While it’s too premature at this point to call Thursday’s game an “Aha!” moment for the Cubs’ staff, you could see Jim Hickey’s fingerprints all over the performance. Jon Lester, who battled an amoeba strike zone in his first outing, was as sharp as he’s been in recent memory and the bullpen followed suit.
After walking Ryan Braun, the third batter he faced, Lester went on to record 16 outs without issuing another free pass. Three relievers followed, closing out the game with five strikeouts and no walks to bring the Cubs’ respective totals to 11 and one.