Taillon's gem, Morel's clutch homer spoil Mets' no-no bid

NEW YORK -- Right-hander Jameson Taillon had his best outing of the season and found himself in a pitchers’ duel with Mets right-hander Luis Severino. When it was over, both pitchers received a no-decision and the Cubs won the game, 3-1, at Citi Field on Monday night.

The game was tied at 1 in the ninth when Chicago took the lead against Mets closer Edwin Díaz. With a runner on second and two outs, Christopher Morel sent a 3-1 pitch over the left-field wall for a monster homer to give the Cubs their 18th victory of the season.

"I just missed right in the middle. [Catcher Tomás] Nido called a fastball away and I tried to throw it there," Díaz said. "The ball just came back to the middle, and he hit it pretty good."

After the game, Morel thanked his coaches and teammates for helping him stay positive at the plate. Before the game, Morel was in a 7-for-57 [.123] slump in his previous 15 games.

“[The team] instilling that positivity is definitely what helped me be ready mentally for that at-bat,” Morel said through interpreter Fredy Quevedo Jr. “I’m always ready for the fastball regardless of what the count is or situation is. … It was a huge satisfaction, huge relief to be able to do it in front of his teammates and family. It was an incredible moment.”

The Cubs didn't get a hit until the eighth inning, but they weren't alone when it came to late heroics Monday. The Mariners also beat the Braves after being held hitless through the first seven innings, marking the first time two teams on the same day achieved such a feat since at least 1961, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Although he didn’t pick up the victory, Taillon was masterful. He needed just 78 pitches to throw 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball. He allowed four hits, and his only mistake came in the first inning when Brandon Nimmo hit a leadoff homer. Taillon then went on a roll, retiring 22 of the next 26 batters he faced.

Taillon threw his share of sliders, cutters and sinkers in the game because the Mets had a decent amount of right-handed hitters in the lineup.

“I felt I was getting ahead pretty well and I feel once we had them looking maybe out over [the plate], we popped some good sinkers in, which I’m usually careful with," Taillon said. "I don’t like throwing it too much. I felt we used it in a great spot. When I’m at my best, it’s all pitches to all areas, don’t let hitters sit in one one zone -- and I thought we did a good job of it."

Cubs catcher Yan Gomes said Taillon's success on the mound dates back to the second half of last year. After the All-Star break, Taillon bounced back from a slow start and had a 3.70 ERA in 15 games. Through three starts this season, Taillon has allowed just three earned runs in 18 innings.

“He is one of our big horses and we’re excited that he has done well,” Gomes said. “He has been aggressive in the zone. We knew [the Mets] had a dangerous top of the lineup, so we wanted to make sure we were attacking the zone with quality pitches and that’s what he did.”

For Taillon, he was battling a former teammate in Severino. They played together with the Yankees in 2021 and ‘22. The Cubs went hitless against Severino until the eighth inning when Dansby Swanson singled to center field. Chicago scored its first run of the game in the same inning when Michael Busch scored on a forceout by Nick Madrigal. But it was Morel who gave them the runs they needed to win the game.

“[Severino] was so good. He was throwing hard, but, somehow, even his ball had extra life than just the velocity,” Swanson said. “I didn’t think there was a crazy amount of stuff -- just over the middle of the plate. Obviously, [Severino] and Nido worked really great together tonight. It was cool to just stay in it and give us a chance to do what we did in the end."

After the game, it was obvious that Taillon has respect for Severino.

“He hasn’t been healthy for a little while, but I know deep down who he is as a pitcher and what kind of talent he has, how he prepares and puts himself in a position to succeed,” Taillon said about Severino. “It was fun going back and forth there. [There were] quick innings, but I kept telling the guys in the dugout, ‘A lot of game left, still big [at-bats].’ Sure enough, it paid off.”