Cole Hamels’ outstanding pitching helped lead the Cubs to victory.

"WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Chicago Cubs recapsChicago Cubs minor leaguesChicago Cubs essaysChicago Cubs game threadsWrigley Field renovationsFull archiveLibrary Bleed Cubbie Blue Community GuidelinesCurrent time in ChicagoBCB Specials & Site InfoWinter 2019 music threadsCubs StoriesScheduleRosterStatsYahoo Cubs newsYahoo Cubs team pageYahoo Cubs reportYahoo Cubs depth chartYahoo Cubs transactionsYahoo Cubs photosOdds Shop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub 鉁旵hicago Cubs recapsCubs 6 Yonder Alonso Jersey , Marlins 0: Sweep!New,205commentsCole Hamels’ outstanding pitching helped lead the Cubs to victory.CDTShareTweetShareShareCubs 6, Marlins 0: Sweep!Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY SportsI could almost repost the recap to Tuesday’s Cubs win over the Marlins and it would serve just as well. For the second straight night, the Cubs got excellent pitching, timely hitting and strong defense. All of that led to their second consecutive shutout and a series sweep, 6-0 over the Marlins, a sweep in which they outscored their opponent 17-2. It was the Cubs’ fourth shutout this year, which leads the major leagues. They’ve got their first three-game winning streak of 2019 and have won seven of their last 10.Now let’s be honest. The Marlins aren’t a very good team; mostly, they resemble a Triple-A squad and they very well could wind up losing 110 games this year.But wins are wins, no matter how you put them together, and the Cubs certainly appear to have righted the ship and done what they needed to on this brief road trip, to drag out just a couple of cliches.A Willson Contreras double and Daniel Descalso single made it 1-0 Cubs in the second inning, and then they broke the game open in the third. Kris Bryant singled and went to second on an infield out, and then it was Javy time [VIDEO].Your browser does not support HTML5 video.Javier Baez’ single made it 2-0, and Javy has been doing a lot of opposite-field hitting this season, something really good to see. Baez took second on the throw to the plate http://www.indiansfanproshop.com/authentic-b.j.-upton-jersey , and Jason Heyward was next [VIDEO].Your browser does not support HTML5 video.That’s also oppo hitting, and Heyward’s been very good at that so far this season. After a walk to Willson Contreras, Descalso lofted a ball to left field [VIDEO].Your browser does not support HTML5 video.Marlins left fielder Austin Dean turned the wrong way at least twice going for that ball, which landed for a two-run double, completing the Cubs’ four-run inning.Meanwhile, Hamels was mowing down Marlins. Through six innings, he had allowed just one hit, a second-inning single by Jorge Alfaro. It looked like he might have a shot at finishing the game, but a long seventh inning in which he gave up two hits ended Hamels’ evening, his best outing of 2018. He didn’t walk anyone and struck out eight. Since his rough outing opening the season at Texas (and I even wrote in February that starting Hamels in Texas might not be such a great idea!), Hamels has a 1.29 ERA and 0.619 WHIP in three starts, with no walks and 18 strikeouts in 21 innings. He looks very much like the same guy the Cubs had for 12 starts down the stretch in 2018. Hamels was helped out by some good defensive plays, like this one by KB [VIDEO].Your browser does not support HTML5 video.Javy wrapped up the scoring with this opposite-field homer in the eighth [VIDEO].Your browser does not support HTML5 video.Fun fact time!And even better than that one:Weird Cubs offensive stats:Also, one fun fact from me. Javier Baez, last four games: .611/.611/1.167 (11-for-18, 1.778 OPS) with four doubles and two home runs. Keep that up and Javy could be N.L. Player of the Week. For the season Bradley Zimmer Jersey , Javy is now hitting .324/.351/.635 with six doubles and six home runs.That run differential note is important, too. The Brewers are 12-7 with a negative run differential while the Cubs are 8-9 with the second-best run differential in the National League (Dodgers lead with +29). These things will even out eventually. The Cubs trail Milwaukee by three games in the N.L. Central, two in the loss column, and are finally playing the kind of baseball we expected to see from them.The team will have a well-deserved off day Thursday before