Javy Baez's latest bit of sorcery led to a comedy of errors by the reeling Pittsburgh Pirates, keying a two-run rally in a 5-3 victory on Thursday.
Baez hit reverse and chaos ensued, as tends to happen whenever the livewire Chicago Cubs shortstop is on the basepaths. With teammate Willson Contreras on second and two outs in the third inning, Baez hit a routine grounder to third baseman Erik Gonzalez. Gonzalez's throw to Craig at first was a little up the line, pulling Craig off the bag. No biggie. All Craig had to do was tag Baez or touch first. The inning should have been over.
It wasn't. What followed was 40 seconds of madness that will likely follow Baez and Craig no matter where their careers take them.
Baez hit the brakes to avoid Craig's glove and started backtracking toward the plate. Craig curiously decided to follow Baez.
The move bought enough time for Contreras to round third and sprint home. Craig attempted a flip to catcher Michael Perez, but Contreras slid under the tag while Baez took off for first. Perez's throw to first sailed past second baseman Adam Frazier attempting to cover the bag, allowing Baez to race to second.
At any point in time, if the ball gets to first before Baez does, the out is recorded, the run doesn't count and life goes on. It didn't, encapsulating a season that is quickly slipping away for the Pirates.
Baez ended up scoring moments later on a single by Ian Happ to give the Cubs a three-run lead they wouldn't relinquish, adding another chapter to his burgeoning resume as one of baseball's most exhilarating - and occasionally erratic - players in the game in the process.
Kris Bryant hit his 11th home run, and Patrick Wisdom added his first home run since 2018 for the Cubs, who have won eight of nine. Contreras, Bryant and Wisdom finished with two hits each.
Kyle Hendricks (5-4) overcame solo home runs by Perez, Gregory Polanco and Bryan Reynolds to win his third straight start. Hendricks allowed three runs and six hits in seven innings with five strikeouts and no walks. Ryan Tepera worked 1 1/3 innings for his first save in three years.
Hendricks improved to 4-1 with a 2.67 ERA, part of an overall surge by the Cubs following a sluggish start that has them fighting with St. Louis for early control of the NL Central.
Anthony Rizzo out of the lineup for a second straight day with lower-back tightness. Rizzo has been dealing with some stiffness recently and it popped back up again Wednesday morning.
The Cubs return to Wrigley Field for a three-game set against NL Central rival Cincinnati on Friday. Adbert Alzolay (2-4, 4.30 ERA) gets the nod for Chicago.
