The Cubs' 2019 pitching woes have reached historic levels.
After Yu Darvish and a trio of relievers combined to allow 9 runs Thursday evening in Atlanta, the Cubs have now surrendered 46 runs in the first 6 games of the season.
That's the most they've allowed in the first 6 games of any year since 1901:
(Side note: 57 runs in 6 games in 1901? How the hell does that happen?)
Put another way, the last time the Cubs started a season with pitching this bad, they were called the Chicago Orphans and were still 13 years away from playing their first season at Wrigley Field.
For all the ire the bullpen has drawn over this first week, the starting rotation really hasn't been much better. Only Jon Lester has recorded a quality start (though he's done that both times out).
Here are the overall numbers for the entire 2019 pitching staff to date:
But hey, it wasn't all bad — Tyler Chatwood pitched and for the first time in a Cubs uniform, he didn't walk a batter:
More silver lining: Three of the four Cubs pitchers who threw Thursday actually *lowered* their ERA.
Yu Darvish dropped from 10.13 to 8.10, Tyler Chatwood went from 16.20 to 9.82 and Mike Montgomery halved his ERA going from 40.50 to 20.25.
MLB
The 1-5 Cubs now turn to Jose Quintana to try to stop the bleeding and get the team back in the win column Friday night in Milwaukee.
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