Sunday Night Baseball Recap: Man of Steele Cannot Save Cubs vs. Cards

The Chicago Cubs faced the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field for the rubber match of their five-game weekend series on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball broadcast. Sophmore Cubs starter Justin Steele took the hill for the Northsiders against Cardinals veteran Adam Wainwright.

Steele had an excellent outing, allowing two runs (only one earned) on seven hits over 7.0 IP with three walks and one punchout. He was matched by Wainwright, who allowed two earned runs on nine hits in 7.0 IP with two walks and no punchouts.

While both teams allowed three earned runs, the Cubs allowed two unearned runs, which were the margin in the Cardinals’ 5-3 victory.

One unearned run came from “ghost runner” Nolan Gorman, who scored the go-ahead run in the 11th inning on Juan Yepez‘s single. The Cardinals’ other unearned run scored in the 5th inning. With one away, Paul Goldschmidt singled to third baseman Patrick Wisdom, but Wisdom’s throw past the glove of first baseman Frank Schwindel allowed Goldschmidt and Tommy Edman to advance to second and third, respectively. The runners then scored on Nolan Arenado‘s single to center fielder Christopher Morel, tying the game at two runs apiece.

The Cubs will have a day to reflect on their series loss en route to Baltimore for a two-game interleague set starting on Tuesday at 7:05 PM ET. Keegan Thompson (6-0, 1.99 ERA in 12 appearances) will match up against Kyle Bradish (1-3, 6.82 ERA in 7 starts).

Featured Image: Chicago, Illinois – October 7, 2016. Chicago Cubs sign at Wrigley Field major league baseball team post season by Kent Weakley / Shutterstock.com.