Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (5/17/26): White Sox 9, Cubs 8 F/10 – Conforto’s Game-Tying HR Not Enough
The Cubs dropped their third consecutive series of the road trip, this time to the rival White Sox, on Sunday afternoon. They made a dramatic comeback to tie the score in the top of the 9th inning, but it was not enough as the home team walked it off in extras.
The North Siders came flying out of the starting gate against Erick Fedde with a two-run homer by Michael Busch and a wild pitch with a man on third to make it 3-0 in the top of the 1st. Colin Rea gave one back in the bottom of the 2nd on an RBI single by catcher Edgar Quero that cut the deficit to 3-1.
Alex Bregman brought home a run on an infield single in the top of the 4th, but the Cubs stranded a large number of runners on the bases throughout Sunday. The Sox rallied back to even the game on an RBI double by Andrew Benintendi in the bottom of that frame and a two-run double from Miguel Vargas in the 5th.
Things remained 4-4 until Tristan Peters connected on a three-run homer against much-maligned reliever Phil Maton in the bottom of the 8th to give the South Siders a 7-4 lead. Craig Counsell‘s squad did not give up, however, taking advantage of an error to set up a game-tying three-run dinger by Michael Conforto off of closer Seranthony Dominguez.
The game moved on to the 10th, and the North Siders came away with only an RBI groundout by Bregman in the top of the inning. That would not be enough for a victory, as Quero took Ryan Rolison deep for a game-winning two-run shot and a 9-8 White Sox win. (Box score)
Key Moment
The Cubs had the bases loaded twice in the top of the 10th and could only score a single run.
Why the Cubs Lost
They left 13 men on base and went 2-for-15 with runners in scoring position Sunday.
Stats That Matter
- That’s a couple of shaky performances in a row for Rea: 4.2 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 4 K, and 1 BB.
- Conforto got on base three more times and is forcing his way into the lineup.
- Bregman had a couple more knocks and his hitting streak is up to eight.
Bottom Line
The Cubs weren’t going to stay as hot as they were, so a 3-6 road trip probably should not be a big surprise. The pitching staff is starting to show the strain of so many injuries, and some outside reinforcements are eventually going to be needed. Some home cooking at Wrigley Field may be able to get things moving forward again.
On Deck
The second-place Brewers play three games at the Friendly Confines beginning Monday night at 6:40pm CT. Shōta Imanaga faces off against Brandon Sproat in a contest televised on Marquee with a radio feed on The Score.
