After beginning the second half of the season with an interleague victory, the Chicago Cubs will look to push their winning streak to four games on Saturday night against the visiting Boston Red Sox.
Seiya Suzuki — coming off an All-Star snub — propelled the Cubs to a 4-1 win on Friday with a three-run homer in the first inning. Suzuki now leads the National League with 80 RBIs, paired with his team-leading 26 home runs and .555 slugging percentage.
“Seiya is having a tremendous offensive season,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “You put men on base in front of him and good things seem to happen this year. We’ll keep trying to do that.
“Those guys at the top of the order are all swinging it good and it makes it tough to get through. You have to get through those guys four, five times a night and that’s what makes us a good offense.”
To Counsell’s point, Chicago’s 516 runs and 143 homers each rank second in the NL, trailing only the Los Angeles Dodgers.
On the mound, Shota Imanaga (6-3, 2.65 ERA) will look to prolong his stellar campaign for the Cubs on Saturday. A left hamstring strain placed the lefty on the injured list for nearly two months, but Imanaga has gone 3-1 with a 2.31 ERA in four starts since returning.
He allowed just one run in seven innings in Chicago’s first-half finale against the New York Yankees, a 4-1 Cubs’ win. In his lone career start against the Red Sox, Imanaga surrendered just one run in 6 1/3 innings in a 7-1 win in April 2024.
With the series-opening loss on Friday, Boston saw its 10-game winning streak snapped — the longest for the franchise since a 10-game stretch in 2018.
On a day the Red Sox produced little offense, a baserunning mistake by Abraham Toro proved crucial in the club’s first loss since July 2. With Boston trailing by two runs in the fifth, Toro was doubled off at second base by center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong to stunt a Red Sox rally.
“That fifth inning, we had a rally going and I’ve got to put the blame on me,” Toro said. “Being thrown out in a double play kills rallies. Just have to learn from it and go again tomorrow.”
Brayan Bello (6-3, 3.14) is slated to make his 17th appearance (16th start) for Boston. A winner in three consecutive starts, Bello is 3-0 with a 2.21 ERA in July.
Last time out, the 26-year-old right-hander allowed one run in 6 1/3 innings in a 4-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. Bello has faced the Cubs once in his career, throwing six innings of three-run ball in an 8-3 win in July 2023.
Boston’s pitching staff will look to continue a stretch that’s seen it go 11 straight games of allowing four runs or fewer.
–Field Level Media
