Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (6/30/23): Cubs 10, Guardians 1 – Cubs Don’t Bunt, Hit Dingers in Blowout Win

The Cubs got a much-needed victory Friday afternoon at Wrigley to snap a four-game losing streak. Chicago built a huge lead on Cleveland in the middle innings and coasted to a stress-free blowout.

Nico Hoerner put the Cubs ahead with a two-run bases-loaded single off of Cal Quantrill in the 3rd inning. Jared Young continued his instant impact, bringing home a pair on a triple in the 4th. An RBI single from Mike Tauchman and a sacrifice fly by Christopher Morel gave the home team a 6-0 advantage by the end of the frame.

That was more than enough support for Justin Steele, who pitched into the 7th inning and kept the Guardians off the scoreboard. It was pretty obvious it was going to be Chicago’s day when Nick Madrigal hit his first home run in a Cubs uniform in the 6th. Two batters later, Morel added a two-run dinger and it was a 9-0 runaway.

Super Smash Bros 💥 pic.twitter.com/NLJ9nh9H3d

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) June 30, 2023

Cleveland spoiled the shutout with a solo home run in the 9th inning but the Cubs cruised to a 10-1 romp. (Box score)

Key Moment

The Cubs had not had a lead since Sunday in London, so jumping ahead on Hoerner’s knock was huge and they took off from there.

Why the Cubs Won

After looking incredibly sloppy the last series against the Phillies, they did everything right on Friday and won easily.

Stats That Matter

• Steele hit a batter and had a throwing error to begin the game, then dominated after escaping that jam: 6.1 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 6 K, and 1 BB.
• Young had a single in addition to the triple and he’s definitely worthy of some more playing time.
• Madrigal is on the verge of being a league-average hitter, which is quite an accomplishment after his very slow start to the season.
• Hoerner had three hits on Friday and has gotten pretty hot.

Bottom Line

It turns out home runs are a lot more fun than bunts, who knew, right? This was a huge win for the Cubs to stop their skid and at least prevent a total tailspin. It won’t mean that much however if they don’t build on it the rest of this series. Steele continued to do an excellent job of playing stopper with another dominant performance.

On Deck

Game two of the series is Saturday at 6:15pm CT as Marcus Stroman faces Tanner Bibee in a game airing on FOX and 670 The Score.