Coming off the Chicago Cubs’ postseason run last year, and the moves made in the offseason, there was a buzz and excitement around Opening Day that had not been felt in quite some time. Not to mention it was the 10-year Anniversary of the Cubs winning the World Series in 2016, and Anthony Rizzo threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Yeah, there was renewed optimism at Wrigley Field about what the Cubs could accomplish this season. Then, the fourth inning happened, which led to the Cubs losing 10-4 to the Nationals.

Boyd on cruise control; until he wasn’t

Matthew Boyd drew the honor of being the starting pitcher on Opening Day for the Cubs. He faced off against Cade Cavalli and the Washington Nationals. Boyd allowed a solo home run to outfielder Joey Wiemer in the second inning, but aside from that, he was locked in for the first three innings. The left-hander had struck out seven Nationals and was coming off striking out the side in the third inning.

The Cubs started the fourth inning with a 2-1 lead, which quickly evaporated. The Nationals began the inning with three straight hits, and Boyd allowed six of the seven batters he faced to reach base before he was lifted for reliever Ben Brown. In the inning, Boyd gave up a total of five hits with a walk, which led to five earned runs. This surely wasn’t the start the Cubs or Boyd envisioned when he came back early from the World Baseball Classic, but he will look to bounce back and make adjustments for his next start.

Cubs had their chances; couldn’t cash in

For the Cubs’ offense, there was good news, and there was bad news. The good was that they created a lot of traffic on the bases, as it seemed like every inning they were threatening to score. The only two innings they were set down 1-2-3 were the bottom of the second and the bottom of the ninth. The bad is that they did not capitalize enough on their opportunities. The Cubs went 4-19 with runners in scoring position, and they left a total of nine men on base. They simply could not come up with the big or timely hit when they needed it.

The Cubs were down 8-3 in the bottom of the seventh and had a slight rally going. With runners on first and third with one out, outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong made the Cubs’ play of the day, laying a bunt down the third base line to score a run and keep the line moving. With the score now 8-4 and still just one out, second baseman Nico Hoerner came to the plate. With the new ABS rules, Hoerner had a chance to use his challenge on a pitch that was called a strike by the umpire that would have been overturned and been called ball four, loading the bases. Instead, Hoerner hit into an inning-ending double play, putting an end to the Cubs’ rally.

To challenge or not to challenge

Touching on that play a little more, I do not blame Hoerner for not using the challenge. They have been using it during Spring Training, but it is game one with an effectively new rule. It is only up to the batter to challenge the call; not even the Cubs manager Craig Counsell can challenge it. I think I was just surprised because to me, Hoerner is the Cub I would trust the most to know the strike zone, especially in that spot. So maybe that is something we see him and the Cubs attempt more in the future.