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Home , Anthony Swarzak, Brent Suter, David Stearns, Junior Guerra, Rob Ryan (baseball)

July 29, 2017

 Chicago Sun-Times, Brewers beat Cubs as division race tightens, trade intrigue heightens http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/brewers-beats-cubs-as-division-race-tightens-trade-intrigue-heightens/

 Chicago Sun-Times, Cubs trade talk: Marlins C A.J. Ellis in sights, but can they add arm? http://chicago.suntimes.com/sports/cubs-trade-talk-marlins-c-a-j-ellis-in-sights-but-can-they-add-arm/

 Daily Herald, Maddon says Jay invaluable to Cubs so far http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20170728/maddon-says-jay-invaluable-to-cubs-so-far

 Daily Herald, Cubs open key Brewers series with 2-1 loss http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20170728/cubs-open-key-brewers-series-with-2-1-loss

 Cubs.com, Baez backs Quintana with HR, but Cubs lose http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/245008606/brewers-brent-suter-paces-win-over-cubs/

 Cubs.com, Heyward robs Braun of HR with leaping grab http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/245023482/cubs-jason-heyward-robs-ryan-braun-of-homer/

 Cubs.com, Quintana revels in first hit, quality start vs. Crew http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/245106796/cubs-jose-quintana-pitches-well-vs-brewers/

 Cubs.com, Maddon expects pre-Deadline deal for Cubs http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/245002934/cubs-joe-maddon-on-non-waiver-trade-deadline/

 Cubs.com, Hendricks faces Crew in 2nd start back from DL http://atmlb.com/2w8ShEo

 ESPNChicago.com, Leadoff hitter by committee: Variety is working for Cubs http://www.espn.com/blog/chicago/cubs/post/_/id/45164/leadoff-hitter-by-committee-variety-is-working- for-the-cubs

 ESPNChicago.com, Rare second-half loss nothing for Cubs to panic about http://www.espn.com/blog/chicago/cubs/post/_/id/45173/a-rare-second-half-loss-shouldnt-have-cubs- feeling-down

 CSNChicago.com, Cubs are about to find out how Brewers will counter Jose Quintana move http://www.csnchicago.com/chicago-cubs/cubs-are-about-find-out-how-brewers-will-counter-jose-quintana- move

 CSNChicago.com, Don’t stop now: Joe Maddon expects Cubs will keep dealing before trade deadline http://www.csnchicago.com/chicago-cubs/dont-stop-now-joe-maddon-expects-cubs-will-keep-dealing-trade- deadline

 Chicago Tribune, Jason Heyward catch, Javier Baez homer aren't enough for Cubs in 2-1 loss to Brewers http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-brewers-spt-0729-20170728- story.html#nt=oft03a-1la1

 Chicago Tribune, Brewers merely a pesky pest to be swept aside during Cubs' return to playoffs http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-sullivan-cubs-brewers-spt-0729-20170728-column.html

 Chicago Tribune, Cubs could make move for bullpen help before Monday's trade deadline http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-relief-help-notes-spt-0729-20170728- story.html

 Chicago Tribune, 'I could talk all day about my job': Meet Cubs and White Sox ushers on the front line http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/ct-ushers-cubs-white-sox-spt-0728-20170727- story.html#nt=oft03a-1gp3

Chicago Sun-Times Brewers beat Cubs as division race tightens, trade intrigue heightens By Gordon Wittenmyer

MILWAUKEE — Whether it involves themselves, the Brewers or somebody else in the division, the Cubs are waiting for the other shoe to drop in the National League Central before the non-waiver trade deadline at 3 p.m. Monday.

What’s the next acquisition that will have an effect on the clustered division race? Will the Brewers land their version of Jose Quintana and acquire Athletics ace Sonny Gray? Will the Cardinals add a bat — or decide to add anything at all? And what about the Pirates?

The Brewers’ 2-1 victory against the Cubs in the opener of a three-game series Friday at Miller Park tightened the race and heightened the drama in the division.

Quintana did his job again in his third start since joining the Cubs in a trade July 13 from the White Sox.

Despite what he called a slow start, Quintana retired the final seven batters he faced to hold the Brewers to two runs in six innings. He got a sizable assist from Jason Heyward, who reached over the right-field wall to rob Ryan Braun of a would-be two-run home run in the third.

‘‘That play was amazing,’’ said Quintana, who’s 2-1 with a 2.37 ERA in three starts with the Cubs. ‘‘I tried to keep the game close and tried to wait for the comeback. It was a tough night, and we’ll come back tomorrow.’’

Javy Baez hit a long homer against former White Sox reliever Anthony Swarzak with one out in the eighth of a game Quintana said had a playoff atmosphere to it.

In fact, sold-out Miller Park got especially loud in the ninth, when the Cubs had the tying run on third base before pinch hitter Kyle Schwarber struck out against Brewers closer Corey Knebel to end the game. It was only the Cubs’ third loss in 14 games since the All-Star break.

‘‘It was a cool moment,’’ Schwarber said. ‘‘Everyone’s into it. It was a fun little battle right there. He got me, and I’ll be ready for tomorrow.’’

With barely two months left in the regular season and the Cubs holding a half-game lead over the Brewers in the NL Central, the division race might look a lot like this for a while. That makes what happens before the trade deadline especially intriguing.

‘‘You’re looking what everybody else is doing in that regard, I agree with that,’’ Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. ‘‘But right now, being so proactive as we were to get Quintana . . . we’ve already had him for [three] starts. So we’ve already been proactively in front of some other groups by getting that done. Now anything you could do on top of that in a positive vein, absolutely it’s going to benefit us.’’

The emotional boost and energy the Quintana trade brought to the clubhouse was almost as significant as his pitching, and it seemed to come at an ideal time for the Cubs after they struggled into the break.

Quintana’s hard-luck loss to the Brewers was the first for the Cubs’ rotation since the break. The rested, stabilized rotation is 10-1 with a 2.54 ERA in those 14 games.

And if the Brewers, who had struggled out of the break until beating the Cubs, were to land the starting pitcher they seek?

‘‘Same thing,’’ Maddon said. ‘‘I don’t doubt that they’re going to probably do something. I don’t know what the Cardinals and the Pirates are thinking right now. But at the end of the day, we’ve just got to worry about what we’re doing.

‘‘And I think it’s going to be hard to duplicate what we’ve already done in regards to getting Quintana.’’

Chicago Sun-Times Cubs trade talk: Marlins C A.J. Ellis in sights, but can they add arm? By Gordon Wittenmyer

MILWAUKEE — Marlins catcher A.J. Ellis remains a focus for the Cubs as the non-waiver trade deadline (3 p.m. Monday) nears, a major-league source said Friday, confirming what two other sources said earlier in the week.

But while landing a veteran backup catcher for the stretch run is certainly one of the Cubs’ priorities, a reliable reliever might be just as important for a team with designs on making a third consecutive run deep into the postseason.

Left-handed or right-handed doesn’t seem to matter to manager Joe Maddon, who would welcome late-inning help as the front office works multiple fronts to try to add a second pitcher (after Jose Quintana) this month.

Cubs setup men C.J. Edwards and Pedro Strop rank among the top 20 in the National League in appearances (45 each), and the Cubs have two more relievers with at least 40.

‘‘The spread’s pretty good,’’ Maddon said. ‘‘But later on, [if] you want to win a lot, you’re going to wear bullpen guys out because that’s what happens when you’re winning games.

