Pete Crow-Armstrong Shines as Cubs Roll Past Marlins 6-1

Strong Outing From Shota Imanaga

The Chicago Cubs continued their strong play Friday night, defeating the Miami Marlins 6-1 behind six solid innings from Shota Imanaga and another impressive performance from Pete Crow-Armstrong.

Imanaga allowed just three hits and one run over six innings, striking out four as Chicago pulled away late. The victory improved Imanaga to 9-10 on the season and 4-2 in nine starts since the All-Star break. Aaron Civale closed out the game by pitching three scoreless innings for his second save.

Crow-Armstrong Makes Impact at the Plate and in the Field

Crow-Armstrong continued to strengthen his case for National League MVP with an all-around performance. He doubled, stole his 33rd base of the season, drew a four-pitch walk and scored twice. His biggest contribution may have come defensively in the sixth inning when he made a leaping catch at the center-field wall to rob Miami’s Heriberto Hernández of a potential extra-base hit.

Alex Bregman also played a key role for Chicago, collecting two singles and a walk while extending his hitting streak to eight games dating back to Aug. 28. Nico Hoerner added three hits and an RBI, while Pedro Ramírez drove in two runs.

Cubs Break Game Open in Sixth Inning

Miami starter Janson Junk kept the Marlins within striking distance through five innings. Junk struck out five and limited Chicago to one run on three hits before the Cubs broke the game open against the Miami bullpen.

Crow-Armstrong opened the sixth with a walk against Jack Ralston, who later issued walks to Michael Busch and Bregman. Josh Ekness entered in relief but walked in a run before allowing an RBI single to Hoerner. Ramírez followed with a sacrifice fly, giving Chicago a 4-0 advantage. The Cubs had taken a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Ian Happ scored on Ramírez’s fielder’s choice.

Marlins Get on the Board

The Marlins finally broke through in the seventh inning. Griffin Conine singled twice during the game and scored Miami’s lone run when Esteury Ruiz grounded out. Deyvison De Los Santos also contributed with a double, but Miami was unable to mount a sustained offensive rally against the Cubs’ pitching.

Chicago added another run in the ninth when Busch launched a solo home run against Bradley Blalock. Busch’s drive traveled 427 feet to right-center field for his 18th homer of the season, giving the Cubs their final 6-1 margin.

Cubs and Marlins Continue Series

The Cubs will turn to right-hander Javier Assad in the second game of the series. Assad enters with a 6-1 record and a 3.46 ERA. The Marlins will counter with right-hander Ryan Gusto, who is 1-3 with a 3.86 ERA. Miami will look to bounce back after its offense struggled to keep pace with Chicago’s late-inning surge.