July 9, "It was a well-played series, and we had a chance to do what we wanted to do and failed," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.

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1 July 9, 2015 Cubs.com Cubs stunned by Cards with one strike to go By Carrie Muskat and Jenifer Langosch CHICAGO Jhonny Peralta belted a two-run homer with two outs in the ninth to power the Cardinals to a 6-5 come-from-behind victory over the Cubs Wednesday night at Wrigley Field and split the four-game series. "It was a well-played series, and we had a chance to do what we wanted to do and failed," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. Peralta lined a 1-2 pitch from Pedro Strop into the basket rimming the left-field bleachers for his 12th homer, driving in pinch-runner Pete Kozma. Matt Carpenter had walked with two outs, and was lifted for Kozma. "I think every win can be huge, but sometimes the way in which you do it definitely adds a little of emphasis," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. "Man, I just love when these guys don't give up. I don't know if I get any more of a charge out of this game than seeing guys get knocked down and watch how they respond, and see who steps up and does something special." The Cubs were one strike away from taking the series after opening a 5-4 lead with two outs in the sixth on Miguel Montero's three-run double. Both Matheny and catcher Yadier Molina were ejected after that hit. Molina didn't like some of home-plate umpire Pat Hoberg's calls during Montero's at-bat, and was tossed. Matheny came out to defend his catcher. "It was like that all night," Molina said of what the Cardinals thought was a tight strike zone by Hoberg. "He's a young umpire, and he needs to figure out a better strike zone." Dan Johnson, promoted from Triple-A Memphis Wednesday to help the Cardinals' offense, hit a pair of RBI singles to open a 4-0 lead. Cardinals starter Michael Wacha also helped himself with a pair of hits, including an RBI single in the second. Chicago had to scramble when starter Jason Hammel exited after one inning because of a hamstring injury. The All- Star break may be coming at the right time. MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Hammel time: This was Hammel's 17th start of the season, but it didn't last long as the right-hander was lifted after throwing 12 pitches in the first inning because of left hamstring tightness. Hammel said he felt pain after his second pitch yet finished the inning, striking out Peralta to end the first. Hammel will have an MRI on Thursday. "It's very frustrating," Hammel said. "Hopefully it's just a strain or something like that and easily treatable and the silver lining is it's the All-Star break. It's probably the best timing for it to happen."

2 Jhonny, be gone: Peralta's team-leading 12th home run was arguably his biggest yet this year. Down to his final strike, Peralta drove a fastball from Strop into the left-field bleachers to keep the Cardinals from dropping a third straight game. The game-winning homer gave the Cardinals their 10th final at-bat win of the year and just their second victory when trailing after eight innings. "I have a lot of hits in my career, but that was one of my best," said Peralta, who had been homerless since June 21. "It is a good moment for me right now." Said Strop: "I knew he got good wood it was a hard sound. I didn't think it was going to go out. It was a good pitch I really don't know how he hit it." Opportunity knocks: The Cubs' two All-Stars, Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant, combined for a run in the fourth when Rizzo singled and scored on Bryant's triple. One out later, Bryant tallied on Starlin Castro's infield hit, aided when Wacha didn't cover first base on the play. For Bryant, it was his 50th RBI, tops among Major League rookies this season. In the sixth, they loaded the bases as Dexter Fowler, Rizzo and Jorge Soler each singled with one out. Wacha struck out Castro but Montero lined the go-ahead double into the gap in right-center. "It was a good at-bat, but at the end it doesn't mean anything," Montero said of his double. "We lost the game." Bottom's up: The bottom four spots in the Cardinals' lineup keyed the offense, with Johnson delivering a pair of RBI singles, Randal Grichuk scoring twice and Wacha recording the first multi-hit game of his career. Wacha also drove in one, while Mark Reynolds reached twice and hit his second triple of the season. The four spots combined for six of the team's first seven hits. "You bring up another guy and give him opportunities, and next thing you know he's facing a lefty and mixing in two RBI singles right off the bat," Matheny said of Johnson's Cardinals debut. "That's something that we've really been hoping for, guys to get into those big situations." QUOTABLE "The Cubs, big division games. Any win against the division is huge for us. That homer was pretty big for us. It gives us a little happy flight going into Pittsburgh, and hopefully we can take care of business there." Wacha, on the Cards salvaging a series split "We did so many good things tonight. I can't walk away and be all upset. Of course, Strop would have liked to made a better pitch there and he didn't. Peralta's pretty good, and he hit a home run. It happens. Regardless of who it happened against, I know I'll keep repeating the refrain that we can play with anybody. We proved it the last four days and we'll continue to move forward." Cubs manager Joe Maddon. SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Wednesday was the Cubs' 34th one-run game of the season, most in the Major Leagues. They're now in those games, and the 19 wins also are tops in MLB. The Cardinals are in such games. PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT The Cardinals' pitchers will be gathering for extra PFP (pitchers' fielding practice) work during their upcoming series in Pittsburgh after making a series of defensive mistakes. In Tuesday's doubleheader, both Miguel Socolovich and Kevin Siegrist sailed throws into the outfield on potential double play balls. On Wednesday, Wacha had two defensive lapses. He didn't cover first on a ground ball to the first baseman Johnson in the fourth and then compounded the sixth with his inability to field a ball back at him. REPLAY REVIEW

