Game Recap: PCA delivers go-ahead homer as Cubs top Angels

Kirby Lee - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese · Senior Writer · 3 hours ago

ANAHEIM - It may not have come easy, but the Chicago Cubs (74-55) found a way to get a win, and it came against the Los Angeles Angels (61-67) on the road. Once again, it was the Cubs struggling to find their footing against a left-handed pitcher as Tyler Anderson carved them up most of the game, putting that much more pressure on the Cubs and their staff to do the same.

Not only did they do that, but they did that in a big way as Javier Assad returned from AAA to deliver his best start of the season, and that has to be a good sign for the Cubs. All it took for the Cubs to get things done was a pair of homers from two struggling hitters as both Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong went deep to put an end to prolonged homerless droughts.

It was the Crow-Armstrong homer that was the difference as he took Kenley Jansen deep in the ninth to break a 2-2 tie and lifted the Cubs to a huge 3-2 win. As has been the case for a while now, the Cubs continue to struggle against left-handed pitching, and things were no different against Anderson, who has dominated the Cubs in the past.

This was one of those games where he didn't last as long as he would've liked, going just five innings and striking out five, but with two runs allowed on three hits, he did more than enough to get the win. The only problem was that Assad was slightly better as the Cubs ' right-hander finally looked like himself in just his third start back from the IL.

For the first time all season, Assad managed to not only pitch into the fifth, but also got through six innings, allowing just one solo homer and striking out four. Those games are rare for him when you consider the amount of traffic he tends to allow, so that was a promising start in the right direction for what hopes to be a strong finish for him.

It didn't take the Cubs long to grab the lead as Kyle Tucker took Anderson deep in the first to put the Cubs on top 1-0. For Tucker, that was his first homer since June 19, and his first extra-base hit in August, as things have been a struggle for him since the All-Star break. Is that the hit that turns things around for him and gets him back on track because the Cubs desperately need him to be the Tucker from the first three months.

That homer was the only hit of the game through the first two innings, but it was in the third when the Cubs had their chance to break things open, and it came off some rare command issues from Anderson. Two batters into the third, and the Cubs had a pair of runners as Anderson walked Dansby Swanson and Matt Shaw to start things off. Nico Hoerner followed that up with a single, and just like that, the Cubs had the bases loaded with no outs.

These are the situations where Chicago has struggled in this season, and with Tucker striking out following that single, Anderson was in a position to escape that jam with no runs allowed if he could find a way to get a double play. To his credit, he managed to limit the damage the best he could, but the Cubs still picked up another run on a Seiya Suzuki sacrifice fly that gave them a 2-0 lead.

Normally, two runs isn't enough when Assad is on the mound, but with no hits allowed through four and minimal baserunners, the Cubs were in a great position to win this game as he was doing his part on the bump. It took the Angels five innings to grab their first hit, and that hit came in style with Yoan Moncada leading off the top of the fifth with a solo shot to pull the Angels to within 2-1.

Jo Adell would follow that with a single only to have Assad pick up a massive double play as those were the only two hits the Angels would have off the right-hander. After wasting a leadoff double from Swanson in the fifth, the Cubs had a chance to add to their lead in the sixth with a pair of walks, but couldn't come through with the clutch hit to get the job done.

For as dominant as Assad was through five innings, you could see signs of fatigue setting in during the sixth as Assad began to labor on the mound. The result was a two out walk and hit by pitch to set the Angels up, only to have Assad close out his outing with a massive strikeout as he turned things over to the Cubs pen with the hopes of them securing the win.

First out for Chicago was Andrew Kittredge, who, apart from his one bad outing, has been nails for the Cubs since he was acquired at the deadline. Talk about a massive game for someone who has had massive games against the Cubs in the past. Two innings after putting the Angels on the board for the first time, it was Moncada delivering again as his second solo blast of the game tied things up 2-2 and took a win away from Assad.

That was the most challenging part of the whole night for the Cubs, as their continued lack of offense puts so much pressure on the pitching staff to be perfect that the margin for error is unbelievably slim. Still, that doesn't bother the Cubs' pitching as Kittredge, combined with Brad Keller and Daniel Palencia, didn't allow a hit the rest of the way, putting the pressure back on the offense to do their part.

What better way to come through than against a guy who has given the Cubs plenty of nightmares in the past when he was with the Dodgers in Jansen. Not the guy he was back in the day, Jansen is still one of the game's best closers and is someone the Cubs looked into targeting at the deadline the past few seasons.

Like Tucker in the first, sometimes all it takes is one big hit in a key moment to turn a season around, and perhaps the solo shot from Crow-Armstrong in the ninth will be that hit for him as PCA delivered the game-winning blast off Jansen in the ninth to put the Cubs on top 3-2. Palenica took care of the rest, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning to secure the save and handed the Cubs their sixth win in their last nine games.