Kyle Hendricks (photo by Stephanie Lynn)

Game Recap

Good news: Kyle Hendricks looks ready to open the season. His curveball was sharp and appeared to have more lateral movement compared to last season. He has spent a lot of time refining that pitch and if last night is any indication he is close to figuring it out.

Class was back in session. pic.twitter.com/vvoMTY8qTP

— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) July 20, 2020

More good news: Both second baseman delivered offensively.

Jason Kipnis opened the scoring:

That Kipnis move is already paying off, huh?

(: @Cubs) pic.twitter.com/lnXFoBi0pt

— Cubs Talk (@NBCSCubs) July 20, 2020

Nico Hoerner drove home the second run (and added a sharp single later):

A productive plate appearance from @nico_hoerner. pic.twitter.com/TIcv3RYPwk

— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) July 20, 2020

Bad news: A four-run 5th by the White Sox proved the difference in the game. Hendricks began the inning and looked to be tiring a bit. After allowing some base runners he was relieved by Jharel Cotton who was subsequently shelled.

Cotton possesses a great changeup, but as of right now his fastball and curve are fairly ordinary. When he catches too much of the plate with either he is susceptible to hard contact. The Cubs 40-man roster is overloaded with right-handed relievers though, and as one of those on the fringe it wasn’t a good time to have a bad outing.

The Cubs are likely looking at trimming a righty or two from the roster in order to add a third left-handed reliever. Rex Brothers was pairing a wipeout slider with a 95-97 mph fastball last night. Command is, and likely will remain an issue for the lefty, but the guy misses bats. And the Cubs can really use that skill out of their pen this summer.

Meanwhile, the offense dried up in the middle innings as the Cubs hitters had no answer for journeyman Ross Detweiler and other members of the White Sox bullpen.

What I paid the most attention to last night was the way Willson Contreras has changed his approach to receiving pitches. He is keeping his glove low and loose as the pitcher goes through his motion and then is much quicker to the ball during its flight. It allows him to get around the pitch and be moving his glove back toward the middle of the strike zone when the ball arrives. This is a vast improvement over the way he would often stab at pitches last season, with his glove moving out of the zone when the ball arrived.

His movements are very exaggerated right now, often drawing his glove all the way back to the middle of the zone after receiving every pitch, but this is a good first step. As he gets more comfortable with his new approach I would like to see him calm his movements. Catchers typically receive the ball with much more quiet hands on pitches that are clear strikes. Even if he only improves on that aspect in a minor way, what he has already accomplished during his offseason work, should show up as improved framing numbers at the end of the season.

Rizzo still hopeful for Opening Day

We all know Anthony Rizzo wants to be out on the field on Opening Day. Judging by the way he was moving in batting practice prior to yesterday’s game, and the way he was joking around with teammates in the dugout during the game, I’m guessing he will be. At the very least it does not appear that an IL stint will be necessary. Barring a setback, if he misses any time it is likely only the first couple of games. Expanded rosters should mean there is no need to carry another player in his place.

Game Preview

Yu Darvish takes the mound against Dallas Kuechel in a veteran matchup at 7 CST. The two hurlers feature vastly different approaches. Darvish misses bats as well as any starter in the league while mixing 5+ pitches every time he takes the mound. Meanwhile Kuechel pitches to contact and relies on generating ground ball outs. Few are better at it, and Kuechel in fact led the Majors in GB% last season.

Lineups pending