3 The Cubs had runners at first and third with one out in the eighth when Castro hit a ball to left that was called foul. Maddon challenged the call, but after review, it was confirmed. Castro then struck out. WHAT'S NEXT Cardinals: The Cardinals will wrap up the first half with a key four-game series in Pittsburgh that begins with a 6:05 pm CT game on Thursday. Carlos Martinez, one of the five National League players in the Final Vote competition, will vie for his 10th win of the season and first career victory over the Pirates. Cubs: After an off-day Thursday, the Cubs will play host to their crosstown rivals, the White Sox, in a three-game Interleague series. Kyle Hendricks will start on Friday, facing the White Sox for the first time. He's coming off his first win this season at Wrigley Field in which he threw 7 1/3 shutout innings against the Marlins. First pitch is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. CT. Cubs.com It's Rizzo-Donaldson, Bryant-Pujols in Home Run Derby By Carrie Muskat CHICAGO If Cubs manager Joe Maddon had his way, Monday's 2015 Gillette Home Run Derby presented by Head & Shoulders will end in a tie between his two young sluggers, Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant. Rizzo and Bryant were announced as part of the field on Wednesday. It will be held at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati the day before the All-Star Game presented by T-Mobile. "We're just going into it to have fun," Bryant said. "Cincinnati is such a good hitter's park. I get to watch [Rizzo] every day in [batting practice] and it's pretty special. Hopefully, I win it, but if he wins, that's great, too." They're the first Cubs to participate in the event since Sammy Sosa did so Sosa won it in Rizzo leads the Cubs with 16 home runs, Bryant has 12 in his rookie season. "I prefer that they both win," Maddon said. "If there's such a thing as a tie and they both win, I'll take it." The Cubs manager had said he'd prefer neither take part, but acknowledged that both were excited about the chance. "I knew their preference," Maddon said. "I think they'll handle it properly. If there's ever been a tie for the winner, I'd like it to be this year." Rizzo and Bryant will compete along with the Reds' Todd Frazier and two-time champ Prince Fielder of the Rangers. Others in the field include Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson, who was MLB's leading vote-getter for the 2015 All-Star Game; Orioles third baseman Manny Machado; Dodgers rookie outfielder Joc Pederson; and three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols of the Angels. This year's event will introduce a new streamlined format featuring brackets and timed rounds. Brackets in the first round were seeded based on 2015 home run totals through Tuesday's games. The first-round matchups will include No. 1 seed Pujols vs. No. 8 seed Bryant; No. 2 seed Frazier vs. No. 7 seed Fielder; No. 3 seed Donaldson vs. No. 6 seed Rizzo; and No. 4 seed Pederson vs. No. 5 seed Machado. Bryant, the sixth rookie to compete in the Derby, will have his father, Mike, a former Minor League pitcher in the Red Sox system, throw to him, while Rizzo will try to get an edge with Cubs coach Franklin Font. "I'm looking forward to experiencing that with my dad not many kids can say they had their dad pitch to him in the Home Run Derby," Bryant said.

4 Said Rizzo: "It's going to be exciting. Kris and I will really enjoy it; I think everyone that will participate will enjoy it. It's something I watched growing up as a kid, and participated in a few, and it's going to be awesome." Rizzo has hit six home runs in 88 at-bats over 23 games at Great American Ball Park; Bryant has none in two games there. "It's going to be fun [to go with Bryant], just soak it all in," said Rizzo, who is an All-Star for the second straight year. "I'm going to do the same thing [as last year] and enjoy it. You never know if you'll ever go again, if anyone will ever go again, so just have as much fun as you can." The two planned to discuss some hitting strategy before the Home Run Derby. Bryant's father throws batting practice to him in the offseason, so this won't be anything new, just a bigger stage. "It's batting practice, so we'll have fun with it," Rizzo said. Cubs.com Hammel to have MRI on hamstring By Carrie Muskat CHICAGO Cubs starter Jason Hammel will undergo an MRI on his left hamstring after he was forced out of Wednesday's game because of pain he felt on the second pitch of the game. Hammel was removed after throwing 12 pitches in the first inning with tightness in his left hamstring, and will have the exam on Thursday. The Cubs led 5-4 after eight innings but the Cardinals rallied on Jhonny Peralta's two-run home run in the ninth to post a 6-5 victory, and split the four-game series. "Right when I landed [on the second pitch]," Hammel said of the pain. "I've always been a stiff front leg guy landing, and I felt a sharp pain in the back of the knee. MRI tomorrow, and we'll figure out exactly what it is." Hammel said the pain was enough that he shut himself down. "Every pitch afterword got tighter and tighter and more painful," he said. Hammel did retire the side in order in the first, and pulled up when Matt Carpenter hit a grounder to first baseman Anthony Rizzo for the second out. Before Jorge Soler's at-bat in the Cubs' first, Chicago manager Joe Maddon gave home-plate umpire Pat Hoberg a heads up that Hammel was injured. Clayton Richard took over in the second. This was Hammel's 17th start of the season, and not how he wanted to end the first half. "It's very frustrating," Hammel said. "Tomorrow morning, hopefully, I can find out some good news. Hopefully, it's just a strain or something like that and easily treatable and the silver lining is it's the All-Star break. It's probably the best timing for it to happen." Cubs.com Cubs look to protect their turf against White Sox By Greg Garno Call it whatever you want: the Crosstown Classic, Windy City Showdown or the Red Line Series, Chicago kicks off its three-game intercity matchup when the White Sox travel to the North Side to face the Cubs beginning on Friday.

