National League powers met head-to-head, Lucas Duda (stress fracture in his back) and Alex Gordon (fractured wrist) landed on the DL, and we hope Pittsburgh Pirates starter Ryan Vogelsong is OK after getting hit in the head by a pitch and hospitalized. (On a related note, Josh Donaldson had some strong words on Sunday after getting thrown at twice.) Here are five things we learned Monday ...
1. The Chicago Cubs are human! I mean, we knew this. The only guy we weren't sure about was that scary mime from spring training, but he's not on the roster. John Lackey was cruising along with a three-hitter and a 3-1 lead when Matt Adams stepped up as a pinch hitter with two outs and a runner on in the seventh. Lackey was under 90 pitches, and if you bring in a lefty to face Adams, the Cardinals possibly use another pinch hitter there, so I had no issues leaving Lackey in. Adams hit a 2-1 curveball up in the zone 418 feet to center, then Randal Grichuk hit a walk-off home run off Adam Warren to win it. The Cubs are just 4-8 over their past 12 games, and their pace has gone from 130 wins to a mere 109.
It's a Walk-Off! #STLCards pic.twitter.com/cVzTJebU0i
— #VoteSTL (@Cardinals) May 24, 2016
2. Clayton Kershaw is not human. Well, maybe he is; he did a walk a batter. He did not, however, give up a run as he pitched a two-hit shutout, his third of the season, as the Dodgers beat the Reds 1-0. The Dodgers are 9-1 when Kershaw starts, 14-22 when he doesn't. It's a little early to start with the "M-V-P" chants, like Dodgers fans did in the ninth inning, but I'll cut them some slack. Because they're right! Season stats: 7-1, 1.48 ERA, 95 strikeouts, 5 walks, .171 batting average allowed.
Clayton Kershaw just threw a two-hit shutout. It's his third-best start of May. #dodgers #mlb
— Joe Sheehan (@joe_sheehan) May 24, 2016
3. Yoenis Cespedes, MVP candidate. There's an NL East outfielder having a monster season, leading the majors in home runs and definitely making baseball fun again. Compare the numbers:
Cespedes: .303/.384/.676, 1.8 WAR (entering Monday)
Bryce Harper: .252/.441/.548, 1.9 WAR (entering Monday)
Cespedes smashed his MLB-leading 15th home run as the Mets beat the Nationals 7-1 behind Bartolo Colon. As for Harper, since the Cubs walked him six times on May 8, he's hitting .216 with one home run in 13 games. He has 18 walks and nine strikeouts, but you wonder if he's still figuring out how to approach these plate appearances as pitchers don't challenge him much. Harper leads the majors in "non-competitive" pitches (those 18-plus inches from the center of the plate). He has to remain patient like he has been -- and then not miss when he does get a pitch.
4. Albert Pujols ties Rafael Palmeiro on the all-time home run list. Is this still a thing? Can you even name the top 10 guys now? Pujols' 569th blast tied Palmeiro for 12th, in case you want to keep track. Next up is Harmon Killebrew at 573 and Mark McGwire at 583.
Just #crushed: https://t.co/cstkI8qmo7 pic.twitter.com/EBlFARcjoL
— MLB (@MLB) May 24, 2016
5. Ichiro Suzuki, we love you. OK, he hasn't really been that good for several years now, but sometimes you have to throw out the sabermetrics and just appreciate the uniqueness of Ichiro. The 42-year-old went 4-for-5 in the Marlins' 7-6 win over the Rays, his second four-hit game in three days. In 60 at-bats, he's now hitting .417 and he's 40 hits away from 3,000. I'm starting to think he might get there, something that appeared doubtful after he hit .229 last season.