{"id":130850,"date":"2026-05-15T23:22:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-16T02:22:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ubirataonline.com.br\/cubs-losing-streak-reaches-four-after-rare-misplay-by-second-baseman-nico-hoerner\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T23:22:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T02:22:12","slug":"cubs-losing-streak-reaches-four-after-rare-misplay-by-second-baseman-nico-hoerner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ubirataonline.com.br\/en\/cubs-losing-streak-reaches-four-after-rare-misplay-by-second-baseman-nico-hoerner\/","title":{"rendered":"Cubs’ losing streak reaches four after rare misplay by second baseman Nico Hoerner"},"content":{"rendered":"


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ATLANTA \u2014 Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner\u2019s<\/b> knack for improvising plays that defy belief has a flip side, though it rarely is seen.<\/p>\n

The \u2018\u2018Oh, wow\u2019\u2019 gives way to an \u2018\u2018Oh, no.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

With the Cubs and Braves tied at a run apiece in the eighth inning Wednesday, Hoerner saw Michael Harris II<\/b> sprinting down the line on a slow roller and decided his only chance to get him out was to shovel the ball underhanded with his glove to first baseman Michael Busch<\/b>.<\/p>\n

To the Cubs\u2019 horror, the ball went over Busch\u2019s head. Harris reached safely, and a night of what manager Craig Counsell<\/b> called \u2018\u2018awesome .\u2009.\u2009. wonderful\u2019\u2019 pitching by Shota Imanaga<\/b> was about to go into a death spiral.<\/p>\n

Imanaga departed, then reliever Phil Maton<\/b> hung a couple of curveballs \u2014 one that pinch hitter Mike Yastrzemski<\/b> hit for a tiebreaking double and another that Mauricio Dubon<\/b> launched into the left-field seats for a two-run home run.<\/p>\n

Braves 4, Cubs 1.<\/p>\n

Raisel Iglesias<\/b>, who has yet to be scored on this season, finished off the Cubs in the ninth for his eighth save, and the Braves became the first team in the majors to reach 30 victories.<\/p>\n

The Cubs, meanwhile, have their first four-game losing streak of 2026. In two days, the Braves\u2019 bullpen has held them to two singles in 10 scoreless innings. The Cubs have scored a total of three runs during their skid.<\/p>\n

\u2018\u2018We made a lot of really nice plays tonight,\u2019\u2019 Counsell said on a night leather was flashed on both sides. \u2018\u2018I\u2019m sure Nico \u2014 it was a tough play, not an easy play \u2014 I\u2019m sure he would tell you, \u2018I could have made that play,\u2019 but it was a tough play.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Counsell knows his second baseman.<\/p>\n

\u2018\u2018I think I made it a harder play than it needed to be,\u2019\u2019 Hoerner said. \u2018\u2018Just kind of misread the timing of it. Looking back on the play, there was definitely time to transfer to my hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you do rely on instincts all the time, and I trust that works most of the time. .\u2009.\u2009. But it definitely stings to have an error lead to the game-winning run.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

The official scorer gave Harris a hit, and Imanaga was saddled with the loss on a night in which he set the Braves down in order in five of his seven-plus innings, didn\u2019t walk a batter and allowed only five hits, including a home run to Drake Baldwin<\/b> in the fourth.<\/p>\n

The homer came on an out-of-the-zone slider that Baldwin had to reach for, but he nonetheless was strong enough to hit it 402 feet over the center-field wall.<\/p>\n

Wonderful pitching? Imanaga wouldn\u2019t go that far.<\/p>\n

\u2018\u2018My outing, if I didn\u2019t give up any runs, the Cubs would have had a chance to win,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u2018\u2018So I think when I\u2019m looking at it, you know, I should have kept it to zero.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Giving Liam a look<\/h3>\n

The Cubs are taking a flier on reliever Liam Hendriks<\/b>, who won the hearts of White Sox fans in two seasons as their All-Star closer (2021-22), then tugged on their heartstrings with his very public \u2014 and successful \u2014 battle against Stage 4 non-Hodgkin\u2019s lymphoma.<\/p>\n

The Cubs signed Hendriks, 37, to a minor-league deal and initially plan to send him to their facility in Mesa, Arizona, with the expectation that he eventually will join Triple-A Iowa, Counsell said.<\/p>\n

\u2018\u2018It\u2019s essentially just depth right now and taking a shot at somebody who\u2019s had a lot of success and see what happens,\u2019\u2019 Counsell said.<\/p>\n

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There\u2019s a different sort of vibe surrounding this year\u2019s Crosstown Whatever-We\u2019re-Calling-It. If the teams themselves don\u2019t feel it, that\u2019s OK because the fans do. And this rivalry has always been about the fans first.<\/p>\n

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