5 The South Siders took three of four games in the series last year to reclaim the Crosstown Cup, extending their series lead to The rivalry has existed long before both teams began playing Interleague ball in 1997, going back to 1900 when the Saint Paul Saints moved to Chicago and were forced to move to the South Side, away from Wrigley Field. "Coming from the American League I've known [the White Sox] for a long time, I know what they're all about," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon. "But it will be exciting to see this rivalry firsthand." Maddon enters the rivalry in his first year at Chicago, but he's not the only one new to the rivalry. Neither starter for Friday's game, the Cubs' Kyle Hendricks and Carlos Rodon of the White Sox, has faced his respective opponent. Hendricks didn't see the White Sox last year, playing only the last half of the year. He enters following back-to-back quality starts without having allowed a run in that time. Rodon continues through his rookie campaign, but the North Carolina native won't be overwhelmed with the history of the rivalry and playing at Wrigley. "I thought about pitching in Atlanta," Rodon said. "I don't think about it much. I guess it's a pretty big deal but it's still baseball. We are going to go in there and try to win some games and play well." Things to know about this game This year, each team enters the series on a different side of the standings. The White Sox have one of the three worst winning percentages in the American League while the Cubs hold the National League's second Wild Card spot. Hendricks has been most successful at home this season. He caries a 3.29 ERA compared to a 4.42 mark on the road and has held batters a.223 average. Rodon has allowed 17 runs across his last four starts and has raised his ERA from 2.66 to 4.18 in that span. Cubs.com Maddon finds positives in Cubs' loss By Carrie Muskat CHICAGO It felt like October at Wrigley Field on Wednesday. The crowd of 37,993 was loud, and the Cubs were one out away from taking three of four from their division rivals, the Cardinals, who boast the best record in baseball. Chicago led 5-4 thanks to Miguel Montero's three-run double with two outs in the sixth, and Pedro Strop retired the first two batters in the ninth, but then walked Matt Carpenter on four pitches. "I wanted to get him out," Strop said of Carpenter, who is second on the Cardinals in RBIs but in an offensive funk. "I lost my command a little bit, but I wasn't pitching around him. I was trying to get him out." Montero had a quick chat on the mound with Strop. "I tried to settle him down," Montero said. "He got two outs real quick, and then he tried to do too much. You've got Carpenter hitting, and he's a good hitter but he's not swinging the bat well lately. You really don't want to walk that guy you want to get him to hit the ball. Those pitches weren't even close." Strop's first pitch to Jhonny Peralta was a called strike, and the right-hander was ahead 1-2 when the Cardinals shortstop drove a fastball into the mist just far enough to land in the basket rimming the left-field bleachers. That home run was all St. Louis needed for a 6-5 come-from-behind win, and a split for the four-game series.

6 "I knew he got good wood it was a hard sound," Strop said. "I didn't think it was going to go out. It was a good pitch I really don't know how he hit it." Said Peralta: "I have a lot of hits in my career, but that was one of my best." It's one of the worst for the Cubs, who were coming off a confidence-boosting doubleheader sweep of the Cardinals on Tuesday. The calendar may have read July 8, but Cubs manager Joe Maddon was wearing a parka to cope with the 63 degree game-time temperature. He's trying to prepare his players for close, competitive games like Wednesday's, and neither the weather nor the outcome dampened his spirits. "We proved again tonight we can play with these guys," Maddon said. "We have to execute a pitch, and we didn't do that. "We did so many good things," he said. "I can't walk away and be all upset. Of course, Strop would have liked to made a better pitch there and he didn't. Peralta's pretty good and he hit a home run. It happens. Regardless of who it happened against, I'll keep repeating the refrain that we can play with anybody. We proved it the last four days and we'll continue to move forward." Strop had served up a game-winning home run to Greg Garcia on June 26 in St. Louis, the third blast off the righthander this season. Peralta's was the fourth. "It's a tough one to swallow," Montero said. "Those are the games you have to win, especially when you have two outs, nobody on." With the win, the Cardinals lead the season series, 9-4. Just when the Cubs thought they'd gained some ground on the Central Division leaders, they find themselves 8 1/2 games back. "We should've won tonight," Chicago starter Jason Hammel said. "They stole one at the end. We're very confident in what we can do. It's not that we're surprised we know we're a good team and we've been playing good ball all year. We've played close ballgames and won a lot of them, too." Not this time. Some might say the Cubs did well to split against the Cardinals. "Not really," Strop said. "We had this one. Two outs in the ninth with two strikes, it doesn't seem like we should split we should get that one." Cubs.com Rizzo keeps getting hit, doesn't hit back By Carrie Muskat CHICAGO If Anthony Rizzo is upset at being hit by a pitch 18 times this season, he hasn't shown it. The Cubs first baseman set the modern day franchise record for being plunked the most times on Tuesday. "He has not cried, he doesn't point fingers, he's been fine," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said of Rizzo. "He's done everything properly as far as I'm concerned." Rizzo does stand over the plate and prefers not to wear any protective arm guards, which Maddon says is unique. Does the Cubs manager think Rizzo has been hit intentionally at all? "Yeah, I've seen it once or twice," Maddon said, preferring not to elaborate. What will Maddon do during the All-Star break? "I like to go into shutdown mode," he said. "I really enjoy doing nothing for those few days."

