Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (5/12/26): Braves 5, Cubs 2 – Offense Struggles Again in Atlanta
The Cubs hitters continued to struggle Tuesday night against the Braves as they suffered a third consecutive loss. The home team used one big inning to go in front and never looked back on the way to a stress-free victory.
Atlanta went ahead on an RBI single by Mike Yastrzemski against Colin Rea in the bottom of the 3rd. Chicago responded immediately when Alex Bregman homered against Grant Holmes to tie the game in the 4th. Holmes proceeded to walk the bases loaded, but the road squad got just a run-scoring ground out from Moisés Ballesteros and held a 2-1 lead.
Rea ran out of gas in the bottom of the 5th, beginning with a solo home run by Austin Riley to tie the score. That was quickly followed up with a go-ahead two-run shot by Yastrzemski. Reliever Ryan Rolison came on and gave up an RBI single to Matt Olson to give the Braves a 5-2 advantage at the end of the frame.
That was it for the North Siders, who did not have another baserunner the rest of the evening as Atlanta prevailed by the same 5-2 total. (Box score)
Key Moment
The Cubs’ only significant scoring chance Tuesday came with the bases loaded in the top of the 4th. A base hit or two might have made it a different outcome but the Braves took it from there.
Why the Cubs Lost
They had just a single hit, and it’s very hard to win any game with that little production from the lineup.
Stats That Matter
- Rea got some help from his defense early, but the Braves got to him at the end: 4.1 IP, 5 R, 7 H, 1 K, and 1 BB.
- Bregman hit the ball hard all night and only had the home run to show for it.
Bottom Line
The offense was not going to stay as hot as it was during the last few weeks, but the brakes have certainly been slammed on the past three games. Wednesday is probably the day they need to get things going with Chris Sale looming in the series finale.
On Deck
The second matchup of the series is Wednesday night at 6:15pm CT. Shōta Imanaga is on the mound against JR Ritchie in a contest televised on Marquee with a radio feed on The Score.
