The anticipation of the Wrigley Field crowd was palpable as 36,948 fans waited to see if Cubs left-hander Justin Steele would get a chance to put a finishing touch on a masterpiece Friday for his victory of the season.
And when he finally walked out of the dugout toward the mound for the ninth inning against the Angels, the crowd responded with a heartfelt standing ovation, an emotional moment that seemed to invigorate Steele and maybe even deflate the Angels.
Four pitches later, it was over. Steele quickly retired the Angels 1-2-3 for a two-hitter and a 5-1 Cubs victory. And he was just as appreciative as every one of those fans.
“It was awesome to do it,” Steele said. “The fans on their feet, playing my walk-out [song] again and stuff — it was really cool. A special moment, something I’ll never forget. That was probably the best baseball moment of my life. I want to keep doing it.”
In his first start since an emotional outburst in Milwaukee last Saturday in which he implored himself and his team to “wake the [expletive] up,” Steele (1-3, 2.95 ERA) was in complete control of his emotions and the Angels.
He had seven strikeouts and two walks and did not allow a hit until one out in the fifth inning. Steele threw only 95 pitches, the fewest for a Cubs pitcher in a complete game since Greg Maddux in 2004. He retired the last 13 batters, throwing only 28 pitches in the last four innings. If the Angels (36-51) had early dinner reservations, they made them. The game took only 2:07.
It was the Cubs’ first complete game since Marcus Stroman (throwing 105 pitches) against the Rays last season on May 29 and only the second Cubs complete game since 2020.
“It’s something I’ve been wanting to do,” Steele, 28, said. “Definitely something to check off the checklist as far as my career goes. Hopefully I can do it a lot more.”
Seiya Suzuki hit a two-run home run off Angels starter Griffin Canning in the first inning to give the Cubs (41-48) a 2-0 lead. Ian Happ had two RBI singles, and Nico Hoerner added an RBI single. But third baseman Miles Mastrobuoni — making his first start since May 19 — played the biggest supporting role with three outstanding defensive plays that saved three runs or more, including a nifty grab of Taylor Ward’s line drive on the first pitch of the game.
“If I had a player of the game, I’d give it to ‘Mastro’; he had some crazy plays today,” an appreciative Steele said. “It definitely kept me in the ballgame. Kept me going. Dansby [Swanson] had some great plays. Nico. Everybody was diving all over the place. It was great to see. Winning baseball’s awesome.”
Mastrobuoni darted to his left to make a dazzling stop of Zach Neto’s 107 mph line drive with runners on first and second for an inning-ending forceout at second in the fourth. He also made a nice play on Jo Adell’s short-hopper in the eighth inning.
‘‘ ‘Mastro’ played an incredible defensive game — basically took three hits and made ’em into outs,” manager Craig Counsell said. “Collectively, they get Justin a complete game. It should be part of the story for Justin today.”
Counsell had no problem giving Steele the chance to complete it. Steele did the rest, with a boost from the home crowd.
“That was special,” Steele said. “Wrigley’s a special place. Fans are aware at all times of what’s going on, and they know how big and special moments [are].
“The field, the crowd and the energy, everything behind me — it’s truly special. It’s hard to put into words how special the Wrigley faithful are. I can’t thank ’em enough. That was a lot of fun today.”