{"id":179515,"date":"2026-04-23T10:28:32","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T10:28:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=179515"},"modified":"2026-04-23T10:28:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T10:28:32","slug":"%f0%9f%9a%a8-report-cubs-roll-to-8th-straight-win-7-2-thriller-against-phillies-as-boyd-makes-impressive-return-from-il-silencing-any-doubts-and-showing-the-power-of-his-comeback-performance-chica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=179515","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udea8 REPORT: CUBS ROLL TO 8TH STRAIGHT WIN, 7-2 THRILLER AGAINST PHILLIES AS BOYD MAKES IMPRESSIVE RETURN from IL, silencing any doubts and showing the power of his comeback performance. Chicago\u2019s momentum is undeniable, and with their ace back in action, the Chicago Cubs are looking unstoppable as they push forward with confidence and fire \ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47"},"content":{"rendered":"

Manager Craig Counsell and the Chicago Cubs expected some cobwebs in Matthew Boyd\u2019s outing on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field.<\/p>\n

The left-hander was pitching in his first game in the majors in 21 days, after a bicep injury landed him on the 15-day injured list. Boyd worked around a rocky second inning to toss 4 2\/3 innings of two-run ball on five hits in the Cubs\u2019 7-2 win over the Phillies that extended their winning streak to eight.<\/p>\n

\"8<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the Cubs\u2019 first streak of eight or more wins in the month of April since 1970. The Phillies, meanwhile, have lost eight straight, their longest skid since 2018.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s hopefully what you expect is a little bit of rust after not being out there that much for the last three weeks,\u201d Counsell said after the win. \u201cBut I think he got it going a little bit after that second inning. Last eight outs, I thought he got it going a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Boyd\u2019s return to the Cubs\u2019 rotation is a welcome boost for a group that has thrived during the winning streak. Cubs\u2019 starters boast a 2.09 ERA in that span, the third-best mark in the majors. On Wednesday, Boyd and the rest of the Cubs\u2019 staff continued to show just how strong they\u2019ve been.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s taken all of us, from the starters to every man in the bullpen, and it\u2019s been impressive,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cTonight was another example of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Photos: Chicago Cubs 7, Philadelphia Phillies 2<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Boyd was activated off the IL before the game, with left-hander Luke Little optioned to Triple-A Iowa to make room on the active roster. The Cubs\u2019 opening-day starter threw a 15-pitch, perfect first inning. He returned in the second with a one-run lead after Ian Happ drove in Nico Hoerner on a fielder\u2019s choice.<\/p>\n

The Phillies showed a more patient approach in the second inning, forcing Boyd to throw 30 pitches in the frame. Edmundo Sosa tied the game on a seven-pitch at-bat that ended in a double. Sosa worked the count full after Boyd started him 0-2, then dropped a 107.6 mph line drive down the left field line for an extra-base hit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there was some chances to put guys away 0-2 sooner than I did,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cTo me, that\u2019s some of the things that we could probably get a little bit sharper on. I think there were (five) hits, three of them were heaters that leaked back middle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Boyd settled in after that, allowing just two hits over the final 3 1\/3 innings of work. The Cubs\u2019 offense quickly took back the lead and added on, thanks to a trio of hitters who are finding their groove.<\/p>\n

Michael Busch entered the game hitting .173, but hit his first home run of the year and finished 2-for-4. Alex Bregman, who entered Wednesday with a paltry .340 slugging percentage, hit a triple that caromed off the front edge of the left-center basket, inches from landing for a home run, as part of a three-hit night. Seiya Suzuki, who had just one extra-base hit before Tuesday, hit a two-run home run in the fifth inning, his second straight game with a home run.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not going to have all nine guys all rolling at the same time,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cA good offense, if you\u2019ve got enough good hitters in there, you expect a group of them, at times, to be seeing it well and swinging it well. Tonight, some of the guys that were maybe off to a little bit of a slower start had big nights.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"8
Cubs first baseman Michael Busch rounds the bases after hitting a home run in the third inning against the Phillies at Wrigley Field on April 22, 2026, in Chicago. (John J. Kim\/Chicago Tribune)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Cubs\u2019 offense and Boyd\u2019s start allowed Counsell to turn it over to Ben Brown to bridge the gap to the back of their bullpen. Brown, who has worked exclusively as a multi-inning reliever this season, kept the Phillies off the board, tossing 2 1\/3 scoreless innings and striking out five of the 10 batters he faced.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday I thought he was really sharp, really dominating the zone, getting ahead of hitters frequently,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cHe\u2019s already up to (19) innings, but kind of spaced out and in good ways, and he\u2019s been very important as kind of a glue to the bullpen right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brown\u2019s mental development has helped him turn into a key piece of a pitching staff that has needed his innings. The right-hander pitched two scoreless innings in his last outing on April 18, an appearance that included a wonky second frame.<\/p>\n

In that game, he allowed two infield hits, a fielder\u2019s choice and an error that scored a run and threatened to derail his outing. But he kept the lead, allowing Caleb Thielbar to close the door. On Wednesday, Brown attacked the Phillies\u2019 lineup and never looked like he was in trouble.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat last outing, that was really important for him to get over that hump there and have success in that big spot when things \u2014 he pitched well that game \u2014 (but) things didn\u2019t go right,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cThere were four balls in the infield that didn\u2019t get out of the infield, and all of a sudden, there\u2019s a rally going. Tonight was the good stuff with the strikeouts. (It\u2019s) part of getting better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MLB<\/p>\n

Boyd and Brown, in different roles, are key cogs for a Cubs\u2019 pitching staff that already lost Cade Horton for the season and still has nine arms from their 40-man roster on the IL.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so many guys that have stepped up in this time,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cIt\u2019s a collective effort, and it\u2019s the next-man-up mentality. It\u2019s been kind of said ad nauseam, but that\u2019s the way it has to be.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Manager Craig Counsell and the Chicago Cubs expected some cobwebs in Matthew Boyd\u2019s outing on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field. The left-hander was… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":179520,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-179515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n\ud83d\udea8 REPORT: CUBS ROLL TO 8TH STRAIGHT WIN, 7-2 THRILLER AGAINST PHILLIES AS BOYD MAKES IMPRESSIVE RETURN from IL, silencing any doubts and showing the power of his comeback performance. Chicago\u2019s momentum is undeniable, and with their ace back in action, the Chicago Cubs are looking unstoppable as they push forward with confidence and fire \ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=179515\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\ud83d\udea8 REPORT: CUBS ROLL TO 8TH STRAIGHT WIN, 7-2 THRILLER AGAINST PHILLIES AS BOYD MAKES IMPRESSIVE RETURN from IL, silencing any doubts and showing the power of his comeback performance. 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