‘‘That’s what you would be looking for — that high-leverage, later-inning guy that you’re really comfortable with — so you can spread the work out a little bit more evenly.’’

The Cubs used their top two prospects (outfielder Eloy Jimenez and pitcher Dylan Cease) to acquire Quintana from the White Sox on July 13, emptying their system of the marquee prospects not already in the majors. President Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer repeatedly have said they don’t want to trade from the big-league roster to add pitching at the deadline. That shouldn’t prevent a deal for a player such as Ellis, but it might make a deal for a pitcher go down to the final hours.

The Cubs have been linked to almost every attractive pitcher on a fast-moving reliever market, but a source with knowledge of the Cubs’ talks with the Marlins said the teams aren’t discussing a package deal to include a pitcher with Ellis.

‘‘If I had to bet, I would bet we’d do something,’’ Maddon said. ‘‘I don’t even know if it’s going to be an arm or not.’’

Back doesn’t slow Schwarber

Kyle Schwarber wore a large ice pack around the clubhouse before the Cubs’ loss Friday to the Brewers because of ‘‘a little bit of a stiff back the last couple of days,’’ Maddon said.

Schwarber wasn’t in the lineup against left-hander Brent Suter, but the batting order was made a couple of days before the game and had nothing to do with the back issue, Maddon said. Schwarber pinch-hit in the ninth inning and struck out with the tying run on third.

‘‘It didn’t bother him [Thursday],’’ Maddon said. ‘‘Kyle will be back out there [Saturday].’’

Schwarber hit two home runs and a triple Thursday against the White Sox. He’s 14-for-51 with five homers and a .990 OPS since a two-week demotion to the minors.

‘‘It’s just general soreness, nothing big,’’ Schwarber said. ‘‘It doesn’t bother me.’’

This and that

Quintana’s two-out single in the third inning was his first career hit. He was 0-for-29 with a walk before that.

• The Cubs allowed first-inning runs in 48 of their 88 games before the All-Star break (80 runs total), but they haven’t yielded any in 14 games since.

Daily Herald Maddon says Jay invaluable to Cubs so far By Bruce Miles

MILWAUKEE -- Jon Jay made his third straight start in left field for the Cubs in Friday's series opener at Miller Park against the Milwaukee Brewers

Cubs fans no doubt have liked what they've seen from the 32-year-old veteran, who signed a free-agent deal last offseason after one year with the Padres and parts of six with the Cardinals. He entered the night with a line of .299/.390/.391.

Jay doesn't play every day. He's part of a rotation in the outfield.

"I think I've felt the same way all year," he said. "Just trying to be consistent. Just trying to stay ready. It's been awesome. It's been a great experience so far. I've been loving it. The guys are great, and we're starting to play baseball the way we know we're capable of."

In the first inning of Wednesday's game against the White Sox, he raced to the left-center field gap to make a diving catch of a ball hit by Melky Cabrera.

"I'm an aggressive outfielder," he said. "So when the ball went up, I'm going to give it the best I've got, and I was able to get to that one."

Manager Joe Maddon likes Jay's approach.

"The thing with that is we've had so many candidates for the same position," Maddon said. "I think he's got over 200 plate appearances right now. He's probably trending for 350 or 400, which is not bad. What I like about him is I like him on the bench, too. You've seen how valuable he is off the bench as a pinch hitter. He's just a very valuable player.

"Who knows? Maybe he's playing this well right now because he has not played too much at this point. I've always looked at it from that perspective. People say when a guy's going well that he needs to play more often. Who knows when diminishing returns set in? I prefer this method."

The deadline dash:

The nonwaiver trading deadline comes up at 3 p.m. Chicago time Monday.

The Cubs brass was back in Chicago working the phones. It's likely the Cubs will try to land a veteran backup catcher and a bullpen arm.

"If I had to bet, I'd bet we're going to do something," Joe Maddon said. "I don't know if it's going to be an arm or not. It's a possible catcher. It's a possible anything with our guys. I would imagine that something's going to happen."

Back, back back:

With left-hander Brent Suter pitching for the Brewers Friday, Kyle Schwarber was not in the Cubs' starting lineup. He hit a pair of homers and a triple Thursday against the White Sox. He entered Friday with 17 homers. Schwarber was wearing a wrap on his back before the game.

"He's had a little bit of a stiff back the last couple days," Joe Maddon said. "It didn't bother him yesterday."

Daily Herald Cubs open key Brewers series with 2-1 loss By Bruce Miles

MILWAUKEE -- The Cubs brought pennant-race baseball and a whole bunch of their fans to Miller Park Friday night.

With a 1½-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers entering the weekend, the Cubs had some margin for error.

They also had plenty of momentum, having gone 11-2 since the all-star break while the Brewers went into Friday 4-9 since the break and 2-8 on their just-concluded road trip.

The Cubs and starting pitcher Jose Quintana gave up single runs in the second and fourth innings before a monster home run to left field by Javier Baez brought the Cubs within a run in the eighth. But the Cubs fell short 2-1 before a sellout crowd of 42,574. Pinch hitter Kyle Schwarber struck out with Anthony Rizzo on third base to end the game.

The atmosphere left nothing to be desired.

"Tremendous," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon, whose team fell to 54-48 while the Brewers moved to 55-50. "Outstanding. That's all we've been playing lately. I love it. I think our guys love it."

Quintana suffered the first loss by a Cubs starting pitcher since the all-star break. He worked 6 innings, giving up 4 hits and 2 runs. He was outduled by Brewers starter Brent Suter.

"It was a slow start," said Quintana, who is 2-1 with a 2.37 ERA with the Cubs since his trade from the White Sox. "I was trying to make adjustments. That's going to happen sometimes."

He agreed with Maddon on the pennant race feel in the ballpark.

"Yeah, it's a contending team in our division," he said. "Every game counts. I'm really happy to feel the atmosphere every night when I go to the mound. It was good. It was a tough night for me. Come back tomorrow."

The Brewers are a young team that unexpectedly set the pace in the National League Central in the first half. Two years ago, a young Cubs team won 97 games and a wild card, advancing to the NL championship series. That team also faced some midseason adversity before beginning a big run.

So Maddon knows something of what the Brewers have experienced of late.

"Whenever that happens you've got to keep moving it forward," he said. "With the Rays, I was involved in a three- or four-game bad moment in Yankee Stadium in September, as it's getting to the very end. We fought through that and eventually it worked out well. When things don't go well, in the middle of the year especially, people jump on and off bandwagons very quickly, but it's such a long year, and you're able to turn your fortunes around, if you permit yourself.

"Sometimes you get in your own way because you can start showing up to the ballpark and maybe the method changes or you get angry or upset and you carry that negativity. It's not going to work. It's not going to play. The one thing you have to learn how to do is find the nearest garbage can and throw stuff in it and then walk into the next day unencumbered."

As recently as July 6, the Brewers came into Wrigley Field for a makeup game and trounced the Cubs 11-2.

"We played them a couple times this year," Maddon said. "We just weren't on top of our game. I talked about it a lot in the first half. We just weren't feeling that right kind of energy. I thought the last two years had beaten us up a little bit, and I was looking for us to regain our mental form.

"And I think since the all-star break we were more like we had been the last couple years. Why? It's a long year. There's a couple months left. We didn't have our stuff together early on. We fought, we fought, we fought. We never got in a bad hole. But we never played to our capability, either. All of a sudden now we're playing a more familiar game and we have to be able to continue that for another couple of months."