the Arizona Diamondbacks come to town for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday afternoon. Kyle Hendricks will start for the Cubs Friday. At this writing, the D-backs, who have an afternoon game Thursday against the Braves in Atlanta, have no starting pitchers listed for the weekend. We know those starters won’t include Luke Weaver (going Thursday) or Zack Godley, who started Wednesday. Game time Friday is 1:20 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be on NBC Sports Chicago (MLB Network outside the Cubs and D-backs market territories).Enjoy the off day. Things are looking up! NEW YORK (AP) — Jed Lowrie would rather talk about wine than whine.The infielder visited Citi Field on Wednesday after finalizing a $20 million, two-year contract with the New York Mets, likely less money and a shorter term than he would have gotten before the free-agent market for solid-but-less-than-stellar veterans buckled a year ago.“I think that argument could be made,” he said. “But you deal in reality, and so I’m excited to be a Met.”A switch-hitter who turns 35 in April, Lowrie and is coming off his first All-Star appearance. In his 11th major league season, Lowrie set career highs last year for Oakland with 23 homers, 99 RBIs, 78 walks and 128 strikeouts Brandon Guyer Jersey , hitting .267.“He’s a big wine connoisseur. He gets better with age like many of the wines that he collects,” said new Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, Lowrie’s former agent.Lowrie, wife Milessa, daughter Saige and son Miles likely will live in New York City, possibly in Brooklyn. They have homes in Houston and his hometown of Salem, Oregon, where he keeps his wine collection of several hundred bottles.“Mostly reds. I’ve got California. I’ve got a lot of good Oregon pinot noir,” he said. “Got some whites for my wife. Not a lot — some French.”Lowrie spent the last three years as a second baseman but played all around the infield before that. Van Wagenen plans for him to back up 36-year-old second baseman Robinson Cano, 23-year-old shortstop Amed Rosario and third baseman Todd Frazier, who turns 33 next month. Rookie Peter Alonso, Frazier, J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith are possibilities at first.“We have a veteran club and we want to make sure that we’re not overtaxing the players that we have,” Van Wagenen said. “We don’t want to feel like anybody has the need to play 162 games, but if we can manage the workload to get the maximum performance out of each guy, there’s more than enough playing to play time to go around.”Lowrie likely will hit second in the order behind right fielder Brandon Nimmo and ahead of Cano.“He’s going to be in our lineup virtually every day http://www.indiansfanproshop.com/authentic-b.j.-upton-jersey ,” Van Wagenen said. “We’ve talked a lot about this offseason of making sure that we are covered in the event that the inevitable adversity happens to our club.”Lowrie will wear No. 4 with the Mets — he was No. 8 on the Athletics, but the Mets have not given out that number since 2001 and seem likely to retire it in honor of Gary Carter.In signing with New York, Lowrie said he is willing to move around the infield.“If you look at look at a lot of teams that have had recent success, they’re very deep, and I think that’s what it takes to win at the major league level at this point,” he said.Van Wagenen has been reshaping the Mets roster, acquiring Cano, closer Edwin Diaz and catcher Wilson Ramos and reacquiring reliever Jeurys Familia. Jeff McNeil will see time in the outfield, and Keon Broxton was obtained to back up Juan Lagares in center.While making these moves, Van Wagenen reads his Twitter feed “every day throughout the day” and is aware Mets fans are clamoring for a big-name acquisition such as Bryce Harper or Manny Machado.“I’m really happy that this fan base is not apathetic, and some of their ideas make more sense than others,” Van Wagenen said. “But they’re all interesting content, for sure.”He thinks the Mets are in position to win the NL East and return to the playoffs for the first time since 2016.“I think that we’re a good team. I think that we’re a complete team. I think that we’re a balanced team,” Van Wagenen said. “We’ve got veterans. We’ve got youth. We’ve got a hunger and a desire to win. And I look forward to showing people that that we’re a team to be reckoned with.”