It didn't take long for October to produce some Wrigley Field magic as the Cubs eked out a 1-0 win over the Giants on Friday in Game 1 of their National League Division Series.
The Cubs looked a little rusty at the plate, but Javier Baez's fly ball in the eighth inning fought through the cold breeze to fall in the basket just over the left-field wall.
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Cubs fans in attendance went wild, calling for Baez to come back out for a curtain call. He didn't leave them hanging.
Three takeaways from the Cubs' Game 1 win:
1. Jon Lester still has game. Seemingly the forgotten man in the Cubs' rotation with Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks dominating the headlines this season, Lester proved he still can produce like an ace.
Always steady, Lester tossed eight scoreless innings while allowing just five hits with five strikeouts. He became just the eighth Cubs pitcher to toss that many scoreless innings in a postseason start, and the first since Arrieta last year.
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Though Arrieta and Hendricks produced terrific regular seasons, Lester was quietly spectacular as well. He went 19-5 with a 2.44 ERA. Cubs manager Joe Maddon will lean on his veteran hurler throughout the postseason.
"That was an awesome baseball game. Playoff baseball," Lester told Fox Sports. "That was a fun game to be a part of and obviously happy to be on the winning side of it.
"You have to tip your hat to the other guy. (Giants starter Johnny) Cueto played well and just kept making pitches."
2. Johnny Cueto must be wondering if he will ever get run support. Poor Cueto. He was unhittable through seven innings, then came Baez's homer in the eighth, which gave Cueto the loss. But was it really his fault? Of course not.
Cueto struck out 10 and gave up just three hits in eight innings. The Giants gave him no run support, again, marking the 13th time San Francisco batters have failed to record more than two runs when Cueto was starting this season. Cueto was electric all night; his command was sublime. He just missed on one pitch, and it cost him.
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This was a tough atmosphere for the Giants, who are trying to steal a win before the series moves to San Francisco, but Cueto deserved better after a masterful performance.
3. Joe Maddon still knows what he's doing. It was an interesting move usual second baseman Ben Zobrist in left field with Baez at second. Zobrist had only started 11 games at that position during the regular season, and he's not the most mobile player. But Maddon's plan worked when Baez ripped a solo home run just over the left field ivy late in the game.
The Cubs have a bevy of young position players, and Maddon has done a great job managing their reps and understanding where and when to play guys.
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Highlight
Baez's mighty swing accounts for the game's only run:
#MLBtalk #NLDS #Gm1 #ScoreAlert #Giants (0) vs #Cubs (1) en la 9na entrada (HR d nuestro🇵🇷 @javy23baez ) #Postseason pic.twitter.com/5TDjPfzp1I
— MeGustanLosDeportes (@PalillitoArnold) October 8, 2016
It was Baez's second career postseason home run.
"I was just trying to get on base," he told Fox Sports. "I knew we had some people coming in to hit for the pitcher. (Cueto) had been pitching me inside and I was waiting for him to make a mistake and he did.
"I hit it really good."
What's next
NLDS Game 2: Giants at Cubs, 8 p.m. ET Saturday — Jeff Samardzija will try to get momentum on San Francisco's side in a duel against NL Cy Young hopeful Kyle Hendricks. The Giants must hit if they are going to have success in the postseason.