Chicago Cubs News: Rizzo, Lester lead Cubs to win; Arrieta in derby?

It seems like whenever the Chicago Cubs win, they win by a margin of at least seven to eight runs. Following a blowout victory on Saturday, Chicago kept things going with a 13 run, 16 hit performance in their final appearance at Turner Field.

If you haven’t heard, the Atlanta Braves are saying goodbye to Turner Field and will have a new stadium starting next season. Surely, some of the greats who ever stepped foot on that diamond while wearing a Braves uniform will attend the final home game of the regular season before the franchise moves to the suburbs.

But for the Chicago Cubs, it was nothing but a celebration as they hammered Atlanta’s pitching staff. Most of the guys who were penciled in as starters had at least one hit while Albert Almora entered the game as a defensive sub and came through with an RBI single of his own.

Almora has played pretty well for the first-place Cubbies who picked up win No. 43. Now, they’ll hit the road for another three-game set, this time with Bryce Harper and Dusty Baker‘s Washington Nationals in our Nation’s Capital.

More from Chicago Cubs News

• Cubs should keep close eye on non-tender candidate Cody Bellinger
• Cubs starting pitching has been thriving on the North Side
• Make no mistake: the Cubs are very much about power hitters
• Cubs: It’s time to start thinking about potential September call-ups
• Cubs: P.J. Higgins deserves to be in the lineup on a daily basis

We’ll have more on tonight’s series opener. For now, let’s turn our attentions to Jake Arrieta and Madison Bumgarner of the San Francisco Giants.

It’s no secret that these two individuals are two of the top pitchers in professional baseball. Not only can they chew through an opposing lineup, they can make a pitcher’s life miserable in the batters box as well.

Which is why Arrieta has shared his thoughts on something that a handful of pitchers have brought up. Why not let someone who has tossed a couple of no-hitters over the last year enter the Home Run Derby?

I mean, when Arrieta went deep against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the first weekend in April, it wasn’t just a wall clearing home run. That pitch traveled well over 440 ft. before landing in a fan’s glove.

According to SportsIllustrated, Arrieta stated that he and Bumgarner both love to hit. Bumgarner was launching bombs during batting practice in St. Louis. Would the league allow this? It would definitely be interesting to see.

Here are a few stories you may have missed over the weekend:

‘Cubs back Lester with 16 hits in win vs ATL‘

‘Cubs go pitch heavy in 2016 draft‘

‘How long will Almora remain with the big league club?‘

‘Cain, Pagan nearing returns for Giants‘ – Around The Foghorn

‘Phillies swept by old friend, Werth‘ – That Ball’s Outta Here