7 Jason Motte, who finished both games in Tuesday's doubleheader against the Cardinals, was not available on Wednesday. At least, Maddon hoped not to have to use the right-hander. Maddon recalled back-to-back doubleheaders in 1985 his Midland team played back-to-back doubleheaders against the San Antonio Mission Dodgers. Pitcher Todd Fischer picked up four saves, one in each game. "He's still in San Antone," quipped Maddon. ESPNChicago.com Ninth-inning loss leaves Cubs feeling philosophical By John Jackson CHICAGO Following a loss that was worthy of the agony-of-defeat portion of the opening on ABC's "Wide World of Sports," Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon strolled into the interview in Wrigley Field on Wednesday night with a smile. The Cubs, after losing starter Jason Hammel to tightness in his left hamstring in the second inning and trailing by four runs, rallied to take the lead late. They were one strike away from perhaps the most rousing victory of the surprising first half of the season when disaster struck. Reliever Pedro Strop left a fastball up and over the plate and Jhonny Peralta hammered the mistake into the leftfield bleachers for a two-run home run to totally flip the script. Instead of a signature victory, the Cubs had a crushing 6-5 defeat to the rival St. Louis Cardinals. So why exactly was Maddon smiling? "That's baseball," he said. "We had to execute a pitch. We didn't do that, thus they win the game. We made a mistake at the end of the game, but we did so many good things tonight. "For me, I can't walk away and be all upset. Of course, Stropy would have liked to have made a better pitch. He didn't. Peralta's pretty good and he hit a home run. It happens. Regardless of who it happened against, we can play with anybody and we proved that these last four games." Strop (1-4) was trying to close out the game because Jason Motte was unavailable because of a heavy recent workload. With the Cubs clinging to a 5-4 lead after rallying for three runs in the sixth inning, Strop quickly retired the first two batters before issuing a walk to Matt Carpenter. Strop then got ahead of Peralta 1-2 before the mistake. The Cubs players didn't seem to take the loss as well as their manager. "It is tough, especially against a team from our division and we're trying to catch those guys," Strop said. "Of course, it was a tough one to swallow. Two outs, two strikes, it's really tough. That's one of those times you understand baseball is tough. It's not as easy as it looks on TV." Catcher Miguel Montero was in line to be the hero after his three-run, two-out double in the sixth gave Chicago a 5-4 lead, but he was in no mood to discuss his hit afterward. "It was a good at-bat, but in the end it doesn't mean anything," he said. "We lost the game." Like everyone else, Montero replayed the top of the ninth in his mind.

8 "[Strop] got two outs real quick and then he just tried to do too much," Montero said. "Carpenter is a good hitter but he's not swinging the bat well of late, so you really don't want to walk that guy. You want to try to get him to hit the ball. Those pitches weren't even close. A two-out walk will hunt you down." So instead of winning three of four from the National League Central-leading Cardinals, the Cubs had to settle for a split. The way Maddon sees it, there were just too many positives before the ninth inning to only focus on that. "When you lose your starter like that in the second inning, it's tough to piece that many innings together successfully," the manager said. "We did and we had the right guy on the mound at the end of the game. "Yeah, we did lose the game absolutely, that matters but the positive side is if we can continue to play that way, Stropy's gonna make the pitch, the line drives that got caught are gonna fall. I don't want our guys to feel badly about that, especially Stropy because he's gonna be a big part of what we're gonna do the rest of the season. "It's an unfortunate moment. You have to turn the page and move on. It's not easy but actually the day off [Thursday] might be an aide in the situation." Meanwhile, Hammel has no idea how serious his injury might be and the Cubs will have to wait until after he gets an MRI on Thursday. "It was after the second pitch," Hammel said. "It was a sharp pain in the back of the knee. Every pitch after just got tighter and tighter. I came in and tried to stretch it. It was pretty much a no-go. I would have loved to have pitched through it." ESPNChicago.com Rapid Reaction: Cardinals 6, Cubs 5 By John Jackson CHICAGO It was a cool, rainy night at Wrigley Field more typical of October than July, and the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals certainly provided some postseason-worthy drama on Wednesday night. One strike away from defeat, the Cardinals stunned the Cubs as Jhonny Peralta hit a clutch two-run home run to give St. Louis a 6-5 comeback win after Chicago had rallied from a four-run deficit earlier. Here s a quick look at the game: How it happened: Things looked as bleak as the weather for the Cubs at the start. Starter Jason Hammel left after the first inning with left hamstring tightness and Clayton Richard who won in his Cubs debut on Saturday was not sharp in relief. St. Louis grabbed a 2-0 lead in the second inning on run-scoring singles by Dan Johnson and pitcher Michael Wacha. The Cardinals stretched the lead to 4-0 in the fourth on back-to-back triples by Mark Reynolds and Randal Grichuk and another run-scoring single by Johnson. At that point, it appeared the Cubs only hope was a rain storm that halted the game before it became official following the fifth inning. The Cubs, though, started the comeback by halving the lead in the bottom of the fourth with a pair of runs. Anthony Rizzo led off with a single in a 12-pitch at-bat and Kris Bryant followed with a triple to center field to get the Cubs on the board. One out later, Starlin Castro drove in Bryant with an infield single. Wacha, though, appeared to regain command at that point. He ended the fourth by getting Miguel Montero to ground into a double play and then worked a fifth inning. But the Cubs had another rally in them. In the sixth, Dexter Fowler and Rizzo each singled to start the inning. After Bryant popped out, Jorge Soler singled off Wacha s leg to load the bases. Castro then struck out looking for the second out. The next batter, Montero, worked the count to 3-2 taking a close 2-2 pitch before ripping a bases-clearing double to right-center on a 97 mph fastball to give the Cubs a 5-4 lead.

