Bottom of the ninth. Two outs. A season that has demanded more late inning drama than any Cubs fan ever signed up for. And once again, Chicago found a way.
Seiya Suzuki delivered a two out RBI single Monday night that lifted the Cubs to a thrilling 3-2 win over the visiting San Diego Padres — extending one of the most resilient stretches of baseball this team has put together all year.
How The Winning Rally Unfolded
The chaos started simply enough. Dansby Swanson worked an infield single against Jason Adam to open the ninth. Pete Crow-Armstrong followed with a single that moved Swanson into scoring position, prompting San Diego to bring in Mason Miller in relief. Alex Bregman then loaded the bases with a single of his own.
Michael Busch’s flyout to shallow left should have been a routine out — instead it turned into something far more dramatic when Jase Bowen gunned down Swanson at the plate for a double play. The Padres had escaped the worst of it.
Then Suzuki stepped up. He drove a slider deep to left field, and as the ball reached the wall Bowen simply couldn’t hang onto it. Crow-Armstrong came around to score the winning run, and Wrigley Field erupted in celebration as the Cubs walked off winners yet again.
A Team That Just Keeps Finding A Way
Trent Thornton worked around a one out infield hit from Fernando Tatis Jr. in the ninth to seal it, picking up the win as Chicago improved to seven victories in their last eight games. For San Diego it marked a third consecutive defeat — a brutal stretch for a team that had looked considerably sharper just a week ago.
Neither starting pitcher factored into the decision. Griffin Canning gave up two runs across 4â…“ innings for the Padres, while Shota Imanaga scattered nine hits across 6â…“ innings of his own, conceding two runs without issuing a single walk.
How The Game Got Here
San Diego opened the scoring in the third when Tatis grounded into a fielder’s choice that brought home Xander Bogaerts. Bogaerts then doubled home Miguel Andujar in the fourth to extend the lead to 2-0 — a strong response after entering the night 0-for-10 against Imanaga.
Chicago clawed back through a Michael Conforto single in the fourth that scored Suzuki, who had doubled earlier in the frame. The tying run came in the fifth via a Suzuki sacrifice fly that brought home Swanson after his leadoff double.
It was a genuinely sloppy night offensively for both sides — the teams combined to go just 5-for-24 with runners in scoring position and stranded an eye watering 20 runners between them. The kind of game that should have ended in frustration for both dugouts.
The Bigger Picture
Instead it ended in celebration for Chicago, courtesy of Suzuki’s clutch hit in the most important moment of the night. Seven wins in eight games is the kind of stretch that builds genuine momentum heading into a stretch where every game matters. For a team that has dealt with relentless rotation injuries all season, finding ways to win late games like this one is exactly the resilience this Cubs squad will need going forward.
Suzuki delivered. The Cubs survived. And Wrigley Field got another walk-off to remember. ⚾🔥
