Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (8/14/24): Guardians 6, Cubs 1 – Cleveland Completes Sweep

The Cubs were attempting to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Guardians on Wednesday night. The visitors took a brief lead before Cleveland responded, moving ahead and never looking back to win and complete the sweep.

The North Siders went on top in the 4th inning against veteran starter Alex Cobb when Seiya Suzuki tripled and came home on a sacrifice fly by Cody Bellinger. The Guardians wasted no time answering back in the bottom of the frame with two runs off Jameson Taillon. Josh Naylor doubled in a run and Andrés Giménez singled him in to provide all the offense they’d need.

Cleveland added another pair in the 5th when Will Brennan had an RBI triple and scored on a groundout by José Ramirez. The Cubs couldn’t get much of anything going against Cobb or the Guardians’ stingy bullpen and couldn’t score again.

Giménez cracked a two-run double off Julian Merryweather in 8th to put the home team ahead 6-1. That ended up being the final with Chicago going quietly in their final at-bat. (Box score)

Key Moment

The Cubs had two runners on with two outs in the 7th inning and Bellinger hit a rocket line drive that Naylor made leaping catch on at first base to end the threat.

Why the Cubs Lost

The hitters struggled for a second consecutive game and the pitching staff could not pick up the slack for them.

Stats That Matter

• That is two shaky starts in a row for Taillon: 6 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 6 K, and 2 BB.
• Suzuki was the only Cubs hitter to reach base twice on Wednesday.
• This is the first time Chicago has been swept in a series of more than two games this season.

Bottom Line

The Cubs were hoping to at least win one game in Cleveland, but the Guardian demonstrated why they are one of the best teams in baseball with a sweep. No matter the outcome of this series, the season for Craig Counsell‘s squad will be decided in the next two weeks as they face five consecutive teams with losing records. If the Cubs don’t clean up in this stretch, any hopes of competing will be completely extinguished.

On Deck

The Cubs have Thursday off before beginning a three-game set with the Blue Jays on Friday at 1:20pm CT. Kyle Hendricks starts against Yariel Rodríguez in a matchup exclusively televised on Apple TV+ with a radio broadcast on 670 The Score.