PITTSBURGH β Ten games. Twelve days. The worst stretch the Cubs have had since June 2022.
It ended Wednesday night at PNC Park, and it ended the way these things probably should β with Ian Happ, Pittsburgh native, stepping into a tied game in the seventh inning and putting three runs on the board with one swing.
Michael Conforto followed with a two-run pinch-hit homer. Michael Busch singled home another. Six runs in the inning. The Cubs beat Pittsburgh 10-4 and got their first win since May 15.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHC | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 14 | 0 |
| PIT | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 1 |
The Seventh Inning
The game was tied at four when Yohan RamΓrez came in to pitch for Pittsburgh.
RamΓrez has hit seven batters this season, more than any other reliever in baseball. He added an eighth β Busch, one out in the seventh β and then Happ stepped in with Busch and Alex Bregman on base. Three pitches later, he put a ball 370 feet to right, just inside the foul pole, and the Cubs had a 7-4 lead.
It was Happ's 11th home run of the season and his 20th career homer against the Pirates. He has reached base in 40 consecutive games at PNC Park. He grew up here. He graduated from Mt. Lebanon High School a few miles from this ballpark. He has never looked comfortable anywhere quite like he looks comfortable in Pittsburgh, and Wednesday night he couldn't have picked a better time for it.
Pittsburgh turned to Justin Lawrence after the Happ homer. Seiya Suzuki singled to center. Michael Conforto, pinch-hitting, drove Lawrence's first pitch 395 feet to right center β a two-run homer that made it 9-4. Busch singled home another off Lawrence before the inning was over. Six runs, three pitchers.
Taillon at PNC Park
Jameson Taillon started his major league career at this ballpark, getting drafted second overall by the Pirates in 2010 and making his debut here in 2016. He spent four seasons in Pittsburgh before being traded to the Yankees, and signed with the Cubs after 2022. On Wednesday night, returning as a visitor, he gave up four runs in five innings and left trailing.
All four runs that came off him were home runs β a three-run shot by Brandon Lowe in the third that tied it, and a solo shot by Konnor Griffin in the fourth that tied it again. Lowe's ball left the bat at 106.9 mph and landed 387 feet away in right.
Griffin's homer was his fourth of the season β an opposite-field shot to right, 369 feet, off a Taillon mistake. He's 20 years old and in his first major league season, and he put the Pirates back level at a moment when Pittsburgh needed it.
Taillon's final line: five innings, five hits, four runs, two home runs. His ERA moves to 5.37. He also hit two batters and walked two more, but the Cubs bullpen did enough to keep it close until the offense finally showed up.
How It Got to 4-4
The Cubs came out swinging. Bubba Chandler loaded the bases in the first inning with nobody out and Happ singled two runs home. Hoerner blooped another in to make it 3-0 in the second. They had jumped this team early and it looked like a different Cubs team for about three innings.
Lowe's homer changed it. Three runs back, just like that, and the game had a different feel. Crow-Armstrong doubled home Swanson in the fourth to put Chicago back in front, and Griffin's solo shot tied it again in the bottom half. The Cubs scored four runs and also blew a three-run lead in the first four innings β a fair summary of where this offense has been all month.
The seventh fixed it.
The Historical Footnote
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the 2026 Cubs are just the second team in American or National League history to have two 10-game winning streaks and a 10-game losing streak in the same season. The other was the 2017 Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Cubs reeled off ten straight wins in April, then ten more in early May. The Brewers came to Wrigley on May 16 and started the slide that became a conversation piece. Twelve days later, in Pittsburgh, it was over.
Pitcher Stats
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | HR | PC-ST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taillon | 5.0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 75-45 |
| Webb (W, 1-1) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 17-12 |
| Maton | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 22-12 |
| Thielbar | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17-11 |
| Roberts | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15-8 |
| Chandler (L) | 5.0 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 91-60 |
| Sisk | 0.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 17-9 |
| RamΓrez | 0.1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 15-8 |
| Lawrence | 1.2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 34-20 |
| Santana | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 22-10 |
What's Next
The Cubs and Pirates wrap up this four-game series Thursday night at PNC Park. Paul Skenes (6-4, 3.00 ERA) starts for Pittsburgh. Colin Rea (4-3, 4.83 ERA) goes for Chicago. First pitch is 6:40 p.m. Central.