Cubs.com Baez backs Quintana with HR, but Cubs lose By Adam McCalvy and Carrie Muskat

MILWAUKEE -- Don't hand the National League Central to the surging Cubs just yet.

Brent Suter pitched a career-high seven scoreless innings, Anthony Swarzak survived a harrowing Brewers debut and Corey Knebel struck out Kyle Schwarber with the tying runner at third base to end Milwaukee's 2-1 win over the Cubs in front of 42,574 fans Friday night at sold-out Miller Park.

Manny Pina and Orlando Arcia delivered run-scoring groundouts to back that trio of pitchers, who pulled the Brewers back to within one-half game of the first-place Cubs in the National League Central. The teams entered their weekend showdown headed in opposite directions, with the Cubs winning eight of their previous 10 games, including three in a row, to overtake the Brewers, who had lost eight of their last 10, including two straight.

"We just could not get anything going against Suter," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "He was outstanding, mixing speeds. He looked like he might have gone to an Ivy League college or something."

Suter did, actually. He went to Harvard.

"I have to be honest, it feels good," Suter said. "It was probably one of the biggest starts of my life, and to come through for the team and get the team a win, it feels good."

The Brewers hit Cubs starter Jose Quintana hard in the first four of the left-hander's six innings and coaxed three walks, but they had little to show for it. Quintana surrendered only four hits and struck out six in his third Cubs start, yielding two runs. The Brewers put runners at second and third with no outs in the second and took a 1-0 lead on Pina's groundout. Then they loaded the bases with no outs in the fourth, but again mustered a lone run on Arcia's fielder's choice grounder. Milwaukee finished 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position.

"They work good at-bats," Maddon said of the Brewers. "They don't expand their strike zone -- maybe one or two guys might. They're not expanders. You've got to throw a strike. It's almost like an [American League] East batting lineup. You have to get them out within the strike zone, and that's what's so interesting about their group."

Quintana's loss was the first hung on a Cubs starter since the All-Star break. They had started the second half 10-0.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Home run robbery: A Cubs misplay put the Brewers in business to start the third inning, before right fielder Jason Heyward made the play of the game. Center fielder Albert Almora Jr.s two-base error put Domingo Santana aboard for Ryan Braun, who lined an 0-1 fastball toward the wall in right. Heyward ran back to make a leaping catch, bringing the baseball back to take a two-run homer away from Braun and positioning Quintana to pitch a scoreless inning.

"I don't think anybody else catches that ball," Braun said. "High fly balls, guys have an opportunity to get to, but it was a line drive. I hit the ball hard. Clearly it would have been a home run, and he made an incredible catch. There's a reason he's won some Gold Gloves out there and continues to be one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball. Fortunately, we still won the game, but it was a huge play in that moment."

"He hits a lot of balls that way with authority, and always has," Heyward said. "You just have to be ready. Braun hits the ball 'oppo.'"

Baez homer halves the deficit: Swarzak, acquired in a Wednesday trade with the White Sox, made his Milwaukee debut in an eighth inning full of big moments. Taking over with a 2-0 lead, he hung his head when Addison Russell led off with a deep drive to right field, where Santana made a catch at the warning track. Swarzak's sense of relief was short-lived, however, as Baez crushed the very next pitch, a slider, a Statcast-projected 449 feet, where it smashed the windows of the club level high above left field. Swarzak also walked a batter, but he managed to preserve a 2-1 lead with an assist from third baseman Travis Shaw, who reached over the railing of the camera well next to the Cubs dugout to retire pinch-hitter Ben Zobrist and put the Brewers back on a path to escape.

"I had a clean inning and I made my own mess out there," Swarzak said. "It wasn't anyone's fault but my own." Shaw's catch provided a big boost to get the Brewers through the inning.

"I didn't realize I had caught it, to be honest with you," Shaw said. "Looking on the replay, that's as far as I could reach. I kinda just felt something in there. If I'm not getting any hits, they're not getting any hits."

QUOTABLE

"It'll be cool and we're going to be playing our baseball. We can't be worried about the division, we have to worry about ourselves and play our game and go from there." -- Schwarber, on the Cubs' tight race this season to get a playoff spot

UPON FURTHER REVIEW

Hernan Perez's hustle and Brewers manager Craig Counsell's winning challenge produced a run for the Brewers in the fourth inning. Perez hit a ground ball to Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo and dove headfirst into the bag as Quintana covered. The initial call was out, but that was overturned upon review. The Brewers went on to load the bases with no outs for Arcia's run-scoring fielder's choice, giving the Brewers a 2-0 lead. Quintana managed to avoid further damage in the inning, however, retiring Braun on a flyout to shallow center field to strand the bases loaded.

WHAT'S NEXT

Cubs: Kyle Hendricks will make his second start since coming off the disabled list on Saturday. In his last outing, he gave up one earned run over 4 ⅓ innings against the White Sox. Hendricks has a 3.24 ERA in his last nine starts. First pitch is scheduled for 6:10 p.m. CT from Miller Park.

Brewers: Right-hander Junior Guerra will face the Cubs for the first time this season when he takes the mound at 6:10 p.m. on Saturday. Guerra last started at Philadelphia on Sunday, allowing five earned runs over four innings in a losing decision. He was 1-0 with a 2.03 ERA in two starts against the Cubs at Miller Park last season.

Cubs.com Heyward robs Braun of HR with leaping grab By Carrie Muskat

MILWAUKEE -- Ryan Braun may want to consider hitting the ball somewhere other than right field when he's facing the Cubs and Jason Heyward is out there.

In the first inning of the Cubs' 2-1 loss to the Brewers at Miller Park on Friday, Heyward made a running catch in the right-center-field gap to rob Braun of a potential extra-base hit.

Then in the third, with Milwaukee ahead 1-0, the Brewers had a runner at second base after center fielder Albert Almora Jr.s error with no one out, and Braun again lined the ball to right. This one was deeper than the first, and Heyward made a perfectly timed leap at the 8-foot high fence to rob Braun of a home run. The Brewers slugger spiked his helmet in frustration after the catch was made.

A four-time Gold Glove Award winner, Heyward was greeted by his teammates in the dugout with high fives. "The Heyward play was amazing," Cubs starter Jose Quintana said.

"It kept the game close," Heyward said. "'Q' threw great, we played some pretty good defense and it was a 2-1 ballgame. That's the way it's going to go. Two teams playing well, two pitchers going well."

It wasn't the first time Heyward has stymied Braun either.

"He hits a lot of balls that way with authority, and always has," Heyward said. "I think I remember he was going for his 200th homer, and he hit a ball that way and I made a play at the wall on him. There's some history with him driving the ball that way. You just have to be ready. Braun hits the ball 'oppo.'"

It didn't help that the two balls he did hit well went to a four-time Gold Glove Award-winning outfielder.

"[Heyward] has a defensive reputation for a reason," Braun said. "I think he's probably the best defensive right fielder in baseball. I don't think anybody else catches that ball. High fly balls, guys have an opportunity to get to, but it was a line drive. I hit the ball hard. Clearly it would have been a home run, and he made an incredible catch. "There's a reason he's won some Gold Gloves out there and continues to be one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball. Fortunately, we still won the game. But it was a huge play in that moment."

