Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (7/28/24): Cubs 7, Royals 3 – Hitters Stay Hot to Win Series in KC

The Cubs’ hitters kept the momentum going from Saturday night’s breakout with another good performance against the Royals Sunday afternoon. Chicago was able to rally for the second consecutive contest and overcame the mid-game trade of Christopher Morel to win the series.

Javier Assad found himself in a 1st inning jam with runners on second and third and one out. The right-hander retired Salvador Pérez, but Hunter Renfroe floated a single to center that gave Kansas City a 2-0 lead.

The North Siders rallied to even the score in the top of the 3rd when Nico Hoerner hit a two-run double off left-hander Cole Ragans. The Royals retook the advantage in the 4th when Freddy Fermin hit a solo shot to left. A fan in the bleachers wearing a Cubs hat actually caught the ball before it hit the foul pole, so it was ruled a homer via fan interference.

Chicago tied the score in the 6th when Michael Busch doubled and came home on a David Bote two-bagger. Pete Crow-Armstrong followed with a go-ahead RBI single to put the road team on top for good at 4-3

The Cubs broke the game open against reliever James McArthur in the 9th, beginning with Patrick Wisdom hitting a solo bomb to center. Busch then singled home another and Dansby Swanson hit a sacrifice fly that made it 7-3. That would be the final, as Kansas City did nothing in the bottom of the frame. (Box score)

Key Moment

It was nice to see the Cubs respond for a second consecutive game after going behind in the middle innings. That has been exceedingly rare in recent months.

Why the Cubs Won

Their four big hits with runners in scoring position made all the difference. The bullpen also continues to do excellent work of late.

Stats That Matter

• Assad was much better Sunday and clearly some of the rust from his injury is coming off: 6 IP, 3 R, 5 H, 5 K, and 1 BB.
• PCA had three singles and may be getting more comfortable at the plate.
• Veteran catcher Christian Bethancourt had a couple of hits in his first Cubs start.

Bottom Line

This is a very uncertain time of the season ahead of the trade deadline as demonstrated by the Morel trade. Chicago has good enough pitching to hang with anybody if they could ever get consistent offense. It would be nice if they could do this a bit more often down the stretch even if it won’t actually get them back in the race. Get some positive feelings in place for 2025.

On Deck

The Cubs head to the Great American Ball Park for a deadline set with the Reds beginning Monday at 6:10pm CT. Jameson Taillon is tentatively scheduled to start against Carson Spiers in a matchup airing on Marquee and 670 The Score.