Giancarlo Stanton stayed red hot Sunday, but the Yankees‘ offense was anything but on Sunday as Shota Imanaga and the Chicago Cubs shut the Bombers down 4-1 at Yankee Stadium.
Imanaga, the lefty Chicago ace, sparkled on the mound Sunday, throwing seven innings of one-run ball to help the Cubs take the rubber game of the weekend series, the last one before the All-Star Break.
“Like yesterday with (Matthew) Boyd, I thought we were squaring some balls up and things like that, today not as much,” said Yankees manager Aaron Boone after the game.
Yankee starter Will Warren took the hill on Sunday and the Cubs jumped on him early. Michael Busch led off the game with a home run, his 19th of the year, to give Chicago an instant lead. Three straight batters reached base to start the afternoon, but a flyout and double play got Warren through the jam.
Imanaga impressed in his first inning of work, putting the Yankees down in order in the first — but Stanton answered in the bottom of the second with a leadoff shot of his own. His fourth of the year got New York even at one apiece.
After not homering in his first 12 games off the Injured List, the Yankees’ designated hitter now has four in his last nine games to go with an OPS of 1.037.
Stanton’s shot was the lone blemish en route to a brilliant afternoon for the Cubs’ starter. After a walk to Jazz Chisholm Jr., Imanaga went on a run of 11 straight batters retired going into the sixth inning. He ended the day retiring 16-of-17 batters faced.
Warren continued to pitch into and out of trouble all afternoon before getting the hook from Boone with one out in the sixth after a leadoff double. The Cubs then put the game away.
Ian Hamilton was the first man out of the bullpen and was greeted rudely by Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson, who blasted a two-run homer into the seats to put Chicago up 3-1.
Warren finished the day with 5 1/3 innings pitched, two earned runs, six hits, three walks and a strikeout. Boone emphasized his ability to battle out of the jams and called it a potential “growth moment” for the second-year starter.
“I told him as much, even coming out, that’s a day where they had a lot of good at-bats against him, wasn’t necessarily his best, didn’t have his best command, but kind of navigated it,” Boone said. “That’s what the good ones do.”
The Cubs notched another run against New York’s bullpen in the seventh. With Tim Hill on the mound, Seiya Suzuki hit a double with two outs in the frame, followed by a Pete Crow-Armstrong infield single. Suzuki would come home with Chicago’s fourth run after an errant Anthony Volpe throw forced first baseman Paul Goldschmidt off the bag.
After hurling a shutodwn seventh inning, Imanaga’s day ended with seven innings of one run ball, allowing two hits and a walk with six strikeouts. The Cubs’ bullpen continued where Imanaga left off. Drew Pomeranz and Daniel Palencia each sent the Yankees down in order, icing away the Chicago victory.
The Cubs improve to 57-39 and remain in sole possession of first place in the National League Central Division. The Yankees, meanwhile, fall to 53-43, and remain in second place in the American League East going to the All-Star Break.
Aaron Judge, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Carlos Rodon will represent the Yankees in the All-Star Game in Atlanta Tuesday night, and Chisholm will also be part of Monday’s Home Run Derby. The Yankees’ second half begins on the road Friday night in Atlanta against the Braves.
