How Cubs, Diamondbacks scored 16 runs in the eighth inning at Wrigley Field
The Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks combined for the highest-scoring single inning this season during Friday's matinée game. The 16-run eighth inning turned a low-scoring blowout into an offensively-potent and entertaining ball game.
The Cubs were dominating the Diamondbacks, 7-1, through seven innings, and seemingly running away with the game.
But, then, Arizona's bats got red hot.
Randal Grichuk pinch hit for Pavin Smith and got things started with a single into left field. Josh Naylor followed that up, pulling a single into right field and Grichuk advanced to second. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. loaded the bases with a third consecutive single, then Eugenio Suarez cleared them with one swing.
Suarez smacked a belt-high fastball 458-feet and well over the center-field wall to make it a 7-5 ball game.
After Gabriel Moreno committed the first out of the inning, Jake McCarthy drew a walk to put the tying run at the plate. Alek Thomas pinch-hit for Garrett Thompson and hit a single into left field, advancing McCarthy to second. The bases filled up again after Gerardo Perdomo beat out a ground-ball to second base for an infield single.
The lineup turned over as Grichuk came up to bat and hit a ball down the line, under the third-baseman's glove and into left field for a base-clearing double to give Arizona a lead.
Naylor took a walk for his second at-bat of the inning, before Gurriel crushed a slider that was left in the zone over the fence in left-center field.
The Diamondbacks' 10-run inning was the highest-scoring frame this season, and it put them up 11-7. The Cubs had an answer, though.
Bryce Jarvis struggled with his command to start the bottom half of the eighth, hitting Nico Hoerner and then walking Pete Crow-Armstrong on four pitches.
Then, Carson Kelly kept his stellar season alive, hitting his second home run of the afternoon to bring the Cubs within one.
After Justin Turner struck out, Ian Happ hit a single off Joe Mantiply, who had just replaced Jarvis. Happ's hit meant Kyle Tucker signified the go-ahead run at the plate. Tucker took the first pitch of his at-bat over the right-field fence for the fourth combined home-run of the inning.
The Cubs weren't done, though, as Seiya Suzuki made it back-to-back, padding Chicago's lead with a solo shot. His blast marked the 16th run of the inning, the most in a game at historic Wrigley Field, which has hosted Cubs games since 1916.
The Cubs loaded the bases again, but Crow-Armstrong struck out and Kelly grounded out to second to end the inning. Their 13-11 advantage was enough as Ryan Pressly came in and got the save in the top of the ninth.
With the win, the Cubs improved to 12-9 on the season, and sit in first place in the National League Central, while the Diamondbacks are 12-8 and in fourth place in the loaded NL West.
More offensive fireworks could be in store as these two teams will play two more games over the weekend, both with first pitches at 2:20 p.m.
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account , and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
recommended
Get more from Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
16 minutes ago
Stokely, Stevenson combine for 9 RBIs and North Carolina routs Arizona 18-2 to open Super Regional
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Hunter Stokely drove in five runs, Luke Stevenson drove in four and North Carolina rolled to an 18-2 victory over Arizona on Friday to open the Chapel Hill Super Regional. Jake Knapp allowed two runs on nine hits in seven innings. He improved to 14-0 with a 2.02 ERA. Tom Chmielewski finished with two scoreless innings. The top-ranked and No. 5 national seed Tar Heels scored eight runs in the first two innings, three on Stokely's home run that made it a 5-1 game in the first inning. Stevenson's three-run home run in the second made it 8-1. Stokely added an RBI-single in the fourth and another in the eighth inning. Stevenson drove in North Carolina's first run back in the first inning. Sam Angelo hit a three-run home run in the eighth and Kane Kepley's solo home run later in the inning made it 18-2. Gavin Gallaher had four hits and scored three runs. Kepley and Jackson Van De Brake each scored four times for the Tar Heels. The first five batters in the order had 13 hits and drove in 12 runs. They scored 15 runs. Adonys Guzman drove in a run with a single in the first inning and Easton Breyfogle added a sacrifice fly in the fourth for Arizona's two runs. Owen Kramkowski (9-6) allowed eight runs in an inning and a third. North Carolina (46-13) is playing in a Super Regional for the 12th time, having advanced eight times previously.
