 67 blown leads is just insane.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply