CHICAGO _ Cubs manager Joe Maddon remains immune to suggestions regarding his daily lineup and his preference for resting players.
"The difference with our group regarding constructing a lineup daily is a lot of teams may have bench players who they really don't want to play," Maddon said. "We have bench players who (we) really want to play. That's probably the difference. It's up to me to see that none of these guys sits too long, and then you try to find that best moment to inject them into the game."
Faced with the task of trying to solve formidable Johnny Cueto, Maddon re-inserted Kyle Schwarber into the lineup after a night of rest and was rewarded when Schwarber smacked a home run that cleared the right-field bleachers in the first inning to spark the Cubs to a 4-1 victory over the Giants at damp Wrigley Field.
Schwarber, Jason Heyward and Anthony Rizzo each slugged home runs off Cueto, whom Maddon openly didn't want to face if the Cubs and Giants were to play a fifth and deciding game in the 2016 National League Division Series.
"I'm happy we're seeing him in May as opposed to October," Maddon said before the game.
Jon Lester, who would have started that NLDS finale, outpitched Cueto Tuesday night when he limited a perky Giants offense to one hit through the first four innings and pitched his first complete game since Sept. 1, also against the Giants.
Schwarber's homer, coupled with Lester striking out the side in the first, provided a calming effect after Maddon elected to sit Jon Jay (13-for-38 lifetime against Cueto) and Javier Baez, who usually starts at second base when Lester pitches.
Maddon noted that much of Jay's success against Cueto occurred earlier in his career and that he didn't want to sit the hot-hitting Zobrist just so Baez could start.
"There's an argument they could be made for starting another group," Maddon said. "That's the beauty of what we have going. (Making out the lineup is) the most difficult thing I have to do daily."
Meanwhile, Heyward has hit safely in all three games since returning from a right index finger sprain. His line-drive homer barely cleared the wall in right.
Although Rizzo has yet to produce one of his patented hot streaks, his power is returning gradually as he hit his second homer in three games and has hit three on this homestand that concludes Thursday.
For the second consecutive game, the Cubs showed a marked defensive improvement. Ian Happ returned to the lineup and made a sliding catch in center field to rob Brandon Belt of a hit to start the seventh.
The most timely defensive contribution, however, came from catcher Willson Contreras in the fifth after three hits brought Gorkys Hernandez to the plate representing the tying run.
Contreras threw a strike to nail Eduardo Nunez on a steal attempt for the second out, and then Lester struck out Hernandez with Brandon Crawford at third to thwart the rally.
