Three takeaways for the Chicago Cubs after a rough weekend series

This weekend represented one of those series the Chicago Cubs were supposed to win. Instead, they dropped two of three to the last-place Cincinnati Reds.

When you welcome the cellar-dwelling club in your own division to your home ballpark, at the very least, you expect to take two of three -or, in the case of a four-game set, split. But that’s not how things went for the Chicago Cubs this weekend, as they dropped two of three to the Cincinnati Reds in a series that saw plenty of the team’s weaknesses take center stage.

On Friday, we saw the bullpen cough up multiple leads. A late rally fell short and the Reds came away with the opener, setting the tone for much of the weekend. A Cincinnati club that made major offseason additions in hopes of being more competitive was just that – a thorn in the Cubs’ side from start-to-finish.

With right-hander Yu Darvish on the mound and the wind howling on Saturday afternoon, Chicago managed to come away with a win to even things out, coming out on top in an 8-6 slugfest at Wrigley Field. Darvish wound up being the story, for better or worse, after he went 7+ innings for the first time in his Cubs career.

Then, on Sunday, Cincinnati flat out-played Chicago, handing Joe Maddon‘s club a 10-2 loss that may have cost them more than a game in the standings. As of Monday morning, we’re still awaiting an update on Kris Bryant‘s status, after he collided with Jason Heyward in right-center field in Sunday’s loss.

So, suffice to say it wasn’t exactly the momentum-boosting weekend we’d hoped for – especially knowing the Cubs head to Houston to take on a surging Astros club this week. But here are some key takeaways that I pulled out of these last three games.

Chicago Cubs: Another tough luck injury for the 2016 NL MVP

As if losing two of three to the Cincinnati Reds wasn’t bad enough, the Cubs also lost Kris Bryant on Sunday, after he collided with Jason Heyward while the two ran down a fly ball in the alley.

“He’s doing OK. He’s still under evaluation,” Maddon said told MLB.com after the loss. “We don’t know exactly what we’re dealing with with this whole thing yet. But we’re trying to talk with the docs and him to find out exactly where we’re at. So, I don’t have anything new to report yet.”

At a bare minimum, I don’t expect to see Bryant in the Cubs lineup on Monday afternoon in Houston. In my mind, there’s no way he bounces back after undergoing concussion protocol to start less than 24 hours later – especially with his history of injuries, including head-specific ones. Don’t forget, he took a pitch off the head in Colorado last year that cost him some time, as well.

On the year, Bryant has bounced back from a slow start to become one of the Cubs’ top offensive threats once more. He ranks fourth on the team in OPS, trailing Victor Caratini (who missed a good chunk of the year due to injury), Willson Contreras and Anthony Rizzo. His 34 RBI rank second among Chicago players – and his 37 strikeouts to 33 walks stand out as a testament to just how well he’s seeing the ball.

We don’t know how long Bryant will be sidelined this time around. But Chicago fans haven’t forgotten how lost and overmatched he looked at the plate on the heels of multiple injuries last year and if he struggles after coming back from Sunday’s collision, you can bet the same Kris Bryant naysayers will be back in force in a hurry.

Chicago Cubs: Doing what needed to be done

Saturday wasn’t exactly what I’d call optimal pitching conditions. As I sat in the left field bleachers, the wind howled and I could hear the National League flags atop the center field scoreboard snapping with every gust.

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So it came as little surprise the two teams combined for 14 runs – the majority of which came via the half-dozen homers the clubs blasted on the afternoon. But that’s not what stood out to me. Rather, it was the gritty outing Yu Darvish turned in – a stark contrast from the guy who seemed mentally overmatched in many of his 2018 starts, often failing to get through five frames.

On the surface, his line from Saturday isn’t great – especially for a guy on a $126 million deal. Darvish turned in seven innings of six-run ball, allowing a dozen hits (three of which left the yard). He struck out just five and walked a pair in the victory.  But there was so much more than that in Darvish’s outing – as his teammates and manager pointed out after the contest.

“He did great,” Maddon said. “He’s pretty good at processing exactly what did occur. What occurred is he pitched well and he battled for his team and he got into the eighth inning. He’s going to walk away with that. I totally believe that.”

Was it pretty? Not really. But you know what, he knuckled down when his team’s bullpen was dangerously shorthanded and did enough to help the Cubs even up the series at a game apiece. The numbers don’t look great, but this was the first time we’ve seen Darvish focus and put his team on his back in the way we all hoped he would when he signed in Chicago two winters ago.

This weekend didn’t bring the results we’d hoped for and the Cubs’ lead in the National League Central is down to 1 1/2 games entering play Monday. But the lessons we can all take away from this series could pay dividends as we head into the month of June and toward the second half.