Chicago Cubs designated hitter Cody Bellinger (2) hits a base hit in the third inning of the MLB game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

Chicago Cubs Rally For Incredible and Historic Win Over Division Rivals on Thursday

Originally posted on Fastball on SI | By Brady Farkas | Last updated Aug 2, 2024 9:00 AM ET

The Chicago Cubs rallied to beat the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night, 5-4, at Wrigley Field. The win moved the Cubs to 53-58 while the loss dropped the Cardinals to 56-53. Every loss is detrimental for St. Louis, who is trying to stay in the National League wild card race.

The Cubs rallied to get this win, scoring three runs in a historic ninth inning that saw something happen that has never happened in the last 35 years of baseball history.

Per @OptaSTATS on social media:

Since pitches were first tracked in 1988, the are the only MLB team to have 3 separate 2-strike RBI extra-base hits in the bottom of the 9th in a victory.

They all came off of Ryan Helsley, who hadn't allowed a 2-strike extra-base hit all season before today.

Since pitches were first tracked in 1988, the @Cubs are the only MLB team to have 3 separate 2-strike RBI extra-base hits in the bottom of the 9th in a victory.

They all came off of Ryan Helsley, who hadn't allowed a 2-strike extra-base hit all season before today. pic.twitter.com/10nNchwydC
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) August 2, 2024

That ninth inning featured a solo home run from Cody Bellinger, a double from Dansby Swanson and a walk-off double from Mike Tauchmann.

As the post indicates, doing this off Helsley also represents an incredible feat. Even after giving up the three runs in the ninth, he has a sterling ERA of 2.70.

The Cubs and Cardinals will play again on Friday in a famed Wrigley Field afternoon game. First pitch will come in at 2:20 p.m. ET as Erick Fedde pitches for St. Louis. It will be his first start with the Cardinals after being traded over from the Chicago White Sox at the trade deadline.

He's 7-4 with a 3.11 ERA. Javier Assad gets the ball for the Cubs. He's 5-3 with a 3.23 ERA.

This article first appeared on Fastball on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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