(Audacy) In the late innings with the game close and traffic on the bases, Cubs third baseman Patrick Wisdom has the type of power you want at the plate.
He's just usually not the one you want to bunt — but that happened in the Cubs' 7-6 loss to the Reds on Monday evening.
Wisdom stepped in with nobody out and runners on first and second with the Cubs trailing 7-6 in the top of the seventh. He has the power to blow the game open, but he instead attempted to lay down a bunt on a 3-1 count. He lined the bunt back to Reds pitcher Fernando Cruz, who caught it and prevented the runners from moving.
Chicago ultimately didn't bring home any runners in the inning and lost.
Wisdom had been hit by a pitch on the wrist in his previous at-bat but stayed in the game (his X-rays came back clean after the game). That prompted some thought that the bunt might have been a health-driven decision, and Cubs manager David Ross offered his rationale on the sequence while on the Bernstein & Holmes Show on 670 The Score on Tuesday afternoon.
"That was on me, I made that decision," Ross said. "Guys at first and second, he got hit on the wrist the time before, there were a lot of question marks within that. He was taking swings in the cage the inning before, felt like he was good enough to play – but we all know actual game speed, contact, swings are a little bit different.
"One, (we had) contact behind him with (Eric) Hosmer, and plenty of matchup stuff behind Wis, so wanted to get those guys into scoring position, second and third. Got to a 3-1 count, still an advantage count for Wis, he just happened to not execute the bunt.
"We’ll kind of never know how those things will play out. Maybe he hits a three-run homer if we let him swing away, or maybe he strikes out and we don’t get anything. But yeah, I think it’s one of those, I’ve got a lot of question marks about how he feels, trusting the feedback I’m getting from my trainers and also trusting the feedback he’s telling me of how he can perform."
Ross also noted that he did have a pinch-hitter ready to go just in case but decided against using him.
“Sure, I had that batter ready," Ross said. "But when it was first and second, nobody out, the obvious play for me with the question marks and still wanting to have that matchup behind him when they brought in (Reiver) Sanmartin, the easy play for me was to ask him to sacrifice. I knew he could do that, he is a good bunter, I know he didn't get it down, but he’s a very fundamentally sound player and he just didn’t execute. But absolutely, I had a pinch-hitter ready.”
Listen live to 670 The Score via:
Audacy App | Online Stream | Smart Speaker