Heyward just timed it perfectly.

"The way he hit it, it was a line drive so the timing worked out really well," Heyward said. "The ones that are kind of high that you have to get up on the wall, it can be tough to get up on the wall. That one worked out perfect."

Cubs.com Quintana revels in first hit, quality start vs. Crew By Carrie Muskat

MILWAUKEE -- After Jose Quintana collected his first Major League hit, a single to right in the third inning Friday night, he just wanted to touch the baseball. Brewers first baseman Jesus Aguilar obliged, handing the ball to Quintana as he stood on first base.

"I was excited when I hit that ball to right field," Quintana said. "I'm not a hitter, but I tried to do my best. When I got the hit, I was real excited. I wanted to touch the ball -- it was good."

Unfortunately for Quintana, he couldn't celebrate his first hit with a win. The Cubs lost, 2-1, to the Brewers, despite another quality start by the left-hander, who gave up both runs on four hits over six innings.

His best innings were his last two, during which he needed 19 pitches to retire the side in the fifth and sixth frames.

"[Quintana's] stuff was fine, and they had some good at-bats. They were using the whole field, they weren't expanding the zone," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "Give them credit, but give us credit for keeping them at two runs in spite of how well they hit the ball early on."

It was the first loss by a Cubs starting pitcher since the All-Star break -- they had been 10-0. Chicago's rotation has done well, compiling a 2.54 ERA and 10 quality starts in 14 second-half games. That's been a key to the Cubs' surge.

"It was a tough game," Quintana said of his outing. "The hitters did their best. It was a battle the whole game, especially in the beginning of the game. A couple good plays on defense -- that's amazing when the guys behind you try to do the best in every situation."

Maddon has seen teams like the Brewers before when he managed the Rays.

"It's almost like an [American League] East batting lineup," Maddon said of the Brewers. "You have to get them out within the strike zone, and that's what's so interesting about their group."

Quintana, who has 25 strikeouts over 19 innings in his three starts with the Cubs, had spent his entire career in the AL, so hitting doesn't exactly come naturally. He thought Friday was the first time he had ever been on the bases in a Major League game, and before he remembered an Interleague game June 12, 2012, against the Cardinals when he actually walked. Quintana was 0-for-29 at the plate prior to his hit on Friday.

He had the ball in a box on his locker shelf after the game. Quintana knows the Cubs acquired him to bolster the rotation in the final months of the season.

"Every game counts," Quintana said. "I'm really happy to feel that atmosphere every night when I go to the mound. It was a tough night for me."

Cubs.com Maddon expects pre-Deadline deal for Cubs By Carrie Muskat

MILWAUKEE -- With the non-waiver Trade Deadline on Monday, manager Joe Maddon expects the Cubs to make a move, but he isn't exactly sure what it would be.

"If I had a bet, I would bet we would do something," Maddon said Friday. "I don't know if it will be an arm or not. I don't know that. It's a possible catcher, it's a possible anything with our [front office]. I would imagine that something will happen."

The Cubs most likely are in the market for an experienced catcher with the departure in late June of Miguel Montero. Among the names mentioned is Miami's A.J. Ellis, 36, who entered Friday batting .232 in 27 games. He spent most of his playing career with the Dodgers (2008-16) before he was dealt to the Phillies. Ellis worked almost exclusively with Clayton Kershaw during his time in L.A.

What about getting some bullpen help? Carl Edwards Jr. and Pedro Strop lead Cubs relievers in appearances (45), while Brian Duensing has pitched the most innings (43).

"My biggest concern would be that the guy you'd really like to match up in the seventh or eighth [innings], you get on a roll, and then you start using these guys too much in a good way," Maddon said. "Depth is what you're looking for, that high leverage, late inning guy who you're really comfortable with so you can spread the work out more evenly."

The Cubs did get a head start on their National League Central Division rivals by acquiring left-hander Jose Quintana from the White Sox on July 13.

Worth noting

• In 33 appearances in the first half, Koji Uehara gave up one home run over 29 2/3 innings and compiled a 2.73 ERA. In five second-half appearances, he's served up three homers in 4 1/3 innings and has a 8.31 ERA. What gives?

"Velocity-wise, he's actually throwing harder," Maddon said. "I have not seen anything [different]."

On Thursday, The White Sox's Jose Abreu homered off Uehara but Maddon said that was a "bad matchup." "During the regular season in a one-run game, I probably would've avoided that," Maddon said. "With all these guys, I try to put them on best with people they match up with. He's fine. No loss of faith. There's certain guys I don't want to put him on, and sometimes you have to."

• Kyle Schwarber, who hit two home runs and a triple on Thursday against the White Sox, was not in the lineup on Friday, but that was planned in advance, primarily because the Brewers were starting left-hander Brent Suter. Schwarber also has some stiffness in his back, although Maddon pointed out that "it didn't bother him yesterday."

• Maddon's Respect 90 Foundation will host a Burnout Classic and Casino Night fundraiser on Sept. 2 at Fields Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, RAM in Glenview, Ill. Featured at the event will be 15 to 20 pristine classic '60s and '70s Mopar muscle cars on display. Go to www.Respect90.org for more information.

By the way, Maddon's dream car? A 1958 Impala Bel Air.

Cubs.com Hendricks faces Crew in 2nd start back from DL By Carson Mason

The Brewers have an opportunity to turn the page on a tough road trip, while the first-place Cubs will look to continue their second half success when they face off for Game 2 of a three-game series at Miller Park on Saturday.

Milwaukee returned home Friday following a three-city, 10-game road trip, during which they finished 2-8 and were dealt their largest losing margin of the season in a 15-2 loss to the Nationals on Thursday.

"It was a tough road trip. … [Thursday] was just one of those games," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. "I think it's easier to turn the page on those games than the games that you feel like you've got a chance to win … It's obviously a big series, so it's very easy to turn the page and kind of focus on what's next."

Conversely, the Cubs entered the series with nine straight road victories since July 2, the team's longest road winning streak since Sept, 15, 2015 - April 7, 2016.

"Since the All-Star break, we're more like we have been the last couple years, and why? It's a long year," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "We didn't have our stuff together early on. We fought, we fought, we fought. Now we're playing a more familiar game, and we have to maintain that for the next couple months."

Both having dealt with injuries, right-handers Kyle Hendricks and Junior Guerra will make their 13th starts of the season.

Hendricks' start will be his second since being activated from the 10-day disabled list and missing seven weeks with right hand tendinitis. He allowed one earned run on a season-high eight hits in 4 1/3 innings against the White Sox on Monday, snapping a career-long 12-start streak of surrendering six or fewer hits.

Guerra will make his first start against Chicago this season. He's had a pair of stints on the DL, the first coming in early April for a right calf strain and the second coming in early July for a right shin contusion. He finished 1-0 with a 2.03 ERA in two starts vs. Chicago at Miller Park last season.

Things to know about this game

• Kyle Schwarber was not in the Cubs lineup on Friday despite his two-homer, one-triple game Thursday. All three of those hits were barreled, according to Statcast, making Thursday's game the only three-barrel game by the Cubs this season. The performance gave Schwarber eight barrels on 35 balls put in play since he returned from Triple-A Iowa.

• Brewers first baseman Eric Thames was also left out of the starting lineup Friday against lefty Jose Quintana. He entered the series slashing .391/.517/.696 (9-for-23) with 10 runs scored in seven games against the Cubs this season.

