Cubs find just enough offense, win fifth in a row against Rockies this season

Corey Masisak, The Denver Post on Aug 31, 2025

Published in Baseball

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DENVER — The work done by the Rockies' pitchers while in peril was admirable, but how they got there was the problem and they couldn’t escape enough times to scratch out a victory.

Chicago couldn’t find a knockout punch Saturday night, but Kyle Tucker’s run-scoring single in the top of the sixth inning was the difference in a 4-3 win for the Cubs in front of a sellout crowd of 47,394 at Coors Field.

The Cubs have now won all five games against the Rockies in 2025, and will go for the season sweep Sunday afternoon. Chicago collected 16 baserunners — nine hits, five walks and two hit batsmen — and loaded the bases four times.

“I think that’s a game we should probably win,” Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman said. “We held them to four runs in Coors Field. Our offense is fully capable of scoring (five or more) runs, but they made good pitches when they needed to.”

McCade Brown grinded through his second career start for the Rockies. Brown got into trouble in the top of the first inning, loading the bases with just one out. He got out of it with a single run allowed on a sacrifice fly from Nico Hoerner before freezing Pete Crow-Armstrong with a two-strike curveball to end the threat.

He put three Cubs on the bases in the second inning, including back-to-back hit-by-pitches that elicited loud boos from the blue-clad patrons, but Seiya Suzuki’s comebacker hit Brown and he was able to scoop it up and get the third out.

The Rockies evened the score in the bottom of the second on a controversial play. Yanqiuel Fernandez singled to advance Warming Bernabel to third, but got caught in a rundown when the throw from the outfield was cut off. Bernabel eventually broke for home and scored, but Fernandez had collided with Nico Hoerner just as he was about to throw home. Cubs manager Craig Counsell bolted out of the dugout to argue there was interference, but none was called.

Brown’s night ended before he could record an out in the fifth, and his penchant for putting guys on base finally caught up to him.

“Heck yeah, there were a lot of positives for McCade Brown tonight,” Rockies interim manager Warren Schaeffer said. “A lot of them. First time ever pitching at altitude for him. … I thought he fought through that, learning what his stuff does at this altitude.

“This is tough, tough stuff working through this lineup and I thought he did a very nice job.

Ian Happ’s double scored Tucker to put Chicago ahead. Jimmy Herget did fine work in relief to avoid an ugly inning, but Carson Kelly’s sacrifice fly pushed the Cubs’ lead to 3-1.

Brown’s final line: Four-plus innings with three runs on five hits, three walks and two hit batsmen. He’s now allowed six earned runs in 7 2/3 innings in his first two big-league starts.

The 25-year-old hurler skipped Class AAA and pitching for Albuquerque, as Schaeffer alluded to. He made his MLB debut Aug. 24 in Pittsburgh.

“I think I executed some pitches tonight when I needed to get out of jams, but overall the command wasn’t great,” Brown said. “I gave up a lot of free bases, which can’t happen, and fell behind in some counts. Will be looking to a better job next time.”

Herget’s second inning didn’t go as well, but again the Cubs only scratched out one run despite a lead-off triple and then their fourth bases loaded situation.

Chicago starter Javier Assad was cruising until Mickey Moniak tripled home Tyler Freeman and scored on a sac fly, cutting the visitors’ lead to 4-3. The Cubs bullpen cruised through three scoreless innings to preserve Assad’s first victory of the season.

Bernabel, who fouled a pitch off his left knee before singling and scoring in the second inning, left the game after the third officially with a bruise on his knee and quad. Orlando Arcia replaced him. Schaffer said there was no update on Bernabel immediately after the game, but expected him to not be in the lineup Sunday afternoon.

This was the second-largest crowd of the season at Coors, topped only by the home opener against the Athletics (48,015).

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