Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (5/1/25): Cubs 8, Pirates 3 – Suzuki Homers Twice as Cubs Pummel Skenes
The Cubs had a difficult task on Thursday afternoon when they took on ace Paul Skenes and the Pirates at a balmy PNC Park. Chicago fell behind early, but used another power display to rally back and take a series victory.
Pittsburgh jumped out on top against Colin Rea when Bryan Reynolds hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 1st inning. The Cubs put pressure on Skenes in the 3rd, drawing three walks to load the bases, but Michael Busch hit into a first-pitch double play to end the threat.
Oneil Cruz hit an RBI double in the bottom of the frame to put the Pirates ahead with a 2-0 lead that seemed bigger at the time. The North Siders had an unexpected power surge in the top of the 5th to grab the lead on the reigning Rookie of the Year. Dansby Swanson hit a solo home run to cut the deficit in half, then Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki hit back-to-back dingers to give the road team a 3-2 edge.
Rea settled in nicely, eventually pitching six solid frames before his day was done. Suzuki blasted his second homer, this one a two-run jack against Kyle Nicolas, to put the Cubs up 5-2 in the 7th inning. Pittsburgh got one of those tallies back on a Reynolds RBI groundout in 8th.
Chicago responded with three insurance runs on Hunter Stratton in the top of the 9th. Ian Happ had an RBI double and Busch singled home a pair to build the margin to 8-3. Ryan Pressly handled the bottom of the frame easily to seal the win. (Box score)
Key Moment
A hit and an error put the first two Pirates runners on base to open up the bottom of the 8th inning. Porter Hodge navigated the rest of the frame with just one run allowed and the Cubs added to their lead in the following at-bat.
Why the Cubs Won
Once again, they got a four-homer game and a very good starting pitching performance.
Stats That Matter
- Rea continues to be excellent early in the season: 6 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 2 K, 2 BB.
- Suzuki has been on a tear since returning from his wrist injury and now has nine homers.
- Swanson has six hits in his last three games.
Bottom Line
That was an excellent job by the Cubs of putting pressure on Skenes until he finally cracked. The top of the lineup is very talented and will put up a lot of damage this season. If Craig Counsell‘s squad keeps winning series, they are going to be in excellent shape.
On Deck
The Cubs head to Milwaukee for a series with the Brewers starting Friday at 7:10pm CT. Ben Brown takes the mound against Quinn Priester in a game exclusively televised on Apple TV+ with radio coverage on 670 The Score.