• Ryan Braun returned to the lineup Friday after getting a day off against Max Scherzer on Thursday. He owns a .143 (2-for-14) career average with five strikeouts against Hendricks.

ESPNChicago.com Leadoff hitter by committee: Variety is working for Cubs By Jesse Rogers

CHICAGO -- If you’re waiting for Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon to finally settle on a leadoff hitter, you may have to wait until 2018, because he’s just fine with using as many players as he wants at the top of his lineup. Maddon has been asked repeatedly about the leadoff position, so he came up with a pitching analogy to illustrate his thinking.

"You would like to have a closer, because it sets up your bullpen," Maddon explained Tuesday morning. "You would like to have a leadoff hitter you can rely on, on a daily basis, that sets up the rest of your lineup. Sometimes you have closer by committee, sometimes you have leadoff hitter by committee. I don’t think it’s that big of an issue, especially because we have been pretty successful there. The variety of guys we’ve used there have done a really good job.”

Variety is the key word, as the Cubs have employed nine different leadoff hitters this season, tied for most in the majors, according to ESPN Stats & Information. But Maddon isn’t necessarily wrong about their production, especially if it’s possible to eliminate some statistics compiled while Kyle Schwarber hit first in the order.

The Cubs rank last in the National League among No. 1 hitters, going into Saturday’s game, with a .227 batting average. But since June 13 -- the first time Anthony Rizzo led off -- the Cubs are hitting .258 at the top of the lineup. Overall, their OPS is pretty good, as it ranks fifth with a .760 mark; since June 13, it’s .813.

“We don’t have that prototypical speedy guy,” Maddon said. “Let’s make the best of it we can, but I’ve liked the way it’s worked.”

At the moment, Maddon has landed on Jason Heyward and Ben Zobrist as two of his go-to guys for batting first. Heyward didn’t mentally take to it in previous stints, but his .348 career on-base percentage batting leadoff was worth a look -- if he was up for it.

“We talked a little bit before the break about the possibility of doing this, so I know that he’s in,” Maddon stated. “His on-base is higher than these other guys. The fact that he’s into it matters.”

In the past, Heyward thought that batting first may have taken away his aggressiveness as a hitter, but he seems to be keeping to his season-long style of avoiding being passive. He swung at the first pitch he saw last Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals when leading off for the first time this season.

“Yeah, just going up there looking for good pitches to hit and not miss them,” Heyward repeated several times.

Heyward didn’t want to dwell on his past struggles batting first, and Maddon thinks he has the right mindset to take on the challenge, at least at the moment.

“That he’s amenable matters a lot,” Maddon said. “He’s even high-fiving bat boys. You need that unifying force. He’s a force multiplier. ... He looks like he wants to grab it by the horns here and steer it a little bit.”

Maddon could change his mind and revert back to any of the other eight leadoff hitters he’s used, including Zobrist, who was on base three times Monday. Who knows? The manager hasn’t ruled out putting Schwarber back in the leadoff role.

Bottom line: Maddon doesn’t sound like he’s too concerned with the whole topic anyway.

“It’s worked pretty well for us,” Maddon said. “I have no issues with it at all.”

ESPNChicago.com Rare second-half loss nothing for Cubs to panic about By Jesse Rogers

MILWAUKEE -- You didn't think the Chicago Cubs were going to win games at an .846 percentage the whole second half, did you? They dropped just their third contest since the All-Star break, but none of the losses have been due to starting pitching, including Friday's thrilling 2-1 defeat to the second-place Milwaukee Brewers. As long as the Cubs keep throwing the ball the way they have, they'll win a lot more than they'll lose. Ultimately, that should be the takeaway from the defeat.

"Give them credit, but give us credit for keeping them at two runs in spite of how well they hit the ball early on," manager Joe Maddon said.

The Cubs barely registered at the plate against Brewers lefty starter Brent Suter, and Cubs pitchre Jose Quintana wasn't exactly at his sharpest, but nonetheless Chicago was in the game until the end, in part because Quintana made some big pitches when he needed to. That has been the theme of the second half so far, even as a Cubs starter lost a game for the first time since the break.

"He got through it," Maddon said of the lefty Quintana. "He started varying speeds better in the latter part of the game, that's why he got a little bit quicker innings."

Quintana lasted six, giving up four hits and three walks but only two runs. It should have been enough to win, but the Cubs' offense didn't cooperate. Still, that shouldn't deter anyone from believing the Cubs will be fine despite the Brewers pulling within a half-game of first place in the National League Central. A starting ERA of 2.54 in the second half is all you need to know about Chicago's turnaround. Understanding that, Quintana still wasn't exactly pleased with himself.

"They're a contending team," he said. "Every game counts. ... Was a tough night for me."

If a tough night is two runs over six innings, the Cubs will take it every time. Quintana was looking forward to a pennant-race game and he got one as the atmosphere at Miller Park was electric. His results were good enough, and the Cubs' bullpen -- led by a 1-2-3 seventh inning from Hector Rondon -- kept it close. The way the Cubs have been playing, this is a pothole, not a fall down a ravine.

At 11-3 since the break, the Cubs saw a nine-game road winning streak come to an end. Two of those losses can be pinned on the offense, one on the bullpen. Their starting staff is leading the way and one defeat won't change that. And to think, Kyle Schwarber still had that chance to extend the game or put the Cubs in front in the game's final at-bat. He came up short, one of the few times he has since returning from the minors.

"It was a cool moment," he said of standing in against Milwaukee closer Corey Knebel. "Everyone was into it. It was a fun little battle right there. He got me."

CSNChicago.com Cubs are about to find out how Brewers will counter Jose Quintana move By Patrick Mooney

MILWAUKEE – It’s nice that the Cubs like their dugout vibe again – except when John Lackey bumps into Anthony Rizzo – and Jose Quintana comes with three additional years of club control and Jake Arrieta says: “We expect to remain in first place.”

But after making it this far – ahead of schedule in a long rebuilding project – the Milwaukee Brewers are not at all conceding the National League Central.

The Cubs experienced a playoff-like environment in late July during Friday night’s 2-1 loss in front of a sellout crowd at Miller Park. Every year is different, the Cubs kept saying during all their stops and starts in the first half, and these next 60 games should feel like a real pennant race, not the cruise-control settings from last season.

How will the Brewers counter the Quintana move? Well, Harvard guy Brent Suter, a 31st-round pick from the 2012 draft, outpitched Quintana, a player the Brewers targeted and discussed in depth with the White Sox before Theo Epstein made his blockbuster deal during the All-Star break.

Cubs manager Joe Maddon sees an American League East-style lineup stocked with patient, powerful hitters, one that has kept the Brewers (55-50) within a half-game of first place, even after last week’s six-game losing streak.

Milwaukee also has an aggressive, involved owner (Mark Attanasio), a 30-something, Ivy League general manager (David Stearns), a top-10 farm system and the reality that chances like this don’t come around that often for small- market franchises with the July 31 trade deadline looming.

“You’re looking at what everybody else is doing,” Maddon said. “We’ve already been proactively in front of some other groups by getting that done. So now anything we can do on top of that in a positive vein, absolutely, is going to benefit us. I don’t doubt that the Brewers are probably going to do something.

“But at the end of the day, we just got to worry about what we’re doing. I think it’s going to be hard to duplicate what we’ve already done in regards to getting Quintana.”

