Why Gore and Boyd Hold the Key to Defense’s Ultimate Shutdown Strategy
The Cubs are one of the best teams in the National League, and if we are being honest, I didn’t see it coming. The truth is this team was just mediocre last season. They floundered around and ultimately didn’t even make the playoffs. There were a lot of questions as to why that happened, but the truth was, the team just wasn’t that good. What did they do differently this season? Player development certainly helped. Kyle Tucker instead of Cody Bellinger seems to have made a difference, and their pitching staff, even without two of their better arms, seems to be very good. Tonight, one of those arms that is helping the club quite a bit, Matthew Boyd, takes the mound. Boyd is 5-2 with a 3.08 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He hasn’t been quite as sharp on the road, but he also hasn’t been terrible with a 3.73 ERA. He has produced a quality start in three of his last four outings, but the one non-quality start was a four inning, four runs allowed road game. Nationals hitters have done okay against him, with Josh Bell the only one with a lot of success. He might be a good guy for a daily lineup today.
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