Coming off the high of Saturday's win, the Chicago Cubs made their Sunday Night Baseball debut with a chance to win a series in the enemy territory that is Busch Stadium.
The St. Louis Cardinals spoiled that chance with quickness, jumping on Cubs starter Jordan Wicks early and wriggling out of multiple pitching jams to take a 5-1 win and claim the series finale. The Cubs' sole offensive spark came courtesy of an Alex Bregman solo shot in the 6th inning.
And because the NL Central is so close this season, here's a standings update: The Cubs (32-28) were the only team in the division to lose on Sunday, and they thus fall to fourth place - five games behind the Milwaukee Brewers and in a three-way tie for the final Wild Card spot.
Here are the three biggest storylines from the series finale:
May 30, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner (2) hits an RBI single against the St. Louis Cardinals during the sixth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Le-Imagn Images | Jeff Le-Imagn Images
The Cubs' bats looked promising out of the gate on Sunday. Nico Hoerner and Pete Crow-Armstrong notched back-to-back singles off Cardinals starter Matthew Liberatore to open the game, but the Cubs squandered the opportunity just as quickly as it came.
Chicago's 3-4-5 hitters - Bregman, Seiya Suzuki , and Ian Happ - went down in order, and Liberatore was out of the inning unscathed.
In the end, that may have changed the course of the game. The Cubs took the field with nothing to show for the work they did, and the Cardinals made them pay immediately. The offense could not manage another hit until Kevin Alcntara's single in the 5th.
The Cubs' best opportunity to get back in the game came in the 7th. A Michael Busch single and a deep, pinch-hit double for Michael Conforto put runners on second and third base with just one away.
Dansby Swanson worked the count to 3-0, but Cardinals reliever Hunter Dobbins came all the way back with three heaters in the zone to get Swanson down swinging. It came down to Hoerner, who ripped a 103.7-mph grounder right at Masyn Winn to end the frame.
The Cubs went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position in the game and left seven men on base as a result.
May 31, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner (2) loses grip of the baseball as he attempts to leap and throw out St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt (not pictured) during the third inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
The Cubs' defense is typically airtight. Crow-Armstrong, Hoerner and Michael Busch all rank in the top 20 of Statcast's Outs Above Average leaderboard (Crow-Armstrong's 12 OAA is second-best in all of MLB). Five defensive starters are Gold Glovers.
And yet, sometimes there are cracks.
In the 3rd, Cardinals second baseman J.J. Wetherholt hit a sharp ground ball up the middle. Hoerner fielded the ball backhanded and attempted a jump throw while ranging to his right, but he bobbled the ball on the transfer, and Wetherholt was safely aboard without a throw. The play went down as a single for the rookie.
Two batters later and with two outs, Alec Burleson hit a soft, sinking pop-up down the left field line. Happ charged toward the foul line and looked to have a great jump on the ball, but stopped abruptly as it dropped at his feet. Per Statcast, the hit had an expected batting average of just .050.
Wetherholt came around to score on the play, and the Cardinals scored twice more before the Cubs could make the third out of the inning.
To the naked eye, it appeared to be a play that Happ would typically slide or dive to make. He may even have had room to make the catch on the run, but he clearly did not want to risk it. Nevertheless, it was an oddity in the Cubs' defense that proved costly and allowed St. Louis to pile on more pressure early in the evening.
May 31, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jordan Wicks (36) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
Jordan Wicks has had a very rough welcome back to the big leagues.
In his season debut on May 26, the 26-year-old lefty surrendered eight earned runs on nine hits across 4.1 innings. Wicks didn't suffer as bad a fate on Sunday, but it seemed like St. Louis hitters had him figured out immediately.
In just two innings, Wicks threw 49 pitches and allowed three earned runs on four hits. Three of those hits came consecutively via the Cardinals' first three batters of the game.
Wicks now sports a 15.83 ERA in 6.1 innings of work this season. In his career as a Cub, he has a 5.86 ERA over 101.1 innings.
The Cubs still need bodies in the rotation, but with Matthew Boyd nearing a return from minor meniscus surgery, it's hard to envision Wicks remaining on the active roster in the coming weeks.
Sign up for our free newsletter to stay up-to-date with all things Chicago Cubs.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/cubs/onsi as Cubs' Bats Stifled & Wicks Flops Again as Cardinals Claim Key Series - 3 Takeaways .