So much about his new existence is different, but Quintana has seen this movie so many times before with the White Sox, a tough-luck loss where he only gave up two runs in six innings. Jason Heyward also bailed out Quintana in the third inning with a spectacular leaping catch at the right-field wall to take a two-run homer away from Ryan Braun.

“It was a battle,” said Quintana, who is 2-1 with a 2.37 ERA in three starts for the defending World Series champs. “Every game counts. I’m really happy to feel that atmosphere every night when I go to the mound. It was a tough night for me, and we’ll come back tomorrow.”

After Suter limited the Cubs to four singles and a walk during seven scoreless innings, Javier Baez generated all the offense with a John Daly swing. Baez drove a pitch from Anthony Swarzak – the reliever making his Brewer debut after getting traded from the White Sox – off a stadium club window above the second deck in left field.

Baez admired his shot, stared out at the field and spit out a sunflower seed as he slowly began his home-run trot. Part of the crowd of 42,574 started chanting: “Let’s go, Cubbies!” The day before on the South Side, Maddon listened to a question about Arrieta’s prediction and talked about “baseball karma,” saying it’s “out there” and “it’s going to come back and bite you.”

“Milwaukee is not going anywhere,” Maddon said. “I don’t take anything for granted, man. I really approach the day the same all the time. My experience tells me that. If you are not doing that – if you start getting full of yourself and believe in whatever – it’s going to go away real quickly.

“There’s nothing wrong with saying: ‘I feel it. I like where we’re at. I like the way the guys are reacting. I like the energy.’ Those are all good thoughts, good words. But when you start getting full of yourself and thinking it’s going to come easily – that’s the trap.”

Whether or not the Cubs and/or Brewers make a splash on July 31, these two teams will clash nine more times within the next two months.

“It will be cool,” said Kyle Schwarber, who struck out swinging at Corey Knebel’s 97-mph fastball with a runner on third base to end this game. “We’re going to be playing our baseball. We can’t be worried about whatever the division is. We got to worry about ourselves and play our game and go from there.”

CSNChicago.com Don’t stop now: Joe Maddon expects Cubs will keep dealing before trade deadline By Patrick Mooney

MILWAUKEE – The Cubs have probably already made their biggest move before the July 31 deadline – and maybe the biggest deal from this entire trading cycle. Acquiring Jose Quintana added a stunning new dimension to the Cubs-Sox rivalry, snapped the defending champs to attention and opened up future possibilities for Theo Epstein’s front office.

But within the final 72 hours before the non-waiver deadline, it’s obvious that Epstein’s creativity and competitive streak won’t allow him to stop at Quintana. The Cubs have earned it, winning 11 of their first 13 games since the All-Star break and knocking the Milwaukee Brewers out of first place in the National League Central.

The Cubs have discussed Miami Marlins catcher A.J. Ellis – who has defensive presence and experience working with Clayton Kershaw – and will almost certainly add a veteran backup to reduce the wear and tear on Willson Contreras.

The Quintana blockbuster became a reminder of never say never, but the Cubs appear to be focusing more on strengthening their bullpen than adding to a rotation that has gone 10-0 with a 2.51 ERA after the All-Star break.

“If I had to bet, I would bet we’re going to do something,” manager Joe Maddon said Friday at Miller Park. “I don’t even know if it’s going to be an arm or not. It’s a possible catcher. It’s a possible anything with our guys. But I would imagine that something’s going to happen.

“Just knowing our guys and the kind of work they’re putting in right now, I would imagine something may occur over the next couple days.”

In Maddon’s mind, the emergence of Brian Duensing (2.51 ERA, 49 strikeouts and 10 walks in 43 innings) and Mike Montgomery moving back to the bullpen has lessened a specific need for a left-handed reliever. Duensing and Montgomery also represent the kind of buy-low, under-the-radar pitchers the Cubs like to target.

Maddon downplayed the idea that Koji Uehara is finally starting to show his age (42), giving up three homers in his last five appearances after allowing only one in 29.2 innings before the All-Star break: “There’s nothing going on.”

Maddon’s most pressing bullpen issue is preserving Carl Edwards Jr. and Pedro Strop – who combined have made 90 appearances this season – and making sure his top setup guys stay sharp in front of All-Star closer Wade Davis.

“If you look at our group in the bullpen right now, we got varied talents,” Maddon said. “Duensing, (with) what he’s done, has really made our left side a lot better out of the bullpen. We got righties that are good against lefties. The biggest thing is just to not have to throw somebody too often.

“My biggest concern would be that – the guy you’d really like to match up in the seventh or the eighth inning. If you get on a roll, then you start using these guys too much, in a good way. Depth is what you would be looking for – that high-leverage, later-inning guy that you’re really comfortable with, so you can spread the work out a little bit more evenly.”

Strop still didn’t make last year’s playoff circle of trust, and neither did Hector Rondon, the former 30-save closer who has shown flashes of dominance. As only Maddon could say: “Rondon is really exciting right now, throwing at 100 mph. He’s averaging, I think, 97. He’s turning into a different FM station. He’s 97.4 or something like that right now.”

The front office that tries to think of everything already knows Maddon’s philosophy, strengths and weaknesses as a leader and an in-game manager. Why stop now after shocking the baseball world with the Quintana trade?

“You want to win, you want to win a lot, you’re going to wear bullpen guys out,” Maddon said. “Because that’s what happens when you’re winning games – your bullpen guys don’t get rest. So that’s where you really like to have that solid, late-inning depth.”

Chicago Tribune Jason Heyward catch, Javier Baez homer aren't enough for Cubs in 2-1 loss to Brewers By Mark Gonzales

Jason Heyward's leaping catch over the right field wall and Javier Baez's prodigious home run Friday night were just two of several superb plays that have highlighted the Cubs' second-half surge to first place in the National League Central.

But manager Joe Maddon has warned there are no guarantees, especially with 60 games remaining in the regular season.

That became evident Friday night, as the Cubs failed to solve left-hander Brent Suter while Jose Quintana fell into too many ruts to climb out of in a 2-1 loss to the Brewers at Miller Park.

The Cubs put the tying run at third with two out in the ninth, but closer Corey Knebel struck out Kyle Schwarber.

"(Knebel) got me that time, and you have to forget about it," Schwarber said.

For the Cubs (54-48), this marked only the third loss in 10 games since the All-Star break. But their lead shrunk to a half-game ahead of the Brewers (55-50), who recently completed a 2-8 trip.

"We can't be worried about the division," said Schwarber, who downplayed his back stiffness. "We have to worry about ourselves."

Suter bucked a trend that saw the Cubs win 17 of their first 23 games against left-handed starters. The Cubs, who scored 21 runs in three consecutive victories against the White Sox, appeared overanxious against the crafty Suter, who pitched at Harvard and is 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in five starts since taking the spot of injured Chase Anderson.

"He looks like he might have gone to an Ivy League college," Maddon said of Suter's polish.

The 6-foot-5 Hayward did his best to keep the Cubs within striking distance by making a running catch of a drive by Ryan Braun in the second, and then leaping at least a foot over the 8-foot fence to take away a potential two-run home run in the third.

"He hits a lot of balls that way with authority," said Heyward, who recalled robbing Braun of his 200th homer in 2012 while playing for the Braves. "There's some history in him driving the ball that way. You have to be ready."

