Chicago Cubs Ian Happ (right) is congratulated by third base coach Willie Harris (left) after Happ’s solo home run in the bottom of the fourth against the San Francisco Giants Wed Jun 19, 2024 (AP News photo)

Wednesday, June 19, 2024

Wrigley Field

Chicago, Illinois

San Francisco Giants 5 (36-39)

Chicago Cubs 6 (36-39)

Win: Kyle Hendricks (1-4)

Loss: Spencer Bivens (1-1)

Save: Colten Brewer (1)

Time: 2:45

Attendance: 37,673

By Stephen Ruderman

The wind once again blew out on another hot day at Wrigley Field, and the Giants’ offense made Kyle Hendricks look like the Hendricks of old, as the Cubs scored six runs off the Giants’ bullpen to take the series with a 6-5 win.

After a rough and surreal night last night at historic Wrigley Field, in which the great Willie Mays passed away and the Giants lost the second game of this series, the Giants would be right back at it Wednesday afternoon in the rubber match of this three-game series. Willie would be with the Giants in spirit Wednesday afternoon.

The Giants added a back memorial patch for Willie to the left chest of their jersey that should be assumed will be worn by the team the rest of the season. The circular black patch, surrounded by an orange outline, has Mays’ number 24 in orange, as well as “Mays” name in orange.

The Giants also had a jersey with Mays’ number 24 on the back in their dugout this afternoon. Oh, and the wind was still blowing out to center field at the historic ballpark where Willie played as a visiting player throughout his career.

As the Giants looked to take the series today, they had everything in their favor. It was 91 degrees at Wrigley Field; the wind was blowing straight out to center field; and they were facing the veteran, Kyle Hendricks, who came into Wednesday’s game 0-4 with an 8.20 ERA. The stars were aligned for the Giants’ home-run happy offense to explode.

Hendricks, the long remaining Cub from their 2016 world championship team that ended 108 years of suffering for the Cubs in their fans, took the mound for the top of the first inning. Hendricks walked Heliot Ramos with one out, but he struck out the other three hitters he faced.

For the Giants, this would be another one of those bullpen games. The flame-throwing lefty, Erik Miller, was the Giants’ opener Wednesday afternoon, and he walked one and struck out two over a scoreless and hitless bottom of the first.

Speaking of hitless, that’s exactly what the Giants were against Hendricks for the first half of this game. Hendricks, the 34-year-old veteran pitching in his 11th year in the big leagues, may have come into this game with an 8.20 ERA, but today, the Giants’ offense made him look like the Hendricks of old.

The Giants were hitless through five innings, and Hendricks retired 14-straight after his one-out walk to Ramos in the top of the first.

As for the Giants’ pitching front, Spencer Bivens, coming off his day for the ages on Sunday in which he got the win in his major league debut after a long and arduous journey to the big leagues, came in to pitch for San Francisco in the bottom of the second.

Ian Happ greeted Bivens with a ground-rule double to center to lead off the bottom of the second, but Bivens retired the side in order immediately afterwards. In the bottom of the third, Bivens again had to deal with a runner in scoring position with nobody out. This time, he had the bases loaded with nobody out.

Cody Bellinger was the man Bivens had to face with the bases juiced. Bivens got Bellinger to hit a chopper back to the mound that Bivens threw home to get Pete Crow-Armstrong for the first out of the inning, but Bellinger was called safe at first by First Base Umpire Cory Blaser on the back end of the potential double play.

It was a bang-bang play at first, which prompted Bob Melvin to challenge it. The play was overturned, and indeed it was a double play. Christopher then hit a shot back to the mound that glanced off Bivens’ right pitching hand, and went to shortstop Brett Wisely, who retired Morel to end the inning.

Somehow, Bivens got out of the bottom of the third unscathed, and his pitching hand was good enough for him to come back out for the bottom of the fourth. However, Ian Happ and Dansby Swanson hit back-to-back home runs to start the bottom of the fourth. Bivens then walked Michael Busch, and Melvin pulled Bivens for Sean Hjelle.

Unlike his major league debut Sunday, Bivens faced a far-superior offense and team in the Cubs. In two-plus innings, Bivens gave up two runs and counting, five hits and two walks. However, Bivens was able to work out of a pair of jams before the long ball finally got him in the bottom of the fourth.

Hjelle was now in the game with a runner on first and still nobody out in the bottom of the fourth. Miguel Amaya singled Busch over to second, and that brought up Pete Crow-Armstrong.

Counsell had Crow-Armstrong lay down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners over to second and third, but when third-baseman Matt Chapman came in to field the bunt, he bobbled it and then ended up throwing it away. Busch scored; Amaya went to third; and Crow-Armstong went to second.

The Cubs now led 3-0, and they had a chance to blow this thing open. Somehow, Hjelle got out of the inning without any more damage. Hjelle ended up retiring six-straight, as he threw a 1-2-3 bottom of the fifth.

