Cubs takeaways: What we learned in three-game road sweep of Athletics
The Chicago Cubs wrapped up the first Major League Baseball series ever played in West Sacramento, Calif.
They might be willing to return sooner than later after sweeping the three-game set against the host Athletics.
The Cubs finishe deed with a 10-2 win and improved to 5-4, the first time they’ve been over .500 this season. They outscored the A’s 35-9 over the three games played at Sutter Health Park.
Here are three observations from the series finale:
Super Seiya
Kyle Tucker’s insane hot stretch understandably has stolen the headlines. But Seiya Suzuki is heating up, too.
The Cubs right fielder had a two-home run game – he belted a three-run shot in the second and a solo blast in the fourth – and finished 3-for-5 with five RBI.
Suzuki, who had served as Chicago’s designated hitter in the first eight games, spoke to reporters after Tuesday night’s win and shared his desire to be more assertive at the plate.
“Watching Tucker’s at-bats, kind of what he does, and I think one of my characteristics is when I’m not going well, I’m too selective,” Suzuki told reporters Wednesday through interpreter Edwin Stanberry. “So just keeping that approach of staying aggressive.”
His first home run Wednesday was a prime example of that. Suzuki crushed the first pitch of the at-bat for a three-run blast — a rare sight for the righty. Suzuki has just a 13.1 percent first-pitch swing percentage in his career — well below league average (29.9 percent).
Aggressive, though, doesn’t mean always taking hacks at the first pitch. It means Suzuki not being passive at the plate but jumping on pitches in his zone. Last season, he struck out 48 times looking, the 14th-most in baseball.
If that aggressiveness translates into results, like it did Wednesday, that’s really good news for the Cubs. Again, we know what Tucker can do, and Suzuki has flashed the potential of wielding an elite bat. If that combination clicks, it could be a potent 1-2 punch.
Patience is a virtue
The Cubs raced out to big leads early in all three games. Wednesday’s lead was a bit different, though. The Cubs ballooned A’s starter Jeffrey Springs’ pitch count, forcing manager Mark Kotsay to dip into his bullpen early for the second time in the series.
Springs lasted just three innings, and the Cubs did real damage in the first four, as the A’s threw 110 pitches, issued five walks and allowed eight runs.
Yes, the Cubs scored 35 runs in the three games, but eating away at the opposing bullpen also is an important trend to see, as it will have a trickle-down effect throughout a series. Hitters start seeing relievers multiple times in a series, giving them a better grasp of what pitches they might have to handle. Relief pitchers from the other side start having to cover multiple innings or pitching on back-to-back days, so they might not be as crisp.
Tucker and Suzuki can be anchors in this lineup, but from top to bottom, it potentially could be a nuisance, as the last three days showed.
Confidenceboosting outings
Cubs starter Jameson Taillon turned in a quality start, but the nature of the game allowed manager Craig Counsell to use some relievers who had struggled early in 2025.
Brad Keller pitched a scoreless seventh, Nate Pearson covered the eighth and Eli Morgan picked up the final three outs.
Keller had allowed two runs on four hits in two innings of work in his first outing of the season. Pearson had allowed two runs in 1.1 innings in Sunday’s 10-6 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in which the Cubs blew a four-run, eighth-inning lead. Morgan allowed six runs in that dreadful eighth frame against Arizona, surrendering six hits, a walk and a home run.
The best way to forget outings like that is to get back in the saddle. All three relievers had to wait a few days, but Counsell was able to turn to them to pitch three scoreless frames. While Ryan Pressly, Porter Hodge and Julian Merryweather appear to be in Counsell’s circle of trust, he will need multiple options in relief.
Building up relievers’ confidence in an outing like this shouldn’t be overlooked because Counsell likely will have to turn to all three in leverage situations sometime this season.