NEW YORK – About 10 months ago, in the borough across the East River, Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon had a breakthrough start. On Monday in Queens, he continued to build off that turnaround second half, holding up his end of a fierce pitching battle.
In the Cubs’ 3-1 win against the Mets to open the series, Taillon went toe-to-toe with New York starter Luis Severino, limiting the Mets to one run in 7 ⅓ innings.
“Both pitchers were super tonight,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “Jamo was up to the task and matched him, really. And that’s impressive because that was two pitchers on top of their game.”
Since Taillon turned his 2023 season around at Yankee Stadium, holding his former team to one hit through eight scoreless innings last July, he’s posted a 3.06 ERA.
“I feel like that’s when we really started gaining traction with the things we were working on,” Taillon said Monday. “And I love pitching in New York. So it worked out well.
“Still a lot of season left, so I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I like where we’re at.”
He began this season on the IL, after straining his back in spring training. But he didn’t miss a beat coming back. In three starts, he’s allowed a total of three runs. Monday marked his deepest start of the season.
“Somebody like Jamo … who he is as a human and what he means to us as a leader in this clubhouse, for him to just go out there and continue to perform and give us a chance to do what we need to do was huge for us tonight,” shortstop Dansby Swanson said. “And just shows, obviously what he’s capable of, but what he means to this group.”
Taillon’s start Monday didn’t have an auspicious beginning. He gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, Brandon Nimmo. But that was one of only four hits that Taillon surrendered. The rest were singles.
“When I’m at my best, it’s all pitches to all areas, don’t let hitters sit in one zone,” Taillon said. “And I thought we did a good job of that.”
The Cubs offense was quiet Monday. It seems bound to falter eventually with Seiya Suzuki and Cody Bellinger, who hit second and third in the order, on the injured list. But Severino’s performance was the bigger factor.
Severino, a former teammate of Taillon’s with the Yankees, carried a no-hit bid into the eighth inning. Then Swanson managed to get his hands inside a sinker for a short line drive off the handle of his bat and into center field.
“Bat died a hero,” he said with a smile.
The Cubs finally pushed across their first run that inning. With simple contact, they moved Michael Busch, who drew a leadoff walk, to third. And then Nick Madrigal hit a broken-bat ground ball to third base, giving Busch the chance to score.
The pitching battle between Taillon and Severino ended in a 1-1 draw. And the teams’ bullpens took over.
Against Mets closer Edwin Díaz, Cubs cleanup hitter Christopher Morel launched a two-run home run into the left field stands. He rounded the bases with a little extra bounce in his step. Just before entering the dugout, he pointed into the stands, where he said about 40 friends and family members were cheering him on.
“That was a huge satisfaction, a huge relief,” Morel said.
After Cubs relievers Mark Leiter Jr. and Héctor Neris shut down the Mets the rest of the way, Morel’s homer stood as the deciding hit.
“That was enough because we pitched so well,” Counsell said.