Jameson Taillon doesn't discount struggling Mets, then holds them to one run in six innings
It would have been easy to think silly thoughts and let the Mets’ losing streak get into his head. But Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon wouldn’t allow it on his drive to Wrigley Field Saturday.
“I wasn’t going to fall into the trap of thinking this was a bad team or a struggling team,” Taillon said. “You look at the names up and down the lineup, I came in here not wanting to be the reason they got hot. I had that conversation with myself.”
Taillon pitched six innings of one-run ball, allowing five hits and three walks while striking out four and secured the win thanks to Carson Kelly’s three-run pinch homer in the sixth.
Taillon trimmed his ERA to a respectable 3.97 over his first four starts.
“We’re trending in the right direction,” Taillon said. “I’m not still throwing as many strikes as I’d like and there were some uncompetitive curveballs, stuff like that, but today was a really good step. I thought the stuff was crispy. The four-seam had better carry and the sweeper got better as we went.”
Veteran Martin next man up in pen
Right-hander Corbin Martin’s contract was selected from Triple-A Iowa to take closer Daniel Palencia’s spot on the roster. Palencia was the 10th Cubs pitcher added to a burgeoning injured list, with a strained left oblique.
Right-hander Cade Horton, who had the makings of a staff ace, was moved to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Horton had Tommy John surgery Thursday.
The Cubs signed Martin to a minor league deal for depth during the offseason. In parts of four seasons, he owns a 6.54 ERA in 74 ⅔ innings with the Astros, Diamondbacks and Orioles.
Martin is out of minor league options and would be exposed to waivers if the Cubs try returning him to Iowa.
Martin, 30, who had Tommy John surgery in 2020 and lat tendon surgery in 2023, dealt with back spasms after pitching in Iowa’s opener and was out two weeks before pitching again Tuesday. He allowed one earned run in two innings.
He pitched in eight games during spring training, allowing six earned runs in 7 ⅔ innings with 10 strikeouts and five walks.
“He pitched two innings in Iowa, so this is need-based,” manager Craig Counsell said.
Jacob Webb, Ben Brown and Martin are the only righties in the bullpen.
“We’ve had a lot of needs and we wanted to get a right-hander here, frankly,” Counsell said. “Ideally he would have pitched more in Iowa after the back injury, but we have a need.”
Not hokey Pete
Pete Crow-Armstrong seems to be keeping his frustration over a .218/.265/.282 batting line to himself. Perhaps playing with multiple stars at the World Baseball Classic helped in that regard.
“The WBC was a great experience for Pete in that regard,” Counsell said. “Being around those guys made him understand who he can aspire to be. I see he’s improving at it.”
But Counsell doesn’t want Crow-Armstrong to be someone other than himself, which is one who plays with his hair on fire.
“There is a lot of good in that that we don’t want to acknowledge, and that’s sometimes hard to understand,” Counsell said. “He needs to play with emotion and we should not try to take that out of him. We should try to get it going in the right direction. It’s too much fun to watch.”
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