Chicago Cubs: Key takeaways from Cubs' Game 1 loss

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A wait of more than seven decades drew to a close on Tuesday night, but the Chicago Cubs’ first World Series appearance since 1945 did little to calm the fears of fans in the Windy City of another postseason collapse.

Chicago Cubs’ veteran ace Jon Lester ran into trouble early, surrendering two runs in the bottom of the first. Despite Cleveland hitting just one ball out of the infield, Indians right-hander Corey Kluber set a big-league postseason record with eight strikeouts through the first three innings.

And, on multiple occasions, the Chicago Cubs’ offense failed to capitalize with runners in scoring position. For those of you who didn’t tune in, seeing a 6-0 final or reading through the endless stream of tweets Wednesday morning would be enough to spell doom for the Cubs.

Much the same as when Chicago fell behind Los Angeles two-games-to-one in the NLCS, the naysayers have been out in full force since Tuesday night.

Despite what those individuals are saying, this series is far from over. Chicago will hand the ball to the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner in Game 2 Wednesday with a lineup aiming to do one thing – score often and early.

Here are some takeaways from Tuesday fans should keep an eye on as Cleveland and Chicago do battle for the last time before the series shifts back to Wrigley Field on Friday.

Oct 25, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Chicago Cubs center fielder Dexter Fowler at bat against the Cleveland Indians in the first inning in game one of the 2016 World Series at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Top of the order woes

Dexter Fowler, Kris Bryant, and Anthony Rizzo went a combined 0-for-11 with four strikeouts and a walk against the combination of Kluber, Andrew Miller, and Cody Allen. By contrast, the 4-5-6 bats of Ben Zobrist, Kyle Schwarber, and Javier Baez went 5-for-11 (.455) – carrying the bulk of the Cubs’ offense.

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Rizzo should fare better against the Indians’ Game 2 starter Trevor Bauer. On the year his OPS against righties is almost 150 points higher than against southpaws and he also clubbed 24 of his 32 long-balls against right-handed pitching.

Bryant is, in my mind, the least of the Cubs’ worries. He’s been one of the few offensive bright spots for Chicago thus far in the postseason and he’s been quick on his feet when adjusting to mistakes in past games. The key is the man who sets the table in Fowler.

The 30-year-old center fielder has been the catalyst for the Chicago Cubs’ offense all season long. His .393 on-base percentage set a new career-high and his success has had a direct correlation to the team winning.

In wins during the regular season, Fowler batted .310 with a .433 OBP. On the other hand (much like we saw on Tuesday in the series opener), his OPS fell nearly 300 points in Chicago losses, making the Joe Maddon-ism of “you go, we go,” all the more accurate.

Oct 25, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Chicago Cubs catcher David Ross (3) reacts after striking out against the Cleveland Indians in the 7th inning in game one of the 2016 World Series at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /

Clutch hitting is key

Chicago went just 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position against the Indians’ trio of Kluber-Miller-Allen. Meanwhile, Cleveland went a somewhat more respectable 2-for-9, capitalizing on four walks and a key Jon Lester hit-by-pitch as part of a two-run first.

The big storyline offensively for the Indians was backstop Roberto Perez, who clubbed a pair of home runs to pace the bats against Lester and the Cubs’ pen. Perez and third baseman Jose Ramirez, both of whom have burst onto the scene in 2016, combined for six hits and five runs batted in.

On the other side of the diamond, the only Chicago player to manage more than a lone base hit was Zobrist, who is looking to win his second-straight Fall Classic after playing with the Kansas City Royals in 2015.

More than anything, the Cubs limited their own chances to win the opener, striking out 15 times over the course of the evening, making Kluber and Miller look more dominant than ever at times.

That being said, the team did manage seven base hits – which, if you’ll all look back to Game 2 of the NLCS, makes me feel far better than the measly two knocks Chicago put together against Clayton Kershaw.

Oct 25, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Pedro Strop throws a pitch against the Cleveland Indians in the 6th inning in game one of the 2016 World Series at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /

Battle of the Bullpens

Let’s look at the body of work for the two teams’ pens in the opener:
Chicago: 2.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
Cleveland: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

If not for a badly-hung breaking ball from Hector Rondon in the eighth, Game 1 may very well have wound up a 3-0 game. That being said, that’s not how things played out and the box score looks a bit more lopsided in Wednesday’s newspapers.

The exploits of Andrew Miller earned him American League Championship Series MVP honors. Terry Francona has done little to hide the fact he plans on riding that left arm to a World Series title, along with a potential three-start series from Kluber.

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The Cubs will have to capitalize on clutch opportunities moving forward to shift the momentum back in their favor before the series returns to the Confines this weekend. The positive news was two hits and a pair of walks against Miller Tuesday night – but despite loading the bases with nobody out late – Chicago came up empty yet again.

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