CHICAGO -- Ian Happ went down swinging on three pitches in the first inning of Monday's doubleheader opener with the Cardinals. St. Louis lefty Kwang Hyun Kim used three inside pitches to make quick work of the Cubs outfielder.

In their next meeting in the 3-1 loss to the Cardinals, Happ attacked an elevated inside fastball, pulling it over the left-field wall and into the bleacher seats for a game-tying home run. That type of adjustment and production is why Happ has earned an everyday job in the Cubs' outfield.

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“You see Ian make a nice adjustment there,” manager David Ross said. “Heater in and get the head out there for the home run. That was nice.”

But it was not enough in Game 1, although Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks did his part by turning in 6 1/3 frames in the seven-inning format. Hendricks was charged with three runs -- one via a solo homer by Dexter Fowler in the third and two more on a seventh-inning double by Brad Miller off reliever Rowan Wick.

The loss was the fourth straight for the Cubs, who are playing five games in three days against the Cardinals due to a postponement of the teams’ Aug. 7-9 series in St. Louis.

The flip side of Happ claiming the regular job in center has been diminished playing time for Albert Almora Jr. Through the first third of this 60-game season, Almora has mostly been used as a late-inning defensive replacement, pinch-hitter or pinch-runner. He entered Monday just 2-for-14 in the batter’s box in 15 games played.

Game 1 was a rare opportunity for both players to be in the lineup -- Almora due to the left-handed Kim starting for the Cardinals. Happ was a late addition -- as Chicago's right fielder -- after Steven Souza Jr. was scratched with a tight right hamstring.

In the third inning, Almora hustled forward and made a lunging grab on a sinking, 108.4-mph line drive off the bat of Brad Miller. Per Statcast, the play had a catch probability of 50 percent, making it a four-star catch. Then, in the fourth, Almora sprinted in and used an all-out forward dive to snare a liner from Tommy Edman.

“The defense was spectacular,” Ross said. “The play he made on Miller -- the first line drive. Most guys give up on that ball. He attacked that hard. The diving play there on the one that we thought for sure from the dugout was falling in.”

“Those were absolutely huge,” Hendricks said. “Especially [since] one of those was a rocket, a bad pitch. So he picked me up on that. The other one, I made a good pitch, and you hate when those fall in. But that's what he does out there. He's so good.”

With the bases loaded in the seventh, Miller’s double was slashed deep into the gap in left-center, where Almora came up just short with another diving attempt. That ball had a 20 percent catch probability, and narrowly eluded Almora’s glove.

“Just out of the reach there,” Ross said. “You see what kind of effort you get out of him on a daily basis. This guy will literally crash into the wall for you. A brick wall.”

On Sunday, Ross praised how Almora has handled the reduction in playing time.

"Al's been as professional as anybody on our team," Ross said. "The guy comes in with a great attitude. He supports his teammates. He's right in the mix on the bench, ready to go."

Back on Aug. 9, Ross called Happ "the real deal" in response to how the switch-hitter has performed in the batter's box this season. He headed into Monday batting .313 (.825 OPS) from the right side and .310 (1.074 OPS) from the left side. His homer off Kim was his fourth of the year, but first off a lefty.

Unfortunately for the Cubs, Happ's solo shot was the only damage done against Kim (3 2/3 innings) and the Cardinals' bullpen.

Chicago had the bases loaded in the first, but Happ's strikeout and a groundout by David Bote squandered that chance. In the third, Kris Bryant (single) and Anthony Rizzo (walk) reached with no outs, but the Cubs could not capitalize on that scoring chance, either.

“The effort’s there,” Ross said. “Guys are having good at-bats. We're getting guys on base. Just need one of those to fall. I think it's just we're going through one of those [stretches], a little bit of a rut.”