9 As the Chicago runners were scoring, Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina got into it with home-plate umpire Pat Hoberg arguing the 2-2 pitch and was ejected shortly after Soler crossed the plate. Manager Mike Matheny then came out to argue and also was ejected. That s where the game stayed until the top of the ninth when the Cardinals one strike away from defeat flipped the script yet again. Pedro Strop, attempting to nail down his third save of the season, got the first two outs before walking Matt Carpenter. He then got ahead of Peralta 1-2, but left a 95 mph fastball up and out over the plate. Peralta smacked a line drive into the basket in left field to give the Cardinals a 6-5 lead. It was Peralta s 12th homer of the season. What it means: The result certainly will quiet any talk of the Cubs being a team of destiny, but rallying in the manner they did at least proves they have adopted the philosophy of manager Joe Maddon to keep battling regardless of the situation. As Maddon is fond of saying, you never know what you can accomplish unless you try. Some teams might have packed it in once they trailed 4-0 in the fourth inning with the starting pitcher long gone. The unsung hero of the game was reliever Travis Wood (6-3). He came on to start the fifth inning and threw three hitless innings to make the Cubs comeback possible. It also confirms that Strop has great stuff, but is prone to putting pitches in bad spots at the wrong time. What s next: Following a day off on Thursday, the Cubs open a three-game series against the cross-town rival White Sox on Friday at Wrigley Field. Right-hander Kyle Hendricks (4-4, 3.82 ERA) goes against left-hander Carlos Rodon (3-2, 4.18) in the opener. Hendricks will take a scoreless streak of 15⅓ innings into the game. ESPNChicago.com Chicago Cubs' Jason Hammel exits early with tight hamstring By John Jackson CHICAGO Chicago Cubs starter Jason Hammel left Wednesday night s game with the St. Louis Cardinals after the first inning with left hamstring tightness. Hammel pitched a first inning striking out the last batter he faced, Jhonny Peralta but didn t come out for the second inning. Left-hander Clayton Richard, who was going to be skipped in the rotation this weekend, replaced Hammel on the mound. ESPNChicago.com Cubs' Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo ready to enjoy Home Run Derby By John Jackson CHICAGO As a kid growing up in Las Vegas, Kris Bryant said he didn t dream or even think much about participating in the Home Run Derby. But every now and then, his dad, Mike Bryant, would mention it, saying he knew exactly where to pitch the ball to Kris to induce home runs. The father will get to test that theory on Monday at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati. Kris Bryant, the Chicago Cubs' rookie third baseman, is going to be among eight participants in the event held next week on the eve of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. I think I decided to do it more for him, so he can experience it with me and share that with me, Kris Bryant said. I called him and he was very excited. I think he s more excited for the Home Run Derby than the game, actually.

10 Besides having his father pitch to him, Bryant will be joined by another familiar face Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who is one of three left-handers in the competition. It s going to be exciting, Rizzo said. Kris and I will really enjoy it. I think everyone that s in it will enjoy it. It s something I watched growing up as a kid. It s going to be awesome. It an exciting feeling to do it together, so we better put on a good show. In the new format, both Cubs players are on opposite sides of the bracket Bryant faces Albert Pujols and Rizzo goes against Josh Donaldson in the first round so there s a chance they could meet in the finals. We re just going in to have fun, Bryant said. I think [Rizzo] has a pretty good chance. Cincinnati is a pretty good left-handed hitters park. I get to watch him every day in BP and it s pretty special. Hopefully, I ll win it, but if he wins it, that s great, too. Manager Joe Maddon says he is neutral. If there s such a thing as a tie and they both can win it, I ll take it, he said. This has been a big part of generating interest and we have two guys that really generate a lot of interest. Maddon, though, hasn t been the biggest fan of his players participating in Home Run Derby, believing it can mess up their swings for the second half of the season. He was diplomatic on Wednesday. I knew their preference, Maddon said. I think they ll handle it properly. Bryant said he isn t concerned about his swing being negatively affected. Not at all, he said. I think if you talk to any baseball player, they ll tell you they try to hit some homers in BP, so it s no different. For me, I think it fits my swing. I kind of have a slight uppercut. I won t change anything, maybe swing a little bit harder. Bryant hopes to find a little time before the event to have his dad, a former minor league player, throw to him. He knows how to throw me. I just hope his arm holds up, he said. I probably won t yell at him as much. Usually in the offseason, I give him a hard time when he s not throwing me strikes, but he normally throws pretty good. Mike Bryant said he s ready. "I've been practicing in anticipation and now I have tendinitis," he said jokingly by telephone. "I'm just nervous about throwing in front of all those people." CSNChicago.com Jason Heyward will be an X-factor in Cubs-Cardinals rivalry By Patrick Mooney Jason Heyward could become the next Cub killer. This also looks like a free agent who would check all the boxes for Theo Epstein s front office. That left-handed swing and Gold Glove defense would also be perfect for Yankee Stadium. The St. Louis Cardinals acquired Heyward with the hope that he would be their next great core player, planning for the future and eventually life after Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina. Otherwise, the Cardinals wouldn t have done that four-player deal last November, watching Shelby Miller (2.07 ERA) blossom into an All-Star with the Atlanta Braves.

