Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (4/17/23): Cubs 10, A’s 1 – Wisdom Leads 20-Hit Parade

The Cubs traveled to Oakland on Monday for the first of three games at the spacious Ring.com Coliseum. Chicago took advantage of the Athletics’ disaster of a pitching staff and crushed the home team after a slow start.

The Athletics jumped ahead in the bottom of the 1st after a pair of singles and an RBI groundout. Cubs starter Hayden Wesneski was a little shaky to begin the game but settled in very nicely and breezed through the opposing lineup, retiring 14 straight hitters at one point.

Chicago tied the score in the top of the 2nd when Patrick Wisdom hit another home run, his fourth consecutive contest with a dinger. Seiya Suzuki gave his squad the lead with an RBI single in the following inning.

The Cubs really got to A’s starter Kyle Muller in the 4th inning, scoring four times. Yan Gomes and Nico Hoerner each singled home a run and Ian Happ plated two more with his base knock.

Wisdom was not finished on Monday night, as he mashed a three-run bomb to center field in the top of the 8th. The Cubs had no issues late and rolled to a 10-1 victory. (Box score)

Key Moment

The game was still tight going into the 4th, but the Cubs came through repeatedly with men on base and put things on ice with the big inning.

Why the Cubs Won

They pounded out 20 hits and put up 10 runs to bury the hapless Athletics.

Stats That Matter

• Very nice bounce back effort for Wesneski: 7 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 7 K, and 0 BB. Oakland is far from a scary offense, but his control was worlds better.
• Cody Bellinger is now red-hot with five hits, including a double, on Monday night.
• Suzuki had three singles and is starting to shake off the rust from missing the beginning of the year.
• Brandon Hughes made his first appearance of the season and threw a scoreless 8th inning.

Bottom Line

The Cubs did a very good job taking advantage of an inferior opponent. Wisdom has reduced his strikeouts and is starting to look like a real impact player. He can offer a huge boost with his consistent power if his improved plate approach continues.

On Deck

Chicago attempts to win the series Tuesday night at 8:40pm CT. Marcus Stroman matches up against Ken Waldichuk with coverage on Marquee and 670 The Score.