Morning Marquee: Chicago Cubs top the Pirates behind Jason Hammel’s strong outing

Hammel sharp, Bryant knocks in two in win

There we go. That’s the

we were hoping to see for the Chicago Cubs. Hammel dominated through eight innings, having masterful control all night as he shutout the Pittsburgh Pirates on four hits while striking out seven.

continued doing Anthony Rizzo things, getting on base three times, while

stayed hot–picking up two more hits and two more RBIs. The young

picked up his first hit at home, a slow chopper to third but it counts the same.

continued his dominance as he cleaned up the ninth in order in a non-save situation.

A true baseball fan hates to hear about injuries, even if it’s to your rivals star pitcher. Adam Wainwright will miss the rest of the 2015 season after injuring his Achilles coming out of the batter’s box. Jason Motte, a former teammate, hopes to see Wainwright bounce back–but also knows this doesn’t eliminate the St. Louis Cardinals. This team has a history of replacing players with another who steps in to do the job. Matching Wainwright’s production will be tough, but it’s hard to ever count out the Cardinals.

The Cubs had an injury to a fan dampen the spirits for a second time this season. After a fan was struck by a foul ball through the netting behind home plate in Pittsburgh, Russel’s bat slipped out of his hands and hit a fan square in the face. He was treated by park medical personnel before being taken on a stretcher to a local hospital. Russel was shaken by the event, and plans to give the fan an autographed bat.

These stories and more from around baseball:

‘Hammel pitches a gem in the Cubs 4-0 win’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Motte in support of his former teammate after injury’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Injured fan dampens Addison Russel’s home debut’ – CBS.com

‘Orioles postpone game in light of safety concerns near ballpark’ – MLB.com

‘Reasons the St. Louis Cardinals will be OK’ – Redbird Rants

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