11 Either way, Heyward should be an X-factor in the Cubs-Cardinals rivalry. In leaving Atlanta the city he grew up around and the organization that made him a first-round pick in 2007 Heyward almost sounded like Jon Lester after signing that six-year, $155 million megadeal. Everyone here did their part more than their part to make me feel at home and welcome, Heyward said Wednesday, sitting at his locker inside Wrigley Field s cramped visiting clubhouse. But I still had to do my part as far as just feeling adjusted and becoming accustomed to everything. It s kind of like the monkey on your back. You have the added element every day (where) there s something to go along with the natural preparation of getting ready for a game. But I ve had a blast. And it s been nothing but positive things for me to say about my experience. If the Cubs really can afford to hand out a nine-figure contract next winter, you would think they would prioritize pitching, a frontline guy like David Price or Jordan Zimmermann to go with Lester and Jake Arrieta. But Heyward will turn 26 in August and should have his best years in front of him, though it s hard to put a price tag on that potential, the flashes of patience, speed, power and defense. Heyward has already been a top-10 National League position player in terms of WAR a metric that weighs defense heavily in three of his five seasons. He gets on base around 35 percent of the time. He stole 20-plus bases in 2012 and He has exceeded the 20-homer, 80-RBI marks only once (in 2012). The Cubs have questions marks in the outfield especially if Kris Bryant and Kyle Schwarber stay at third base and catcher and 2016 is too soon to count on the Albert Almoras and Billy McKinneys in the farm system. They re a good team in a really good division, Heyward said. That s plain and simple. They can go out and win any night. They have a good enough team to do so. They have new leadership (and that) can go a long way. The chain of events that led Heyward to St. Louis began with Atlanta s decision to promote a hometown, homegrown player and put him in their 2010 Opening Day lineup and not gain the extra year of club control the Cubs got when they stashed Bryant at Triple-A Iowa to start this season. Heyward hit a three-run homer off Carlos Zambrano in his first big-league at-bat as the Braves gave the Cubs a 16-5 beatdown at Turner Field. Atlanta won 91 games that season and made the playoffs as a wild-card team. You don t think about it at that time, Heyward said. It s a business. Certain things you can never control. Just try to control what you can. Don t take anything for granted. You understand that trades and things like that are part of it. Growing up in Georgia, I ve seen the Braves make plenty of moves like that, and you always wonder why they re letting go of certain guys, and it just happened time after time after time. So for anybody that was surprised I wasn t. The Cardinals wanted to use this season as a recruiting pitch and a chance to get to know Heyward, who s hitting.278 with nine homers and 30 RBIs and slowly heating up from April (.611 OPS) through May (.783 OPS) and into June (.881 OPS) and what should be a huge platform in the playoffs. I want to go for a winning attitude, a winning-mindset organization, Heyward said. After that, let everything else take care of itself. I d just like to try to win as many games as possible and know that s the reason you show up every day for work. When the time comes to make decisions, we ll see what happens. Just tackle it then. Right now, I m in a perfect place.

12 CSNChicago.com 'A loss is a loss': Cubs feel sting after Cards deal gutting defeat By JJ Stankevitz Joe Maddon decided to focus on all the positive things the Cubs did on a chilly Wednesday night against the firstplace St. Louis Cardinals. But for his team, those good moments were negated when Jhonny Peralta launched Pedro Strop's 1-2 fastball into the left field basket for a go-ahead home run with two outs in the top of the ninth. Peralta s blast dealt the Cubs a 6-5 loss at Wrigley Field, leaving Maddon s side feeling empty despite earning a series split with their Missouri-based rival. The Cubs battled back from an early 4-0 deficit headlined by starter Jason Hammel leaving the game after one inning due to a tight left hamstring. But Miguel Montero s go-ahead three-run double in the bottom of the sixth off Cardinals All-Star Michael Wacha sent a Wrigley Field crowd of 37,993 into a frenzy that felt like a playoff game, and Travis Wood threw three no-hit innings in relief when the Cubs needed it most. While Maddon said he was really pleased with the way we played tonight, Strop wasn t interested in looking at the positive side of things. We had it, and we just lost it, Strop said. Two outs in the ninth inning with two strikes, I mean, it doesn t seem like, 'Oh, we re splitting.' We should ve got that one. Montero, who played on two playoff teams during his nine-year tenure with the Arizona Diamondbacks, agreed. At the end of the night, it s a loss, Montero said. A loss is a loss. Not really happy about it. The Cubs seemed to be poised to nail down a statement win against a team that swept them in St. Louis to close out June. All they needed was one more strike. Strop easily retired the first two batters he faced in the top of the ninth, getting Peter Bourjos to pop out and Tommy Pham to strike out swinging. He then issued a four-pitch walk to Matt Carpenter who went 0-for-4 Wednesday and has eight hits in his last 57 at-bats which Maddon found more inexcusable than the pitch on which Peralta took Strop deep. Strop threw three sliders to go ahead of Peralta 1-2 and tried to fire a fastball up and out of the strike zone to set up another slider on 2-2. Instead, he missed over the plate, and Peralta lined it through the mist and just over the left field ivy for the go-ahead blow. It is tough, especially that s the team ahead in our division, Strop said. We re trying to beat those guys and catch up in the season. Of course it s a tough one to swallow, ninth inning, two outs and two strikes. I mean, it s really tough. That s one of the times that you gotta believe baseball is tough. It s not as easy at it looks on TV. Maddon, though, was persistent in his positivity during his postgame press conference. Regardless of all that, I m really pleased with the way we played tonight, Maddon said. I thought it was an outstanding night, what we did coming back like we did, your starter leaves the game in the second inning, attempt to piece the bullpen together to get to the end of the game which we did, and we were one pitch away from winning the game and of course we did not. I have nothing bad to say about our game tonight. We just had a tough break in the beginning with (Hammel), and then we made a pitch that their guy got to. Otherwise I m really pleased with our group. But even if the Cubs did plenty right Wednesday night, they did enough wrong to lose to a team that s the gold standard for franchise success not only in baseball, but in North American sports. If the Cubs want to make an

