Chicago Cubs’ Jameson Taillon pitches during the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, April 29, 2024, in New York.
Frank Franklin II/AP Photos
NEW YORK — About 10 months ago in the Bronx, Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon had a breakthrough start against the Yankees. On Monday in Queens, he continued to build off the turnaround he authored in the second half of last season, holding up his end of a fierce pitching battle.
In the Cubs’ 3-1 victory against the Mets to open the series, Taillon went toe-to-toe with right-hander Luis Severino. He limited the Mets to one run in 7⅓ innings.
‘‘Both pitchers were super,’’ Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. ‘‘Jamo was up to the task and matched [Severino], really. And that’s impressive because that was two pitchers on top of their game.’’
Since Taillon turned his 2023 season around at Yankee Stadium, holding his former team to one hit in eight scoreless innings last July, he has posted a 3.06 ERA.
‘‘I feel like that’s when we really started gaining traction with the things we were working on,’’ Taillon said Monday. ‘‘And I love pitching in New York. So it worked out well.
‘‘Still a lot of season left, so I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I like where we’re at.’’
He began this season on the injured list after straining his back in spring training, but he hasn’t missed a beat since his return. In three starts, he has allowed a combined three runs. Monday marked his deepest start of the season.
‘‘Somebody like Jamo . . . who he is as a human and what he means to us as a leader in this clubhouse, for him to just go out there and continue to perform and give us a chance to do what we need to do was huge for us tonight,’’ shortstop Dansby Swanson said. “And it just shows, obviously, what he’s capable of [and] what he means to this group.’’
Taillon’s start didn’t have an auspicious beginning. He yielded a home run to the first batter he faced, Brandon Nimmo. But that was one of only four hits he surrendered. The rest were singles.
‘‘When I’m at my best, it’s all pitches to all areas; don’t let hitters sit in one zone,’’ Taillon said. ‘‘And I thought we did a good job of that.’’
The Cubs’ offense, meanwhile, was quiet. It seemed bound to falter eventually with outfielders Seiya Suzuki and Cody Bellinger, who generally hit second and third in the order, on the IL. But Severino’s performance was the bigger factor.
Severino, who was teammates with Taillon on the Yankees, carried a no-hit bid into the eighth. Then Swanson managed to get his hands inside a sinker for a short line drive off the handle of the bat for a single to center.
‘‘Bat died a hero,’’ he said with a smile.
The Cubs pushed across their first run in that inning. With simple contact, they moved Michael Busch, who had drawn a leadoff walk, to third. And then pinch hitter Nick Madrigal hit a broken-bat grounder to third, enabling Busch to score.
The pitching battle between Taillon and Severino ended in a 1-1 draw, and the teams’ bullpens took over.
Facing Mets closer Edwin Diaz in the ninth, Christopher Morel launched a two-run home into the left-field stands. He rounded the bases with a little extra bounce in his step. Just before entering the dugout, he pointed into the stands, where he said about 40 friends and family members were rooting him on.
‘‘That was a huge satisfaction, a huge relief,’’ Morel said.
Because Mark Leiter Jr. and Hector Neris (fourth save) pitched scoreless ball in relief of Taillon, Morel’s homer stood as the deciding hit.
‘‘That was enough because we pitched so well,’’ Counsell said.