The Giants finally got their first pitch off Cy Hendricks when Thairo Estrada led off the sixth inning with a double to left. Trenton Brooks flew out to left, and Wisely reached on a bunt single that moved Estrada over to third. The white-hot Heliot Ramos came up, and he beat out the back end of a near double play to knock in Estrada and put the Giants on the board.

Counsell pulled Hendricks, who was certainly on his game Wednesday. In five and two thirds innings pitched, Hendricks gave up just a run and two hits, while walking just one and striking out eight.

Hendricks was replaced by the now-longtime veteran left-hander, Drew Smyly. Smyly pitched for the Giants in 2020, but he’s been around so long that he pitched against the Giants as a member of the Detroit Tigers way back in the 2012 World Series.

Anyway, the Giants looked to tie the game against Smyly, as Patrick Bailey singled Ramos over to second. However, Smyly struck Chapman out swinging to end the inning. Left-hander Taylor Rogers pitched a scoreless bottom of the sixth for the Giants, and Smyly was back out on the mound for the Cubs in the top of the seventh.

Austin Slater pinch-hit for Michael Conforto and drew a walk to start the inning. Jorge Soler struck out swinging, and then Mike Yastrzemski singled Slater over to second. Thairo Estrada was now at the plate with runners at first and second with one out.

Smyly fell behind in the count 3-0, but Home Plate Umpire Nestor Ceja called the next two pitches, which were both a bit off the outside corner, strikes to fill the count up to 3-2. Then, two pitches later, Smyly threw a beautiful knuckle curve on the outside corners at the top of the zone for strike three.

Wilmer Flores flew out to center, and this ended up being yet another wasted opportunity by the Giants’ offense. The Cubs kept their 3-1 lead, as Spencer Howard came in for San Francisco in the bottom of the seventh.

Nico Hoerner led off the inning with a ground-rule double to right. Seiya Suzuki struck out on a foul tip. Cody Bellinger got Hoerner to third on an infield single, and Christopher Morel walked to load the bases. Ian Happ struck out swinging, and Howard now had a chance to get out of the inning unscathed.

Dansby Swanson came up and lined a base-hit to left that scored a pair to extend the Cubs’ lead to 5-1. Swanson then tried to steal second and was caught in a rundown, but when shortstop Brett Wisely threw to first-baseman Wilmer Flores as Swanson tried to return to first, Flores dropped the ball, and Morel scored to make it 6-1.

Swanson was at second, as the Cubs looked to make this baby a laugher. Michael Busch lined a base-hit to left that spat out of Austin Slater’s glove, and at this point, this inning was turning into a blooper reel. Mercifully for the Giants, the deficit stayed 6-1 going to the eighth.

The wind was still blowing out to center field as the game went to the eighth. Mark Leiter Jr. was the new pitcher for Chicago. Brett Wisely singled to lead off the inning, and after Ramos and Bailey grounded into force outs, Chapman and Slater walked to load the bases for Jorge Soler.

After struggling with runners on base all season long, Soler finally started finding success with runners on last week. Now, here he was with the bases loaded, and if he could run into one, it would suddenly be a brand-new ballgame.

Counsell brought in Tyson Miller, and Soler hit an absolute bomb to left field that was headed for Waveland Avenue, but hit off the “nUTRL” sign above the bleachers out in left. It would’ve been cool had the ball made it all the way to Waveland, but it ultimately didn’t matter where the ball landed; it was now a 6-5 game, and the Giants were right back in it.

Ryan Walker threw a 1-2-3 shutdown inning in the bottom of the eighth, and the Giants would try to create some ninth inning magic against Colten Brewer, the man who Craig Counsell brought in to try and convert the save this afternoon.

Estrada grounded out to third to start the inning, but Flores walked and was pinch-run for by Nick Ahmed. Brett Wisely also walked, and the Giants had the man they wanted at the plate in Heliot Ramos. Ramos hit a slow shopper up the middle, but shortstop Dansby Swanson made a nice play to barely get Ramos at first for the second out.

Ramos did move the runners over to second and third, and if Patrick Bailey could come through, there was a good chance the Giants would have the lead. Unfortunately, Bailey grounded out to second to end the game, and the Cubs held on to win it 6-5.

Kyle Harrison very fittingly got his first win of the season against the Giants. Spencer Bivens got the win in his major league debut on Sunday, but here today in his second big league outing, he took the loss. Colten Brewer, meanwhile, got his first save of the year.

The Giants fall back to three games under .500 at 36-39, and they will now head to Birmingham, Alabama for a special game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field on Thursday, the first major league park that Willie Mays called home.

The Giants will be the road team, and the Cardinals will be the home team. Keaton Winn (3-7, 6.66 ERA) will be the Thursday lucky man, who will have the honor of being the starting pitcher for the Giants in this game . Opposing Winn for the Cardinals will be Andre Pallante (2-3, 4.61 ERA).

First pitch will be at 7:15 p.m. in Birmingham, and 4:15 p.m. back home in San Francisco on Thursday night. The game will be nationally televised on FOX, and the Giants announced just Wednesday that Oracle Park will open at noon Thursday for fans to come pay tribute to Willie and watch the game on the scoreboard.