It’s been remarked here, on a number of occasions, how Tommy La Stella’s power has almost completely disappeared this year. Despite his good year pinch-hitting, his slugging percentage dropped from a good .472 in 2017 to just .304 entering Thursday night’s game. Of his 39 hits going into that game, just six were for extra bases, all doubles.
And then, just when the Cubs had finished blowing a 3-0 lead and trailed 4-3 going into the sixth, TLS came up to pinch hit for Brandon Kintzler with Kyle Schwarber on base.