The Cubs always have a difficult decision to make when it comes to filling out their starting lineup -- should they play Chris Coglhan in left? Or should they go with Jorge Soler? Or hey, how about working Javier Baez into the lineup?
For Friday night's NLDS Game 1, Joe Maddon settled on starting Baez at second base. That decision paid off in a big way.
Baez came to the plate in the ninth inning in a scoreless game and worked a 2-2 count. He then got a misplaced fastball -- Johnny Cueto wanted to work it to the outside edge, but the baseball didn't comply -- and, well, here's what happened next:
Baez's blast gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead, which turned out to be enough. The craziest part about the whole thing? Bill Murray was rooting him on -- yeah, Bill freaking Murray. Here's a screen grab from just before the home run:
Oh, and the other craziest part of about the whole thing? Baez came to the plate thinking bunt. Really:
Javier Baez says he actually considered bunting when he came to the plate, but Gillaspie was playing in, so he went ahead and homered. #Cubs
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) October 8, 2016
So there you have it, everyone. Never bunt; hit dingers instead.
