Francisco Lindor, #12 of the New York Mets, hits an 11th-inning walk-off double to win the game against the Chicago Cubs 7-6 during their game at Citi Field on May 2, 2024, in New York City.
Al Bello/Getty
NEW YORK — For a second consecutive day, the Cubs’ game against the Mets ended with left fielder Ian Happ firing to his cutoff man as a Mets baserunner sped home.
On Thursday, unlike the night before, the Cubs couldn’t quite pull off a miraculous play at the plate.
They closed a four-game series against the Mets with a 7-6 loss in 11 innings. It was their major-league-leading fourth walk-off loss.
“There’s some opportunities we left out there, and there’s some runs we couldn’t keep off the board, and there’s some things we did well,” manager Craig Counsell said. ‘‘So there was a lot that happened in the game, and we just ended up coming up short.”
The Cubs scored first, then increased their lead to 4-0 in the fifth inning on Christopher Morel’s three-run home run, his second homer of the series.
But the Mets chipped away, eventually tying the game at 5 in the sixth.
Neither team scored again until the 11th inning. Nick Madrigal hit an RBI double to put the Cubs up again. But Mets right fielder Starling Marte threw out Madrigal, who was trying to score on a single by Mike Tauchman in a close play at the plate.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Mets’ Francisco Lindor hit an opposite-field two-run double to walk off the Cubs.
The Cubs went 3-4 on their trip to Boston and New York. They return to Wrigley Field to open a six-game homestand against the Brewers and Padres.
Swanson off the bench
Shortstop Dansby Swanson didn’t enter the game until the 11th inning, when he pinch-hit for top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong and struck out.
Getting a break, Swanson was out of the lineup for the first time this season. Swanson takes pride in his availability. And in his last three seasons with the Braves, 2020 through 2022, he missed only one regular-season game.
“He wants to play,” Counsell said. “I think we have to recognize the demands on him at that position. We’re all getting older; that’s a fact.
‘‘And just making him productive for the full season, I believe that some off days are smart for him to do to make him a better player. The goal is to be a good player and not to play 160. To be the best player you can be, that’s the goal.
“He wants to play, and I admire that. That’s a valuable trait. A day like today, I think, can really benefit him.”
The Cubs are 10 days into a stretch of
16 games without a day off. They had a quick turnaround from a night game Wednesday to a day game Thursday to wrap up the two-city trip.
Stolen bases
The Cubs took advantage of the Mets, one of the worst teams at preventing stolen bases, and stole six bags. They tied the Reds (April 14 at the White Sox) and Guardians (March 30 at the Athletics) for the most stolen bases by a team in a game this season. It was the most steals for the Cubs since June 3, 2008, in San Diego.
Before Thursday, the Cubs had only 11 stolen bases on the season.