Imanaga Pitches Great Against Yanks in Game 3

Imanaga pitched for the Chicago Cubs against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the final game of the first part of the season before the All-Star game. The Yankees wanted to end this symbolic end of the first half of the season (they have played 59% of their games so far) on a winning note, but they did not, as they lost 4-1. Imanaga was great for the Cubs; he looked like a bargain free agent from Japan. Imanaga matched up against the Yankees’ Will Warren. Did you think Imanaga gave the Cubs an advantage in this game?

Lineups

This is the lineup the Cubs used to support Imanaga. They had Michael Busch as the first baseman, batting leadoff. Kyle Tucker was the designated hitter, batting second. Seiya Suzuki was the right fielder, batting third. Pete Crow-Armstrong was the center fielder, batting fourth. Carson Kelly was the catcher and batted fifth.

Ian Happ was the left fielder and batted sixth. Dansby Swanson played shortstop and batted seventh. Nico Hoernere was the second baseman and batted eighth.  Vidal Bruján was the third baseman and batted ninth. Matt Shaw took over for him defensively in the seventh inning. For the Yankees, Paul Goldschmidt batted first and was the first baseman. Cody Bellinger was the center fielder and batted second. He has a seventeen-game hitting streak.

Aaron Judge was the right fielder who batted third. Giancarlo Stanton was the designated hitter and batted fourth. Jazz Chisholm Jr. was the second baseman, batting fifth. Jasson Dominguez was the left fielder and batted sixth. Anthony Volpe was the shortstop and batted seventh. Austin Wells was the catcher, batting eighth. Oswald Peraza was the third baseman and batted ninth. Ben Rice pinch hit for him in the ninth inning.

News and Notes as Imanaga Battles Yanks

The Yankees will have four representatives in the All-Star game in Atlanta. Aaron Judge was the top vote getter among players, Jazz Chisholm Jr. will participate in the home run derby, Carlos Rodon will pitch for the American League Team, and Max Fried will be in Atlanta and not pitch. That is probably just as well, as he developed a blister on his throwing hand yesterday. All of the American League coaches will be from the Yankees.

The Cubs will only send three representatives to the All-Star game. Yesterday’s starting pitcher was Matthew Boyd. Plus Peter Crow-Armstrong and Michael Tucker, who will start next to each other in the National League outfield. It’s a little surprising that Imanaga won’t be going to the All-Star game; he pitched great today.

With his home run yesterday, Judge became the quickest baseball player ever to 350 home runs. He reached that mark 192 games quicker than Mark McGwire.Luis Gil pitched today for AA Somerset. He threw 50 pitches without incident, and he struck out six. Belliger’s hitting streak ended at seventeen games. He ended the game on the on-deck circle.

Game Reaction

The Cubs and Yankees traded home runs in the first three innings. Michael Busch hit a home run for the Cubs in the first inning. Giancarlo Stanton hit a home run for the Yankees in the third inning. That was his third home run of the season. It is good for the Yankees that he is heating up.

Will Warren seemed just off for the Yankees, though he got some big outs early on. That was a good sign as he did battle with Imanaga. Warren battled for five and a third innings. The 3-1 lead the Cubs took in the sixth inning was scary because the Cubs have a good bullpen. Imanaga pitched well. He held the Yankees to one run in seven innings. This is the second consecutive game the Cubs’ starting pitchers have pitched great.

Scoring Summary

In the first inning, Busch hit a solo home run. It was 1-0 Cubs. Stanton answered with his solo run in the third inning. The Yankees tied the game at 1. In the sixth inning, Swanson hit a two-run home run, and Kelly also scored. The Cubs led 3-1. As Yogi Berra said, it does get late early. In the seventh inning, Crow-Armstrong had an infield single, and Suzuki scored. The Cubs lead 4-1.

Final Thoughts

Now, all teams in the major leagues will enjoy a four-day break for the All-Star game. The break allows all teams to empty their bullpens. That was the case for the Yankees, as they were forced to use the bullpen early yesterday due to the injury to Max Fried, and they removed Warren after five and a third innings pitched. Ian Hamilton, for instance, pitched both yesterday and today. In this game, Imanaga pitched well for the Cubs.