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Judge approves landmark NCAA settlement, clearing way for schools to pay athletes directly
A federal judge signed off on arguably the biggest change in the history of college sports on Friday, clearing the way for schools to begin paying their athletes millions of dollars as soon as next month as the multibillion-dollar industry shreds the last vestiges of the amateur model that defined it for more than a century. Nearly five years after Arizona State swimmer Grant House sued the NCAA and its five biggest conferences to lift restrictions on revenue sharing, U.S. Judge Claudia Wilken approved the final proposal that had been hung up on roster limits, just one of many changes ahead amid concerns that thousands of walk-on athletes will lose their chance to play college sports. The sweeping terms of the so-called House settlement include approval for each school to share up to $20.5 million with athletes over the next year and $2.7 billion that will be paid over the next decade to thousands of former players who were barred from that revenue for years. In a letter penned by NCAA President Charlie Baker following the announcement, Baker wrote that the settlement "opens a pathway to begin stabilizing college sports. This new framework that enables schools to provide direct financial benefits to student-athletes and establishes clear and specific rules to regulate third-party NIL [name, image and likeness] agreements marks a huge step forward for college sports." The agreement brings a seismic shift to hundreds of schools that were forced to reckon with the reality that their players are the ones producing the billions in TV and other revenue, mostly through football and basketball, that keep this machine humming. The scope of the changes — some have already begun — is difficult to overstate. The professionalization of college athletics will be seen in the high-stakes and expensive recruitment of stars on their way to the NFL and NBA, and they will be felt by athletes whose schools have decided to pare their programs. The agreement will resonate in nearly every one of the NCAA's 1,100 member schools boasting nearly 500,000 athletes. Wilken's ruling comes 11 years after she dealt the first significant blow to the NCAA ideal of amateurism when she ruled in favor of former UCLA basketball player Ed O'Bannon and others who were seeking a way to earn money from the use of their name, image and likeness, or NIL — a term that is now as common in college sports as "March Madness" or "Roll Tide." It was just four years ago that the NCAA cleared the way for NIL money to start flowing, but the changes coming are even bigger. Wilken granted preliminary approval to the settlement last October. That sent colleges scurrying to determine not only how they were going to afford the payments, but how to regulate an industry that also allows players to cut deals with third parties so long as they are deemed compliant by a newly formed enforcement group that will be run by auditors at Deloitte. The agreement takes a big chunk of oversight away from the NCAA and puts it in the hands of the four biggest conferences. The ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC hold most of the power and decision-making heft, especially when it comes to the College Football Playoff, which is the most significant financial driver in the industry and is not under the NCAA umbrella like the March Madness tournaments are.
Fox Sports
an hour ago
- Fox Sports
Tarik Skubal stars as the Tigers top the Cubs 3-1 in a matchup of division leaders
Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Tarik Skubal pitched one-run ball into the eighth inning, and Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago Cubs 3-1 on Friday night in the opener of a weekend series between two of the majors' best teams. Skubal (6-2) allowed eight hits, struck out six and walked none in 7 2/3 innings. In his past 11 starts, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner is 6-0 with a 1.61 ERA, 95 strikeouts and three walks. Skubal left with runners on the corners, then had to wait out a dramatic moment. Seiya Suzuki lifted a deep flyball to right off Will Vest, but Kerry Carpenter reached above the wall to keep Detroit in front. Vest got four outs for his 10th save. Cubs right-hander Ben Brown (3-4) permitted two runs and seven hits in seven innings. Spencer Torkelson and Jahmai Jones homered for the AL Central-leading Tigers. The Tigers jumped in front in the fifth on an RBI single by Gleyber Torres, but the NL Central-leading Cubs responded with Kyle Tucker's run-scoring double in the sixth. That ended Skubal's scoreless streak at 20 innings, matching his career high. Torkelson made it 2-1 when he connected for his 15th homer in the bottom half. Jones went deep in the eighth in his Tigers debut, belting a pinch-hit drive off Genesis Cabrera. The game, attended by a large contingent of Cubs fans, drew a crowd of 40,132 for the third sellout at Comerica Park this season. Key moment The Cubs lost a run due to a rare baserunning mistake in the fifth. Pete Crow-Armstrong started the inning with a single, and Dansby Swanson doubled to left. Third base coach and former Tigers fan favorite Quintin Berry waved Crow-Armstrong home, but he hesitated at third before breaking for the plate. He quickly realized it was too late and tried to get back to the bag, but Javier Baez's relay throw to third was in time. Key stat Skubal has 105 strikeouts and seven walks in 83 1/3 innings this season. His seven walks at the time of his 100th strikeout tied for the second-fewest in big league history behind Clayton Kershaw's five in 2016, according to MLB. Up next Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon (5-3, 3.76 ERA) faces Tigers right-hander Keider Montero (2-1, 4.02 ERA) on Saturday. ___ AP MLB: recommended
