Cubs takeaways: What we learned as domestic slate kicks off with win over Diamondbacks
While the rest of the baseball world had the excitement and normal jitters that come from Opening Day, the Chicago Cubs were champing at the bit to return to action.
A week-plus layoff following an 0-2 start to the season in Japan will do that to you.
The Cubs’ offense showed their eagerness to return to action as they beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 10-6 on Thursday night at Chase Field to improve to 1-2 on the year.
[MORE: How Cubs plan to use Nico Hoerner in return from offseason surgery]
Here are three observations from the win:
Two-out damage
The Cubs’ woes in situational hitting last season were no secret. They finished 17th in baseball in OPS (.725) with runners in scoring position and two outs. During their two-month swoon in May and June – when their offensive woes contributed to the stretch that sunk their season – they had the second-worst OPS (.582) in those situations.
On Thursday, the Cubs did much of their damage in those instances. They scored eight runs with two outs and delivered multiple knockout blows.
Ian Happ had a two-run double in the second inning and a solo home run in the fourth. Kyle Tucker drove in Happ with a single in the second. Miguel Amaya hit a three-run double that bounced out of Arizona center fielder Jake McCarthy’s glove in the fifth, and Nico Hoerner, in his return to Chicago’s lineup, drove in Seiya Suzuki with a sixth-inning single.
The Cubs aren’t going to score that many runs every night in those situations, but an improvement in that area in 2025 would be a welcome sign to fans.
Happ, Amaya’s big day
There’s been some discourse this offseason and spring about Pete Crow-Armstrong being the Cubs’ leadoff hitter, and it’s easy to see why. His offense improved in the second half last year, and his blazing speed screams the makeup of an old-fashioned leadoff man.
But the modern game is different and values a high on-base percentage player for that role. Happ showcased why he’s still the perfect option for the Cubs, as he went 2-for-5 with one home run, three RBI, two runs and one walk.
Last season, during the Cubs’ early offensive woes, manager Craig Counsell moved Happ down in the lineup to try to spark the bats. But Happ eventually returned in the role, and the Cubs were at their best when he was there, going 40-26 with him as their leadoff hitter, compared to 43-53 when he wasn’t.
The Cubs’ best lineup has Happ at the top of it, and Thursday’s game was a prime example of what can happen when it’s all clicking. Eight of Chicago’s nine hitters reached base and either scored or drove in a run.
The No. 9 hitter wasn’t too shabby, either: Amaya finished 2-for-5 with five RBI and two doubles in the win. That kind of production always will be welcomed by Counsell.
Defense, defense, defense
While the Cubs’ offense will be one of the storylines to follow this season, it’s no secret the staple of this team will be its defense.
That was on display Thursday.
Amaya’s double in the top of the fifth had been an exclamation point on the game that gave the Cubs a 7-3 lead, and Justin Steele and the team were looking for a lockdown frame when the Diamondbacks came to the plate in the bottom half.
The defense helped Steele get that. With one out in the inning, Josh Naylor hit a grounder to Michael Busch at first base. Busch dove, corralled the ball and then fired a low throw to Dansby Swanson at second. Swanson stretched, then threw it back to Busch from his knees to complete the inning-ending double play.
Hoerner also recorded the first out of the second inning with a nice diving stop.
The Cubs’ offense will go through their lulls — it’s the nature of baseball for an offense to hit cold stretches — but consistent defense would bode well for Chicago.