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MLB: Chicago Cubs, Wearing Pink, Win 7th Straight After 13 Innings

By Dustin Murrell
Published on: 14:48 PST, May 8, 2016

After 13 innings, the Chicago Cubs hit a walk-off home run to beat the Washington Nationals 4-3, as the best team in Major League Baseball won yet another game started by Jake Arrieta. The loss knocked the Washington Nationals out of first place in the National League East, and the win put even more distance between the Cubs and the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Central.

While Ben Zobrist had a really hot bat against the Nationals lately, the Cubs won the final game of this series without any extra-base hits from their second baseman. The seventh win in a row for the Cubs further establishes their lead over the NL Central and the entire MLB.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiLLLn6Jvv8

For 12 innings, Washington managed to stay with or in front of the Cubs. But in the bottom on the 13th inning, pinch hitter Javier Baez hit a homer helping the Cubs win at home, sending the Nationals away without a single win in four games.

Cubs-Nationals series

The Chicago Cubs continue to dominate the MLB. It’s that simple. Before arriving in Chicago, the Washington Nationals were leading the NL East. While the Nationals dropped four straight to the Cubs, none of the games were total blowouts. The final game took 13 innings. The 5-2 loss in the first game of the series was the largest margin of victory for all four games.

Unless they meet in the MLB Playoffs, Sunday was the last game between the Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals for the 2016 season.

NL Central

Before sweeping the Washington Nationals, the Cubs swept division rivals Pittsburgh Pirates. While the Cubs were contending with the Nationals, the Pirates moved on to a series with yet another NL Central contender, the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cards and Bucs split their series 2-1 (in favor of the Pirates), allowing the Cubs to put 7.5 games between themselves and the second place Pirates. St. Louis is 1.5 games behind Pittsburgh.

Of course, it’s too early in the season to count out the Milwaukee Brewers or Cincinnati Reds. With a record of 13-19, the Reds are currently 12 games behind the Chicago Cubs. At 13-18, the Brewers hold fourth place in the division, 11.5 games out of first place.

MLB goes pink for Mother’s Day

It wasn’t just the Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals that were using pink bats and wearing uniforms with new pink additions. The entire MLB was sporting pink on Sunday as a nod to Mother’s Day. Major League Baseball reports from their official website that the appreciation is being expressed in different ways from different clubs.

“From the symbolic human pink ribbon formed on the field by breast cancer survivors at Cubs’ and Astros’ home games, to the “Strike Out Cancer” event in San Francisco, to the first-ever pink-incorporated logos on tradition-rich Cardinals uniforms.”

Dozens of MLB players were recorded sending out Mother’s Day wishes, such as the video of Jake Arrieta doing so below.

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Jake Arrieta

It could certainly be argued that Jake Arrieta is the best pitcher in baseball. If he had been awarded the win for the Cubs’ victory against the Nationals, no one in the Majors would have a better record than Arrieta. At 6-0, Arrietta is only surpassed by Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox (7-0). After Sunday’s game, Arrieta has the second best ERA in MLB (1.13), and only five pitchers have more innings under their belt this season. He has 44 strike-outs compared to just 16 walks.

Jake Arrieta’s next start is likely to be during the Cubs’ series against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field May 13-15.

Where To Watch

The Chicago Cubs vs. San Diego Padres (Game 1 of the series) is set for Monday, May 9. Plenty of tickets are still available for the Cubs-Padres game directly through the Cubs’ website to watch the Cubs vs. Padres live at Wrigley Field. Monday’s match-up will be an evening game, scheduled to begin at 7:05 p.m. CST.

Monday’s game between the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres will be televised regionally on Comcast Sportsnet, with coverage beginning at 7 p.m. CST.

[Photo credit Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images]

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