TOKYO — Chicago Cubs left-hander Matthew Boyd stays focused on checking all the boxes.
Keeping his delivery sound. Staying behind the baseball. Driving down on the pitch. And in Sunday’s unique atmosphere, embracing the moment in front of a vocal crowd of Yomiuri Giants supporters.
“Getting to pitch in a place like this, the history of the Giants — there’s a handful of international venues that, have that same history,” Boyd said after tossing four shutout innings in relief. “So it’s pretty cool to get to be here and just compete out there.”
Hitting 95 mph in the sixth inning of the Cubs’ 4-2 victory wasn’t something he had been aiming for, though Boyd conceded that anytime there’s an uptick in velocity, it’s a welcome development. Boyd hadn’t touched that number since Sept. 12, 2019, and tallied only 15 pitches above 94 mph last season. And he did it now against the Giants at a time on the calendar that typically falls in the thick of spring training.
“It’s a day further away from (Tommy John) surgery,” Boyd said. “That’s what everyone’s told me, is the further you get away from that and the more normalized everything starts to get, the more reps you get under your belt just the better it is. But, yeah, grateful for where we’re at right now.”
Those underlying sequences in exhibition games like Sunday’s can sometimes provide a glimpse of what could be on the horizon for the Cubs.
The Cubs would gladly take the combination of defense and slug shortstop Dansby Swanson displayed between two dazzling defensive plays in the first inning or his double in the second. Clutch singles from Matt Shaw (two RBIs) and Gage Workman (RBI), both of whom would make their major-league debut in the Tokyo Series, highlighted the upside each, to varying degrees, possesses. Pete Crow-Armstrong earned attention from the crowd with his bat (double), legs (stolen base) and defense, cutting off a ball to the left-center gap to hold the runner to a single.
“It was a game that shows what Pete can do on the field, he can do everything, really, and he can affect the game in many ways,” manager Craig Counsell said.
The Cubs’ four-run fifth inning propelled them to the win in front of 42,026 fans, setting off “Go Cubs Go” in the Tokyo Dome when Boyd ended the game with his sixth strikeout.
Right-hander Jameson Taillon got the start and held the Giants to one run in 4 1/3 innings, walking two and striking out four. He had been looking forward to pitching in Japan since reporting to camp and it became apparent he would get to face one of the NPB teams in an exhibition game.
“I know there’s going to be a lot of hype for the two games against the Dodgers, but I wonder how it’ll compare, because obviously these are their home fans here, so the chants and stuff are really, really cool,” Taillon said. “Just getting to take part in the last two games has been really cool. It’d be tough to top the environment from these two.”
A workout Monday afternoon in Tokyo represents the Cubs’ final tune-up before they kick off the season against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s part of a challenging stretch to begin the year — with a five-game spring training interlude when they return to Arizona following Wednesday’s game — in which 15 of their first 21 games come on the road against West division teams.
A strong showing versus the Dodgers and against the domestic slate later this month is the type of fast start the Cubs could use in a season that must end with a playoff appearance, though last April’s great record also represents a cautionary reminder that they can’t afford another two-month offensive slump.
A memorable experience in Japan and playing in the Tokyo Series won’t erase what is at stake for this group.
“They got a great group, but we feel like we have a really strong group over here as well,” Swanson said of the opening-day matchup. “We have a really good blend, guys that have been there and done that. We’ve got a really good blend of these young, up-and-coming kids that have a lot of talent. … We have a lot of depth. We can kind of play any game that we need to play.”
