James Triantos finished Swanson's at-bat with a walk and slid over to shore up the infield, but the Cubs never found their footing after that. St. Louis kept stacking traffic on the bases all afternoon, and Chicago's bullpen — already stretched thin by a rotation full of names on the injured list — had no answer.
The Cardinals' 4th inning was the whole ballgame in one frame: 6 runs, and Chicago never got closer than 4 the rest of the way. St. Louis finished with 13 hits to the Cubs' 6, the kind of lopsided box score that makes a series finale feel more like a scrimmage.
- 60-Day-ILRamon Urias (3B) — Urias (elbows) has been sent to Triple-A Memphis to resume a rehab assignment, John Denton of Roundtable.io reports.08/04
- 60-Day-ILMax Rajcic (RP) — Rajcic revealed on his Instagram account Thursday that he recently underwent a right elbow UCL reconstruction.07/23
- Day-To-DayDansby Swanson (SS) — Swanson left Sunday's game against the Cardinals with left side discomfort.08/16
- 10-Day-ILMatt Shaw (RF) — The Cubs announced Monday that Shaw recently resumed light hitting while rehabbing his sprained left hand in Arizona, MLB.com reports.08/05
- 15-Day-ILPhil Maton (RP) — Maton has been diagnosed with a partial patellar tendon tear in his right knee, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.08/12
- 15-Day-ILDaniel Palencia (RP) — Palencia (elbow) is slated to begin a rehab assignment Wednesday at Triple-A Iowa, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.08/05
- 15-Day-ILGavin Hollowell (RP) — The Cubs placed Hollowell on the 15-day injured list Friday with right shoulder inflammation, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.07/31
- 15-Day-ILHoby Milner (RP) — Milner (abdomen) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday, tossing a scoreless inning.07/30
- 60-Day-ILBen Brown (RP) — Brown (neck) threw a bullpen session at Wrigley Field on Friday, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.08/14
- 60-Day-ILShelby Miller (RP) — Miller (elbow) began a rehab assignment Sunday at Triple-A Iowa, striking out two batters while allowing one run on two hits and no walks.08/09
- 60-Day-ILRiley Martin (RP) — Manager Craig Counsell announced July 8 that Martin (elbow) has resumed a throwing program at the Cubs' facility in Arizona, MLB.com reports.08/06
- 60-Day-ILHunter Harvey (RP) — Harvey (triceps/shoulder) threw a bullpen session Saturday at the Cubs' facility in Arizona, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.08/05
- 60-Day-ILJustin Steele (SP) — Steele (elbow) will throw from flat ground and then toss 20 pitches off a mound Saturday, Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network reports.07/31
- 60-Day-ILPorter Hodge (RP) — The Cubs transferred Hodge (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Friday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILCade Horton (SP) — The Cubs transferred Horton (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Saturday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILTyler Austin (1B) — The Cubs placed Austin (knee) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
Chicago's pitching depth chart already reads like a training-room roster, with Justin Steele, Cade Horton, and a handful of relievers all rehabbing arm issues at once. Losing Swanson to left-side discomfort, even on a day-to-day designation for now, is a different kind of hit — the middle of the field is the one spot a shorthanded pitching staff can least afford to weaken.
The two clubs split their first 2 meetings of this set before Sunday's finale, so this blowout was St. Louis breaking a coin-flip series wide open in the last game that mattered. The Cardinals sit at 62-61 and still trail Chicago's 72-52 mark by a wide margin in the standings, but Sunday was a reminder that this roster can put a beating on anybody when the barrels start finding grass.