Jordan Wicks surrenders three runs to A's in Cubs' 4-3 loss
Yesterday at 10:30 PM
Cubs rookie Jordan Wicks has made sure to make the most of veteran right-hander Jameson Taillon's openness.
"You can ask him any question about anything," Wicks said in a recent conversation with the Sun-Times. "Like, 'Hey, what do you think about this?' And he'll tell you the straight, honest truth. He's not going to sugarcoat it."
So, after a four-home run outing against the Dodgers last week, Wicks sought out Taillon's perspective.
As Wicks tells it, Taillon shared his own experiences as a young player and the importance of not overreacting to bad starts; they're going to happen. It's all about moving on to the next one.
For Wicks, the next one was the Cubs' 4-3 loss Tuesday against the A's. Struggling against the big-bobbing top of the order, Wicks allowed four runs on a trio of homers.
"There's a lot of little things in there," manager Craig Counsell said before the game of the mentality needed to come back from a bad outing. "You clearly have to turn the page, you have to learn from it, but you still have to be convicted on what you're good at. And failure kind of scares us a little bit [away from] what we're good at."
Wicks' start Tuesday was tied for the third-highest scoring of his career. He hasn't found a consistent rhythm since returning at the beginning of September from two and a half months on the injured list with a strained right oblique.
Wicks did battle, however, to get through five innings. In that way, the laborious start was an informative part of the 25-year-old's development during a season shortened by two separate injuries.
The Cubs are counting on young homegrown pitchers like him to take steps forward in the years to come, as they strive to build a perennial playoff contender.
Wicks got ahead in the count against the first two batters he faced. But while he struck out Lawrence Butler, Brent Rooker got a hold of a fastball for a single. Then Wicks left a 93.5 mph fastball belt high to Shea Langeliers, who drove it halfway up the left-field stands.
The next inning, Wicks issued a leadoff walk to Jacob Wilson. But he kept that plate appearance from haunting him by striking out Tyler Nevin on 11 pitches and – after giving up a single to Daz Cameron on a sharp comebacker – fielding Max Schuemann's ground ball up the middle to initiate a double play.
Second baseman Nico Hoerner pointed to Wicks with his glove as he ran off the field, the gold glover giving his pitcher props for his defense.
Wicks gave up solo home runs to Butler and Langeliers in the third and fifth innings, respectively. But he avoided big rallies. When Wicks escaped the fourth unscathed, striking out Butler on a changeup for the final out, he pumped his fist on his way to the dugout.
The Cubs bullpen held the A's the rest of the way, with Daniel Palencia, who the Cubs recalled Tuesday, contributing two perfect innings.
The Cubs offense, however, didn't make up the difference. The team put its first runs on the board in the third inning. Ian Happ set the tone with a solo homer to lead it off. Then singles from Seiya Suzuki, Cody Bellinger and Michael Busch led to a second run.
Then the Cubs offense went quiet. A's right-hander Mitch Spence struck out the side in order in the fifth inning to end his start on a high note. Happ hit another solo homer, this time off closer Mason Miller, in the ninth to end the scoring lull. But Miller retired every other hitter he faced to earn the save.
