Marcus Stroman’s rhythm still isn’t where he wants it.
Four starts into the season, the Chicago Cubs right-hander continues to tinker with his mechanics, searching for extended consistency beyond a couple batters. Stroman was encouraged by keeping a slugging Atlanta Braves lineup largely in check over six innings Tuesday in his longest outing of the season.
But the Cubs offense never got going against left-hander Max Fried and the Braves bullpen in a 3-1 loss, their sixth in the last seven games. They finished with four hits, tallying just one in the final six innings.
Here are three observations from Tuesday’s series opener at Truist Park.
1. Marcus Stroman’s sinker-slider combination’s effectiveness is good mechanics indicator.
By the time Stroman fired his 86th and final pitch, he had incorporated six different pitch types according to Statcast.
None were better at generating strikes than his slider and sinker. The two pitches got eight and seven called strikes, respectively. Accounting for whiffs and foul balls, that combination accounted for 25 strikes. Stroman largely was effective locating his slider in the bottom third of the zone while he worked his sinker all over, keeping Atlanta’s hitters guessing.
“There’s kind of that old school accessing different sides of the play — when you can run it one way and then bring it back the other way with the slider it’s tough to pick a spot,” manager David Ross said, “so he’s doing that really well.”
While he acknowledged making strides from his last start without getting into specifics, Stroman indicated he isn’t as in sync as he needs to be. Even so, Stroman delivered a quality start by going six innings and holding the Braves to three runs (two earned) without walking a batter.
“I can tell by the action on my sinker when my mechanics are on, and same thing with my slider,” Stroman said. “That’s what’s frustrating is I’ll be great for a hitter and then I won’t feel like that the next hitter. So it’s just consistency right now. And I’m getting close, but I’m not where I want to be.”
2. Ethan Roberts flashes the stuff that makes his upside so high.
The rookie reliever has experienced plenty of learning moments through his first seven big-league appearances.
But as he showed in the seventh inning Tuesday, when the 24-year-old right-hander is locked in, hitters struggle to make contact. Roberts struck out the side, retiring Adam Duvall on a cutter and uncorking two low sliders that got Travis Demeritte and Dansby Swanson to whiff.
“We trust in the stuff,” Ross said. “I think he’s kind of growing into being a guy that has to continue to have success out there and believe in himself and have an outing like tonight. To be able to execute those pitches, when he’s in the zone and attacking hitters, his stuff plays.”
After learning a new slider grip late in spring training, Roberts is trying to consistently harness the weapon. His evolving development is important for the Cubs, and as Roberts gains Ross’ trust in bigger moments, outings like Tuesday’s can go a long way in building his confidence and taking another step forward.
3. Drew Smyly and Chris Martin receiving their World Series rings serves as big-picture reminder.
Drew Smyly envisioned flashing his new bling on the Cubs’ flight to Milwaukee on Thursday night. Chris Martin hadn’t thought too far ahead of how he planned to wear the ring. The two Cubs pitchers — and former Braves teammates — received their 2021 World Series championship rings during a pregame ceremony.
Braves manager Brian Snitker and pitcher Charlie Morton presented the duo their rings, which represented the first World Series title for both. Smyly appeared in 29 games (23 starts) for the Braves last season, finishing his lone season in Atlanta with a 4.48 ERA. Martin, who spent 2½ years with the organization, posted a 3.95 ERA in 46 games out of the bullpen.
“It’s just the ultimate goal as a player — it’s a lot of individual stats and whatnot in this game, but it’s really hard to win a championship. So to be able to be on that team and be a small part of it, it’s pretty neat,” Smyly told the Tribune. “There’s a lot of really, really good players that I have never been, never won on so it is pretty special just to have that checked off.
“It’s going to be with you forever. Maybe my kids’ kids will have it one day. It’s neat, not many people have one.”
As a two-time World Series champ, Ross understands what a ring ceremony, even a small one like Tuesday’s, means for a player. Ross rarely wears either of his World Series title rings he got for 2013 in Boston and 2016 in Chicago — “By the time you shake everybody’s hand at an event, I’ve got my No. 3 indented inside of my finger” — but he appreciates hearing fans’ stories about where and who they were with watching the title-clinching game.
“The hardware is nice to get, probably the memories and things that have stuck with me are more important, like the brotherhood that you create with that group of people and the history that you make, that will never go away. And the banners that fly that you represent I think are really powerful moments,” Ross said.
Martin and Smyly each have two kids who are too young to remember their career-changing moments with Atlanta. Martin made sure to get photos of them on the field after beating the Houston Astros in six games.
“Those are some things that are really cool for them to look back on,” Martin said to the Tribune. “Hopefully they can be proud of what dad did.”
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