Baez rebounded from Tuesday's five-strikeout performance when he launched a home run off reliever Anthony Swarzak that hit the window of the stadium club on the third deck in left field and traveled an estimated 449 feet.

That was the extent of the Cubs' offense, although Jose Quintana singled to right in the third for his first major- league hit.

"I'm no hitter, but I try my best," Quintana said.

Maddon had no qualms about third baseman Kris Bryant attempting a double play with no outs in the fourth instead of throwing home for a force. But Baez mishandled the ball in his attempt to complete the double play as Hernan Perez scored what turned out to be the winning run.

Meanwhile, the Brewers ran up Quintana's pitch count to 80 after four innings, causing him to opt for more off- speed pitches.

"It's going to happen sometimes," Quintana said.

Chicago Tribune Brewers merely a pesky pest to be swept aside during Cubs' return to playoffs By Paul Sullivan

It was supposed to feel like the beginning of the pennant race Friday night when the Cubs and their wandering horde of road-tripping fans invaded Miller Park.

Instead it felt like the beginning of the end.

It wasn't, of course. The Cubs lost 2-1 to the Brewers and could still drop this series, fall out of first place and lose the division.

But leading indicators suggest the Cubs are still in fine position to run away from the pack.

Yes, the Brewers are as pesky as gnats, but even gnats are usually squished by the end of the day. And despite leaving the tying run on third in the ninth inning Friday, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone south of the Mars Cheese Castle who believes the Cubs won't be on top of the Central at the end of the season, based on the summer rerun we're witnessing.

Last year the Cubs lost 15 of 21 going into the All-Star break, only to win 20 of the next 26 and separate themselves from the rest. This year they came into the second half one game below .500 and have won 11 of 14.

Maybe it's just coincidence — or more likely this is a team that knows the concept of catching its second wind.

"It was kind of like a start-over point for us after the break," Jon Lester said. "Everybody got away, they got their breaks, they got to kind of clear their minds and come back and just be themselves.

"Really from day one you could see everybody was a lot more relaxed and playing the game the way we've played it the last 2 1/2 years. … Now we feel like we can make a mistake and still beat a team. That's a good feeling."

The third inning of Friday's game was a perfect reminder of that. Albert Almora committed a two-base error on a sharp liner by Domingo Santana, and Ryan Braun launched a rocket headed over the right-field wall that would've given the Brewers a 3-0 lead.

Instead, Jason Heyward leaped and robbed Braun of a home run, and Jose Quintana retired the next two men to get out of the inning.

The Cubs also got great defensive plays from Almora and Addison Russell, and Quintana pitched six strong innings, allowing four hits, two of the infield variety.

But the offense couldn't get anything going against Brewers lefty Brent Suter, and it wasn't until Javy Baez homered in the eighth off Anthony Swarzak that the Cubs-centric crowd of 42,574 had something to yell about — other than booing Braun in his own park.

Brewers fans awoke in the ninth when Corey Knebel struck out Kyle Schwarber with Anthony Rizzo on third to end it.

The teams still have nine games remaining, including two more this weekend, so plenty can happen between now and October.

But the Cubs definitely have their swagger back. Right-hander Jake Arrieta threw down the gauntlet Wednesday when he declared "we expect to remain in first place" the rest of the season.

It was a little bold and a little arrogant, considering their first-half malaise and the close proximity of the Brewers. But Arrieta didn't say anything his teammates weren't already thinking but didn't want to say out loud.

"For sure," Baez said. "Everybody wants to be in first place, but we've been fighting to be in this spot, and after this (slow) start at the beginning of the year, we feel like we're back on track."

With the trade deadline looming Monday, the Cubs should be able to add a veteran catcher and another reliever.

Manager Joe Maddon said he expects something to happen, whether big or small. No one from upper management made the trip up Interstate 94, which suggests the priority is monitoring the trade market instead of worrying about a late-July showdown against the Brewers.

At this point, smartphones are more important than one series.

Chicago Tribune Cubs could make move for bullpen help before Monday's trade deadline By Mark Gonzales

There's little doubt the Cubs could use an experienced backup catcher.

But the need for a reliever before Monday's 3 p.m. non-waiver deadline could be just as pressing, based on recent developments.

"If I had to bet, I'd bet we'll do something," manager Joe Maddon said. "I don't know if it's going to be an arm or not."

As the victories pile up for the Cubs, so do the relief appearances for Carl Edwards Jr. and Pedro Strop, who each are on pace to pitch in 72 games.

"You get on a roll, then you use these guys too much (even if) in a good way," Maddon said. "When you look for bullpen help, for me, you're more than likely looking for a high-leverage guy to spread out the work more evenly so you're not beating up one or two guys."

Maddon reiterated his faith in Koji Uehara, who allowed a solo home run Thursday to Jose Abreu and a two-run, game-tying homer in the eighth inning to Mark Trumbo of the Orioles on July 14. Opponents are 7-for-20 (.350) with three home runs against Uehara in the second half.

Maddon did admit Abreu and Trumbo are bad matchups for Uehara, whose velocity remains in the 87 mph range.

"He's fine," Maddon said. "No loss of faith, but there are certain guys I don't want to put him against. Sometimes you have to."

The Blue Jays, who reportedly have relievers Joe Smith and Aaron Loup available, had a scout at Friday's Cubs- Brewers game. Smith appeared in 16 games for the Cubs last season.

Schwarber sits: Maddon elected to sit Kyle Schwarber for Friday night's game against Brewers left-hander Brent Suter even though Schwarber hit two home runs and a triple Thursday.

Maddon revealed that Schwarber's back felt stiff but that he planned to start Jon Jay because of his success against left-handed pitchers.

The left-handed hitting Jay, meanwhile, had no explanation for his .326 batting average and .423 on-base percentage against left-handers entering Friday's game.

"As soon as they let the ball go, it has to come over the plate," Jay said. "I heard someone say that when I was little."

Jay said he was fine after White Sox left-hander David Holmberg hit him with a pitch. The pitch initially grazed his left shoulder before hitting the ear flap on his helmet.

Chicago Tribune 'I could talk all day about my job': Meet Cubs and White Sox ushers on the front line By Terrin Waack

The customers are always right.

Unless they're sitting in the wrong seat.

"I march them back up," Cubs usher Diane Lahalih said. "They know better."

That's a common infraction at ballparks; Guaranteed Rate Field and Wrigley Field are certainly no exceptions.

But ushers — or, as the teams like to call them, "ambassadors" or "representatives" — are there to do more than just restore order.

They're there to keep fans happy regardless of what's happening on the field.

"I'm here to provide customer service," said Darrell Windle, who joined the Cubs organization in 1996. "But along the way, I get to watch a little bit of the game, cheer and be happy when we win and a little disappointed when we lose."

This week the Cubs and White Sox collided in their 21st City Series, which brought fans from both teams into the same ballpark and can create a tense atmosphere.

"A lot of trash talking," said Deloris Watts, who has worked every Cubs-White Sox game at what is now called Guaranteed Rate Field. "They'll come in here, and we'll see them with their Cubs attire on and say, 'Don't let them in. They aren't with the White Sox, they can't come in.'

"They know we're playing, but we have a lot of fun."

So who are these front-line baseball people? We profile seven, three from the North Side and four from the South Side.

Darrell Windle, 76, Wrigley Field

Windle wears his World Series ring around the third finger of his right hand. Perfect fit.

All of Wrigley Field's guest services ambassadors got rings, but only a select group received them directly from Tom Ricketts.