13 impact if and when they reach the postseason, this is the kind of game they can t afford to lose, no matter how well things went for the first 26 outs. Believe me, it's a tough one to swallow. These are the games that you gotta win, Montero said, especially when you got two outs, nobody on and then just all of a sudden two runs and you lose the game, that s the game that you feel a sting. CSNChicago.com Cubs: Maddon comfortable with Bryant, Rizzo in Home Run Derby By JJ Stankevitz Cubs manager Joe Maddon hasn t been too enthusiastic about his players participating in the Home Run Derby in the past, but he s not wringing his hands over Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant entering the annual competition Monday at Cincinnati s Great American Ballpark. The Cubs two All-Stars and Nos. 2 and 3 hitters on Thursday accepted invites to the Home Run Derby, with Bryant facing Los Angeles Albert Pujols and Rizzo facing Toronto s Josh Donaldson in the first round of an eightplayer, head-to-head bracket. Major League Baseball made a few tweaks to the derby that should shorten the event, which helped allay some of Maddon s concerns about the centerpieces of his lineup participating in it. In short, each batter gets five minutes per round, with bonuses being awarded for hitting a certain number of home runs or hitting long home runs (more details here). The upshot likely will be players swinging less and not getting worn out as easily. It s been governed to the point now where it should be not as lengthy and that s maybe not as much going on, which I think is a good idea, Maddon said. So I knew their (Bryant and Rizzo s) preference. I think that they ll handle it properly, and if there s ever been a tie for the winner, I d like it to be this year. Maddon didn t require the 23-year-old Bryant and the 25-year-old Rizzo to come to him for approval on their respective decisions to join the Home Run Derby. Bryant entered Thursday night with 12 home runs, tied for 44thmost in baseball, while Rizzo s 16 home runs rank 20th. It s their decision, Maddon said. We could talk as much as we want, part of it s for the betterment of Major League Baseball. Also the fact that this has been a big part of generating interest, and we have two kids that really generate a lot of interest. This year s Home Run Derby will draw plenty of interest in Chicago but is sorely lacking in star power. Giancarlo Stanton is hurt, while Bryce Harper declined an invitation with his dad who threw to him in the 2013 Home Run Derby unable to participate following rotator cuff surgery. But Bryant will have his father, Mike, throwing to him on Monday, while Rizzo can continue to grow his national profile with a strong round of glorified batting practice in Cincinnati. I think I decided to do it more for (my dad) so he could experience it with me and share that with me, Bryant said. We ve always talked about it growing up. Bryant still has fewer than 300 at-bats as a major leaguer but feels he s suited for the Derby. Forty-eight percent of his balls put in play have been fly balls, and FanGraphs characterized about 37 percent of the contact he s made as hard, so he doesn t anticipate changing his swing to compete with the rest of the field (Todd Frazier, Joc Pederson, Pujols, Donaldson, Prince Fielder, Manny Machado and Rizzo) on Monday. So Bryant and the Cubs aren t concerned a second-half slump could be in the offing following next week s All-Star festivities.

14 I think if you talk to any baseball player, they ll tell you they try to hit homers in BP, Bryant said. It s no different. CSNChicago.com Jason Hammel injury shows how much Cubs need more pitching By Patrick Mooney The Cubs set off alarm bells on Twitter by taking Jason Hammel out of Wednesday s game at Wrigley Field. It took about five minutes between the sight of Clayton Richard warming up against the St. Louis Cardinals and a team spokesman announcing over the press-box microphone that Hammel had left the game with left hamstring tightness. Hammel needed 12 pitches to get through a first inning against St. Louis, but that would be it on a cool, rainy night. It became another reminder the Cubs will need at least one more quality starter if they plan to make it through the 162-game marathon and play deep into October. Very frustrating, Hammel said after a 6-5 loss that showed why the Cardinals are the best team in baseball. The Cubs had been one strike away from winning it when Pedro Strop gave up Jhonny Peralta s two-run homer in the ninth inning, making the crowd of 37,993 suddenly very quiet. The Cubs won t know the extent of the injury until Hammel gets an MRI on Thursday he said he had no idea if this would be a disabled-list situation. Hopefully, we ll find out some good news, Hammel said. Hopefully, it s just a strain or something like that and easily treatable. I guess the silver lining is the All-Star break is probably the best time for it to happen. Hammel said he felt a real sharp pain in the back of the knee as his front leg landed after throwing his second pitch. Around the same time, the Oakland A s pulled Scott Kazmir from his start at Yankee Stadium leading to Hug Watch speculation on social media before describing it as left triceps tightness. The A s are one of several underperforming teams trying to figure out which way to turn at the July 31 trade deadline. Kazmir who will hit the free-agent market after this season began the day with a 2.65 ERA and pitched in the All-Star Game last year. This is supposed to be a sellers market with the second wild card and so many teams stuck in the middle. Instead of a three-month rental, the Cubs would prefer a pitcher with the potential to help next year and maybe beyond. (Who wouldn t?) But there are legitimate questions about how much financial flexibility Theo Epstein s front office will have. The Cubs (46-38) have to be pragmatic when they already trail the Cardinals (55-30) by 8 1/2 games in the division and could be looking at a one-game playoff anyway if the pitching holds up. Hammel doesn t have the name recognition or Q rating that helps influence the All-Star voting, but he s been extremely reliable and effective in this environment, the type of player the Cubs can t afford to lose now. Hammel began the day at 5-4 with a 2.89 ERA and 104 strikeouts against 18 walks in 102 2/3 innings. He made it a priority to return to Chicago after last summer s Jeff Samardzija/Addison Russell trade with Oakland, agreeing to a deal that guaranteed two years and $20 million with a club option for 2017.

