04/07/26 08:56:00
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04/07 20:54 CDT Bregman ends 0-for-13 slump with 3 hits as the Cubs beat the
Rays 9-2
Bregman ends 0-for-13 slump with 3 hits as the Cubs beat the Rays 9-2
By KRISTIE ACKERT
Associated Press
ST. PETERSBURGH, Fla. (AP) --- Alex Bregman broke out of an 0-for13 slump with
three hits and Javier Assad worked 5 2/3 shutout innings to lead the Chicago
Cubs to a 9-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night.
The Cubs (5-6) banged out a season-best 16 hits and snapped a two-game skid.
The Rays had their three-game winning streak halted in front of an announced
crowd of 21,377 in the second game of their return to Tropicana Field.
Both teams had some rotation chaos.
The Rays (5-6) were without scheduled starter Drew Rasmussen, whose wife went
into labor with the couple's second child hours before first pitch. Mason
Englert (0-1) got the start and allowed four runs on seven hits in 3 2/3
innings.
The Cubs announced before the game that ace Cade Horton would miss the rest of
the season after an MRI revealed UCL damage in his right elbow.
Chicago's Pete Crow-Armstrong had his first home run of the season, a solo shot
in the seventh inning, among his three hits. Moises Ballesteros' two-run homer
in the ninth was his first of the season.
Bregman's last hit before Tuesday came Friday night. The 32-year-old Bregman,
who signed a five-year contract with Chicago last winter, lined a single to
left field in the first inning, led off the third with a double and started the
fifth with a single.
Assad (1-0), stepping into the rotation for the injured Matthew Boyd, held the
Rays to one hit and two walks into the sixth inning. Assad was recalled on
Monday when Boyd was placed on the injured list with a left biceps strain. The
Cubs have won six of Assad's last seven starts dating to Aug. 17, 2025.
Up next
Cubs RHP Colin Rea (0-0, 4.26 ERA) will make his first start of the season
Wednesday, stepping into Horton's spot, in the series finale against Tampa
Bay's RHP Joe Boyle (0-0, 3.18 ERA).
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
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