cubs’ Power Surge: Home Runs and Brotherly Banter Fuel Victory
A five-homer barrage, ignited by a pair of blasts from Seiya Suzuki, propelled the Chicago Cubs to a decisive 6-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers. The power display underscored a different dimension to Chicago’s offensive capabilities.
Suzuki and Crow-Armstrong: A Budding Bromance
During a Saturday conversation, Seiya Suzuki playfully mimed holding a baby while discussing Pete Crow-Armstrong, describing their bond as akin to brothers. “Everything that Pete does is like a little kid,”
Suzuki said, adding, “I feel like Pete is like my little brother.”
Home Run Derby at Comerica Park
Crow-Armstrong also contributed to the home run frenzy, marking his 17th of the season, edging out Suzuki for the team lead. When asked about suzuki’s big brother comparison,Crow-Armstrong responded with an amused eye roll,embracing his role as the competitive little brother.
“Yeah,”
Crow-Armstrong said,“and then a little bit of like rubbing it in his face when I’m just a little bit ahead. If that’s any real motivation outside of what we want to do here, then that’s great and that’s fun. It’s light-hearted stuff, so that’s good for me. Seiya, he happens to bring that out of me.”
Power Surge Details
Suzuki homered off Tyler Holton in the first and Chase Lee in the eighth, bringing his season total to 16. Crow-Armstrong’s leadoff homer in the seventh was one of three against Keider Montero. Michael Busch added a two-run shot, recorded as the hardest-hit of his career at 110 mph by Statcast. Matt Shaw also joined the hit parade with his first homer as March.
Manager’s Take
“I think it speaks to just a different way to win a game,”
Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “We hit some homers today — didn’t do much else.But the homers are good. When you hit five homers, that’s a pretty good day. The guys did a good job getting the ball in the air and getting some pitches to drive.”
Deep Lineup, Multiple Threats
The five home runs equaled the Cubs’ season high, previously achieved on April 18 against the Diamondbacks. According to a recent MLB report, teams that hit at least five home runs in a game have a 78% win rate (MLB.com 2024). Jameson Taillon noted the team’s versatility: “It’s a really deep lineup,”
he said. “We can beat you by hitting homers. We can beat you by stealing bases, taking the extra base, working counts.”
kind Competition
The friendly rivalry between Suzuki and crow-Armstrong adds another layer to the team dynamic. Suzuki leads in RBIs (55-54) and OPS (.895 to .876), while they share the same slugging percentage (.563). Crow-Armstrong enjoys reminding Suzuki of his one-homer lead.
“Pete was saying that he’s the power leader of the team,”
Suzuki said. Crow-Armstrong added, “I let him know today that he had to hit two, and I still got him. I said, any day that he hits a homer, I’m going to have to do it as well.”
When asked if he would finish the season as the power leader, Suzuki quipped, “If you look at my body, yes.”
Despite the language barrier, their camaraderie is evident.
“He’s getting there with his English and everything — at least what he understands,”
Crow-Armstrong said. “but happiness after homers and stuff? That’s great and worldwide. we like having a good time here.”
