Observations: Heyward's walk-off finishes sweep of Mets originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Cubs beat the Mets 4-3 on Thursday on a Jason Heyward 10th-inning walk-off single, improving to 9-9 on the season.
Here’s 10 observations from the game.
1. Heyward came off the bench cold in the 10th inning, pinch hitting with the bases loaded and one out. He still came up big.
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Heyward smashed a hard single into right field to walk-off the Mets, finishing off the Cubs' three-game sweep over New York.
2. Things got dicey before the walk-off, when Dan Winkler loaded the bases in the top of the 10th with one out on two walks. The right-hander worked around the traffic with a 4-6-3 double play.
3. Good things happened when the Cubs put the ball in play Wednesday and that continued early Thursday. Willson Contreras’ third-inning comebacker off Mets starter Joey Lucchesi deflected into right field to drive in Jake Marisnick. The Cubs took a 1-0 lead on the play.
4. Kris Bryant's comeback season is in full force. The Cubs third baseman went 2-for-4, including a two-run double off the left-center field wall in the third to give the Cubs a 3-0 lead. He extended his hitting streak to five games, his longest such streak since September 2019 (seven).
5. The Mets squared up Trevor Williams in the fourth inning but he was able to limit the damage. New York tallied two doubles and a home run to cut the Cubs’ lead to 3-2 with no outs. Williams worked out of a two-on, one-out threat to keep the Cubs ahead.
6. Outside of a clunker in his return to Pittsburgh April 11, Williams has been solid through four starts. Thursday was his third outing where he threw at least five innings and allowed two earned runs or less. He threw five innings of five-hit, two-run ball Thursday, striking out six.
7. The Cubs will be happy to see Pete Alonso leave town. The Mets first baseman crushed a home run off Williams after parking one on Waveland Ave. on Wednesday. Alonso has five home runs in seven career games at Wrigley Field.
8. It didn’t take long for Nico Hoerner to make an appearance after the Cubs recalled him from the South Bend alternate site pregame Thursday. Hoerner pinch hit for Williams in the fifth, flying out to right field.
9. After capitalizing on a number of Mets' defensive mistakes Wednesday, the Cubs didn't do so in the seventh on Thursday. Javy Báez' routine pop fly dropped between outfielders Kevin Pillar and Michael Conforto, and the Mets threw out Báez after he took a big turn around first.
Báez was ruled safe after review but the Cubs didn't score in the inning.
10. Craig Kimbrel's early dominance rolled on with a 1-2-3 ninth inning. The right-hander hasn't allowed a run in nine innings to start the season, surrendering a lone hit.
Bonus: The Cubs have as many three-game series sweeps this season as they did all of 2020: one.
Next up: The Cubs and Brewers open their third series of the month Friday at Wrigley Field. First pitch is 1:20 p.m. CT. Kyle Hendricks (0-2, 6.92 ERA) and Brett Anderson (2-1, 2.65 ERA) are the probable starters.
