The Chicago Cubs did more than just stage a miraculous comeback against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday.
They completed a sweep, hung around in the Wild Card race and made history in the process.
Chicago trailed Pittsburgh 10-3 through six innings on Wednesday, at which point they scored twice in the seventh and three times in the eighth. In what was suddenly a two-run game, the Cubs blew up for six more runs in the ninth and went on to win 14-10.
The victory came off the back of an 18-8 win on Monday and a 9-5 win on Tuesday.
According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, the 41 runs the Cubs put up against the Pirates are the fourth-most they've scored in a three-game series since 1901.
The franchise record remains at 47 runs, which they set against the Pirates in 2019. The only other times the Cubs have scored over 40 runs in a three-game series came in 1930 against the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Braves, respectively.
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) August 28, 2024most runs in a 3-game series, Cubs since 1901:
2019 vs PIT: 47
1930 vs PHI: 44
1930 vs BSN: 43
This series vs PIT: 41 https://t.co/2odOHxDOPk
Rookie center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong did plenty of damage out of the No. 8 spot in the lineup, making history in his own right, but the Cubs' No. 9 hitters set some records of their own.
On Monday, it was catcher Miguel Amaya, who became the first No. 9 hitter in Cubs history to have four hits and four RBI in a single game. On Wednesday, catcher Christian Bethancourt broke Chicago's single-game record for RBI out of the nine hole with seven, per TSN's StatsCentre.
Bethancourt had an RBI groundout in the second, then a two-run home run in the seventh. A two-RBI double in the eighth and a two-RBI single in the ninth not only brought the Cubs back from the dead, but they also helped the veteran catcher do something no No. 9 hitter in franchise history had done before.
Amaya and six others had previously shared the record with five RBI apiece.
Most single game RBI by a @Cubs #9 hitter in MLB's modern era (1900-):
7- Christian Bethancourt (Wednesday)
5- Claude Passeau (1941)
5- Milt Pappas (1972)
5- Thad Bosley (1985)
5- Jason Marquis (2008)
5- Alfonso Rivas III (2002)
5- Alexander Canario (2023)
5- Miguel Amaya (2024) pic.twitter.com/IiBeqe3Nh9— StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) August 29, 2024
The Cubs are now 68-66, which puts them 5.5 games back of the Atlanta Braves for the third and final NL Wild Card spot. Chicago has Thursday off, but will open up a series against the Washington Nationals on Friday at 6:45 p.m. ET.
