Michael Busch Is Finally Waking Up and the Cubs Just Won Their 9th Straight

Here's what the Chicago Cubs pulled off on Thursday afternoon at Wrigley Field: beat one of baseball's best pitchers, survive multiple blown leads, win in extra innings, and extend their winning streak to nine games. All in a day game after a night game. All in front of 31,057 fans on a beautiful, sunny afternoon. The Cubs outlasted the Phillies 8-7 in 10 innings, sending Philadelphia to their ninth straight loss while Chicago keeps rolling.

But the real story here is Michael Busch finally breaking out of his early-season funk, and the Cubs' faith in him paying off in a massive way.

Busch Crushes Sánchez When It Mattered Most

Busch came into this series hitting just .164 with a .454 OPS. Not good. The kind of numbers that make you wonder if a guy's lost it. Then Wednesday night, he hit a home run. Thursday, he did it again. This time, it was a three-run shot in the third inning off Phillies ace and 2025 NL Cy Young runner-up Cristopher Sánchez. A 421-foot blast to straightaway center field.

Here's what makes this huge: Sánchez had been absolutely dominant against lefties this season, allowing just a .167 average and a .385 OPS. The man doesn't give up home runs to lefties. Busch is a lefty. And he took him deep. It was the first homer Sánchez has allowed to a left-handed hitter all season. In six years in the big leagues, only five lefties have gone yard off Sánchez. Only two since the 2025 season started. Busch is one of them now.

The Cubs got 11 hits and five runs in the first four innings. Busch added another RBI on a groundout in the sixth. For the entire four-game series against Philadelphia, he had a hit in all four games and drove in seven runs total.

Resilience, Toughness, and 9 in a Row

Dansby Swanson delivered the walk-off blow, a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 10th that won it. Ian Happ, who homered in the fourth and scored the winning run, put it perfectly: "A lot of things have to go right to win nine in a row." The Cubs are doing it.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell trusted Busch through the early struggles. "The talent's gonna show itself," Counsell said after watching Busch take down one of the league's toughest pitchers. And it did, at exactly the right moment.

Chicago improves to 16-9 and heads out West to face the Dodgers and Padres, two teams that entered Thursday tied atop the NL West. This team is peaking at the right time.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.