The Chicago Cubs lineup was lacking one in every of its key items Wednesday in a 5-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners, however nobody might begrudge Dansby Swanson for taking the break day.
Before lacking his first sport since Sept. 10, 2021, when he performed for the Atlanta Braves, Swanson mentioned sitting was the “smart thing to do considering all the circumstances.” He expects to return to the lineup Friday in Los Angeles, the place the Cubs open a six-game journey towards the Dodgers and Oakland A’s.
The Cubs fell to 6-5 after successful back-to-back collection on the homestand.
The “circumstances” Swanson referred to that left him exhausted and cramping Tuesday evening — when he requested to be taken out of a 14-9 comeback win over the Mariners — are the type of household issues that transcend baseball.
It was a husband taking his spouse to the hospital at 4 a.m., spending the day there after which reporting to work earlier than leaving within the late evening hours.
In this case it was Swanson taking his spouse, Mallory, to the hospital for knee surgical procedure, then going to play in an evening sport at Wrigley Field, the place he went 4-for-4 earlier than being eliminated, declaring afterward, “My body was just kind of done.”
Mallory Swanson, a star on the U.S. girls’s soccer staff and for the Chicago Red Stars, suffered a torn left patella tendon throughout Saturday’s sport towards Ireland in Austin, Texas, and is more likely to miss the World Cup this summer time whereas rehabbing.
“It sucks,” Dansby mentioned Wednesday of Mallory’s damage. “Seeing somebody heartbroken and in pain is not fun, and I wouldn’t wish that on anybody.”
Asked Wednesday morning if he felt any totally different from Tuesday evening, Swanson replied: “I got a few more hours of sleep than I had the previous few nights. Circumstances are a little tough at the moment, but we’re obviously doing the best we can.”
Manager David Ross mentioned he admired Swanson for desirous to play each sport, however Ross knew his shortstop wanted a break after an exhausting episode.
“He’s a smart baseball player, and he’s going through a lot in his life, in general, right now,” Ross mentioned. “The conversation we had was very easy and clean. You’d think you might get some pushback, but we were very much in lockstep. … He understands, and part of the great thing about him is he’s won a world championship and understands what a long season we have.”
The Cubs missed Swanson’s bat of their loss to the Mariners on an ideal 77-degree afternoon at Wrigley, although it won’t have made a lot of a distinction. The Cubs got here into the day main the majors with a .290 common however had solely 4 singles till Cody Bellinger’s solo dwelling run within the ninth.
Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (1-1) allowed hits to Nico Hoerner and Nick Madrigal, the primary two batters he confronted, then allowed solely two extra in a dominant outing by which he gave up one run on 4 hits with six strikeouts in 6⅔ innings.
Marcus Stroman (2-1) pitched effectively for the third straight begin, permitting two runs in six innings. He took the loss regardless of having just one dangerous inning — the two-run third by which he walked two and allowed three hits.
Leading 3-1 within the eighth, the Mariners added a pair of solo dwelling runs off reliever Julian Merryweather, together with a monstrous 482-foot shot by Jarred Kelenic that landed within the higher part of the center-field bleachers. Kelenic’s homer was the longest at Wrigley since Statcast started monitoring such knowledge in 2015, surpassing a 481-foot homer by Javier Báez in 2018.
Taking two of three from a staff anticipated to contend for the American League pennant was satisfying for a Cubs staff attempting to ascertain an id.
President Jed Hoyer mentioned he didn’t wish to “draw too many conclusions” from the primary 11 video games.
“At the same time, it feels like a couple (of these) games, I don’t think we win the last couple of years, honestly,” Hoyer mentioned.
Hoyer pointed to Monday’s sport, by which the Cubs blew a lead within the ninth however got here again to win 3-2 in 10 innings, and Tuesday’s comeback from an early seven-run deficit.
“It’s easy to pack the bats in when you’re losing 7-0 and your starter in the second inning,” he mentioned. “That was a extremely spectacular win to me. I don’t keep in mind many wins like that. I felt like that was type of a personality win the place we didn’t hand over. We saved battling. That was tremendous enjoyable.
“I try not to take too much out of early April, but I like how we’re playing.”
Seiya Suzuki is anticipated to return Friday in Los Angeles, which ought to present a elevate. And Swanson’s return to the lineup Friday additionally ought to assist keep away from a sport like Wednesday’s.
Swanson rationalized his break day as a “win the war, not the battle concept,” understanding one sport out of the lineup in mid-April isn’t almost as essential as having him wholesome, mentally and bodily, for the lengthy haul.
On Tuesday he merely did what any partner would do in an analogous scenario, the distinction being each are elite athletes on the high of their professions and residing within the fishbowl of the fashionable sports activities world.
“She can’t do anything by herself, so at any point in the night or day or whatever, if something has to be done, obviously it’s my responsibility,” he mentioned. “Her mom is here, which is making it easier while I’m here (at the ballpark) right now. But it makes it a little challenging.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com