"I said to him, 'Tom, I consider this the first of a collection,'" Windle said. "I don't know that anyone had said that to him because he got sort of this look on his face, smiled at me and said, 'I hope so.'"

Windle is in the midst of his 22nd year at Wrigley Field. He learned of the opportunity when he was a season-ticket holder and the usher in his section encouraged him to apply after retiring. It was supposed to be a two-year deal, three maximum.

"I guess I don't really think that I'm not going to come back," Windle said.

He has become a fixture in Aisle 16.

"There's one thing I see over and over, and it's always special to me," Windle said. "That's when I see a parent, and usually it's a father, showing his kid how to keep score because I remember when I was a kid and learning."

Windle scored his first Cubs tickets thanks to his job as a 12-year-old newspaper boy. The seats were in the left- field upper deck, and he'll never forget that game.

Now Windle gets paid to be at the ballpark.

"I could talk all day about my job," Windle said. "And I use the term job in quotes because it's such a special opportunity."

Ali Bailey, 19, Guaranteed Rate Field

Bailey had to grow a thick skin for her White Sox job.

"I'm very soft-spoken," Bailey, in her fourth season at the Rate, said. "I don't like conflict. I don't like arguments. I definitely had to toughen up a little bit and realize not everyone is going to like me. I just have to do my job, and that's that."

Bailey works in the Scout Seats right behind home plate. She loves being that close to the action. Since she grew up as a White Sox fan and knows more than the basics, Bailey's favorite moments happen off the field when she gets glimpses into the team's past and present. She has watched former players Mark Buehrle and Jim Thome catching up behind the scenes.

"This past season, I saw Chris Sale in the tunnel," Bailey said. "I've never seen him that close before, and I was like, oh, my gosh, we miss you."

Well, she thought it, but she didn't say it.

Guest services representatives aren't allowed to talk to the players unless the players say something first. The rare moments that does happen, it's hard for Bailey to remain calm. She kept her cool in front of Todd Frazier before he was traded.

"He said you have a cool job," Bailey said. "I was like I think your job is pretty cool too."

Diane Lahalih, 71, Wrigley Field

Lahalih's first day on the job at Wrigley Field doubled as her first baseball game ever.

Despite living just two miles away, Lahalih never considered herself a Cubs fan — or even a baseball fan. But there she was, 18 years ago, wandering around Wrigley Field as a first-year guest service ambassador.

"I was lost," Lahalih said. "The supervisor gave me a position, I didn't know where it was, and I was up there walking around somewhere. My supervisor didn't find me until after the game."

Eighteen years later, Lahalih has gotten the hang of things.

"Meeting the people, that's the best," Lahalih said. "They come from all over the world."

Guests remember Lahalih because she stands out from the crowd. A bow sits atop her head, and heart-shaped sunglasses perch up on her nose. Both are blue.

Underneath the shades, her eyes are coated with blue eye shadow and blue eyeliner. Her nails are painted blue too.

"Everything has to match," Lahalih said. "Even when I'm at home, I have outfits that match. That's just me."

Last year, Bill Murray sat in Lahalih's section. She had an extra pair of sunglasses he could wear, and the two took a picture together. It's her phone's wallpaper to this day.

As a veteran, Lahalih has earned the right to her own spot at Wrigley Field. Now she can be found roaming Aisle 19 behind home plate.

"Go check my section," Lahalih said. "I even get gum off the seats."

Stephaun Gearring, 28, Guaranteed Rate Field

Gearring joined the team in 2008, back when the ballpark was still called U.S. Cellular Field. It started as a part- time job while in school, but he graduated from Harold Washington College in 2011 with a degree in criminal justice and didn't quit.

During his first year on the job, Gearring worked the White Sox-Twins blackout game. He vividly remembers it — the excitement that accompanied the one-game playoff, the cheering once the White Sox won and the sense of unity all nine innings. He said it was the epitome of baseball.

"Each day is different here," Gearring said. "Every day is a different story."

Gearring says some fans are easier to work with than others. But no matter what, Gearring makes everyone feel welcome.

"If you treat people the same way you treat friends, then there will be no issues," Gearring said. "Treat everybody the way you want to be treated, just with the utmost respect."

One-on-one interaction is Gearring's favorite. It allows him to personalize the way he helps a fan. Sometimes he's a supervisor and can roam around to help a variety of people. Other times he's a wheelchair escort.

"You won't catch me in one spot," Gearring said. "I'm the multitasker."

Deloris Watts, 72, Guaranteed Rate Field

Watts not only takes care of fans during the baseball season, come winter she sends some of them Christmas cards.

Through her job at Sox Park, Watts has built a lot of friendships. Phone numbers and addresses were swapped. So each year, a card is put in the mail.

"They're so nice," Watts said. "There's not much I can do for them. I can just be really nice (in return)."

When Watts got the job in 1994, the new Comiskey Park was just 3 years old. It has gone through two name changes, not to mention many renovations. She was there when the White Sox won the World Series in 2005.

"You could get along with everybody when they won the World Series," Watts said. "Nobody had a problem. Everybody was so happy."

The championship games played at Guaranteed Rate Field were unlike any others Watts has worked, and she has been around for just about everything.

Watts is the White Sox's longest-tenured representative. She was 50 when she started.

"As long as my health let's me keep going, I will," Watts said. "I might as well."

Nirav Thakkar, 42, Wrigley Field

Thakkar went online looking for Cubs tickets and logged off with a job interview.

After working in healthcare for more than 16 years, Thakkar needed a break. Games were supposed to satisfy that need, but once he was on the Cubs website, the mouse strayed from ticket sales to job opportunities. Click.

Soon enough, he submitted an application to be a guest services ambassador at Wrigley Field.

"I didn't want to look back on life when I'm 65 and realize I didn't have any fun," Thakkar said. "I just wanted to have some fun working baseball."

Two rounds of casting calls later, Thakkar was offered the job.

His first year couldn't have played out any better, considering it was 2016.

"I felt like I had a front-row seat for the whole thing," Thakkar said. "If they asked me to camp out here and guard the field, I would do it."

Throughout the 81 home games last season, Thakkar's dedication didn't go unnoticed. He was voted Rookie of the Year by co-workers.

"I've always worked hard my whole life," Thakkar said. "I have a good work ethic. But I've never won anything in my life, so it was real shock and a real treat to win that award."

D'Antrae Williams, 24, Guaranteed Rate Field

Williams' friends and family sometimes don't understand how it works.

"Every time they see me with this polo, they ask, 'Can I get free tickets?'" Williams said. "I say no, I'm sorry."

He likes his job, which still shocks him since he wasn't a sports fan growing up. He was a handyman — still is — and enjoyed things more along the lines of plumbing and carpentry. He also enjoyed video games.

Still, Williams gave the White Sox a chance when his cousin recommended he apply for a position three years ago.

"I was just thinking let me get the money, I'll go home and I'm good," Williams said. "That changed.

"I'm actually quite happy here."

When he's not helping at a gate, his favorite place, Williams posts up on the 100, 300 or 500 sections. He gets to meet people of all ages.

Adults give Williams a mini-history lesson and share stories of baseball's past. He soaks it in. Those younger than Williams help fuel his new passion on a fundamental level.

"With the kids, they're just so excited to be at the ballpark," Williams said. "Like, oh, my God, we get to see a baseball game today."