15 Overshadowed by sign-and-flip rumors and higher-profile teammates Hammel had quietly put together two half-seasons in a Cub uniform that look like top-of-the-rotation stuff: 13-9, 2.94 ERA, 208 strikeouts against 41 walks through 211-plus innings. Before Tuesday s doubleheader sweep of the Cardinals which featured All-Star snub Jake Arrieta and Triple-A Iowa call-up Dallas Beeler manager Joe Maddon talked about the hunt for pitching. I know we re always on the lookout to improve that, Maddon said. Absolutely, it could make a difference. There s no question it could make a difference. But I don t anticipate that happening, so I work from the premise that it s going to look like this. The Cubs understood they needed more pitching even before No. 5 starter Tsuyoshi Wada went on the disabled list last month. They already gave a Busch Stadium start to Donn Roach. They grabbed Richard from the Pittsburgh Pirates in a cash deal last week, taking advantage of a clause in his minor-league contract and getting him out of Triple-A. Richard beat the Miami Marlins in his Fourth of July start, but in an emergency situation the lefty gave up four runs on seven hits and three walks in three innings against the Cardinals. Everybody needs more pitching, Maddon said. It s something you re always seeking. (But with) starting pitching, (it s) really hard to get those six, seven-plus guys that you actually like. Listen, I m not going to worry about it yet. We ll find out exactly what s going on with Hammer, then we ll take it from there. The Cubs have Kyle Hendricks, Jon Lester and Arrieta lined up for the White Sox this weekend at Wrigley Field before scattering for the All-Star break. Ideally, the Cubs would probably like Hendricks as their fifth starter, not the No. 3 guy in a playoff push, which seems more credible after splitting this series with the Cardinals. I don t think we needed to prove it to ourselves, Hammel said. We already believed that. Four games in three days against a No. 1 team we played them toe-to-toe the whole way. We should have won tonight. They kind of stole one there at the end. Chicago Tribune Jason Hammel injured, adding urgency to Cubs' pitching need By Mark Gonzales The shock of watching the Cardinals' Jhonny Peralta hit a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth inning that barely clear the left-field wall Wednesday night eventually will wear off for the Cubs and their fans. But the status of Jason Hammel's left hamstring could pose a long-term problem. Before Peralta transformed the Cubs' 5-4 lead into a 6-5 loss, Hammel left after one inning because of tightness in his hamstring that could lead to a trip to the 15-day disabled list and accelerate the Cubs' pursuit of starting pitching. "That would definitely be a concern if he's not able to go for a while," manager Joe Maddon said of Hammel's injury. "But I'm not going to worry about it yet." Hammel, who has a 2.86 ERA in 17 starts, threw one inning despite increasing pain after his second pitch

16 "Just a sharp pain in the back of the knee," said Hammel, who will undergo an MRI on Thursday to determine the extent of the injury. "It was enough to where I had to shut myself down. Every pitch afterward got tighter and tighter and became more painful. I tried to stretch it, but it was pretty much a no-go." Cubs fans no doubt found the loss painful as well. There were two outs and nobody on base before Strop walked Matt Carpenter on four pitches. Strop, in a save situation because Jason Motte pitched in both games of the Cubs' doubleheader sweep on Tuesday, threw a fat 1-2 pitch that Peralta ripped. "I should have attacked (Carpenter), but still I had an opportunity to get it done," Strop said. "I just couldn't. I didn't feel like I was (over-amped). Maybe some people could see it that way. I was just off on my command." Until the ninth, the Cubs withstood Hammel's injury behind three scoreless innings from left-hander Travis Wood and a three-run double in the sixth by Miguel Montero. This was Hammel's last start before the All-Star break, so the Cubs could buy time for his leg to heal since they don't open the second half until July 17. With Thursday's day off, the Cubs have the luxury of using their entire pitching staff for the final three games before the break. But they open the second half with seven games in six days, and then are scheduled to play on 17 consecutive days following a day off on July 23 eight days before the July 31 trade deadline. The Cubs, who are expected to pursue a marquee free-agent starting pitcher this winter, might have to adjust their financial commitments should they elect to aim higher than a mid- to back-end starter. Crane Kenney, the Cubs' president of business operations, told CSN's "Kap & Haugh" show Tuesday that the Cubs have the resources if Theo Epstein "needs money to make a deal." Chicago Tribune Wednesday's recap: Cardinals 6, Cubs 5 By Mark Gonzales Jhonny Peralta hit a two-run homer off Pedro Strop with two outs and two strikes in the ninth as the Cardinals stunned the Cubs 6-5 on Wednesday night. The Cubs had overcome a 4-0 deficit on Miguel Montero's basesclearing double with two outs in the sixth. At the plate Kris Bryant hit an RBI triple in the fourth to score fellow All-Star Anthony Rizzo, who started the rally with a single and also had a hit during the Cubs' three-run sixth off Michael Wacha. On the mound Left-hander Travis Wood threw three innings of hitless ball while striking out five. In the field Shortstop Starlin Castro ranged far to his left to field a broken-bat grounder by Randal Grichuk but had enough time to retire him for the second out in the eighth. Key number 33-0 The Cubs' record when leading after eight innings before Wednesday night.