I’m still annoyed and it still looks ridiculously close, but it does appear as though MLB replay officials got the call right Friday night, when Cody Bellinger was first rule safe at first base only to see the call overturned after the Pirates challenged.
Cubs fans were obviously pissed off because in none of the replays shown by the Marquee Sports Network did we see anything close that would make them overturn the original call, but the Pirates broadcast did.
Again, you can argue that it is not 100% clear, but if you look at this angle frame by frame, then yeah, Bellinger was barely out. That’s what the replay officials do in New York, syncing up both angles and it looks like Bellinger’s foot steps on first base a millisecond after the ball goes into the glove.
The Cubs lost 2-1, not scoring until the ninth inning, when Ian Happ blasted a home run off Pirates’ closer David Bednar. It was such a momentum killer after Bellinger’s safe call was overturned.
ESPN’s Jesse Rogers is the first to officially report that the Cubs are indeed calling up Jordan Wicks. The 23-year-old starting pitcher was scratched from his start at Triple-A on Wednesday and all eyes turned to him to take over Drew Smyly’s spot in the rotation. As a reminder, Smyly was only used as a starter because Marcus Stroman got injured.
Wicks left the Iowa Cubs, who are playing in Indianapolis this week.
There still is no word whether Wicks will start on Saturday or Sunday.
The 2021 first rounder has allowed five earned runs in his last 19.2 innings, coming out to a 2.29 ERA. Wicks’ last outing was on Aug. 17, and the lefty silenced concerns about his decreasing strikeout rate and ability to miss bats at Triple-A, by striking out seven batters in 4.2 innings.
Overall at Triple-A, Wicks has recorded a 3.82 ERA in 33 innings, with 30 strikeouts to 13 walks and 1.18 WHIP. Combining his numbers at Double-A, Wicks has a 3.55 ERA in 91.1 innings in 2023 with a 3/1 K/BB ratio.
Meanwhile, Smyly is back in the bullpen. He pitched a scoreless eighth inning against the Pirates on Friday, retiring the side in order. The veteran lefty has now allowed just two hits and one walk in four relief appearances during the month of August. So, the Cubs are hoping Smyly will at least provide some value out of the bullpen down the stretch following his disastrous run in the starting rotation since June.
