CHICAGO _Joe Maddon texted Kris Bryant Friday morning with the news: he would be batting leadoff against the Pirates at Wrigley Field.
"He's going to set the tone for the team today," Maddon said.
And that he did. Bryant singled on the first pitch he saw and reached base during his first three trips to the plate, scoring a run in the Cubs' 3-1 victory over the Pirates.
The Cubs won for the 10th time in their last 12 games and improved to a season-best 12 games over .500.
Mike Montgomery delivered another solid outing in replace of the injured Yu Darvish. Montgomery improved to 2-0 with a 1.01 ERA as a starter, compared with his 5.33 ERA from the bullpen. (And compared with Darvish's 4.95 ERA).
Montgomery went six and got help from three Cubs relievers. Catcher Willson Contreras also came to Montgomery's aid, nailing Austin Meadows on an attempted steal during a dicey first inning.
Ian Happ made three sensational catches in left � one charging in, one going back, and another to his right to end the game. He had to slide on all three.
And Jason Heyward continued his hitting surge with two hits, including a laser to left field.
As for Bryant, it was his first time batting leadoff during his 510-game big-league career.
"(I) try to do that now and again with different guys to get them unearthed a little bit," Maddon said. "Too many times players wear their batting average on their sleeve and create their self-worth based on that. Guys like KB are different because they are five- or six-tool guys who can impact the game in other ways. All I want him to do is go out and help us win.
"The big point: Just focus on getting on base. I don't care (whether it's a) walk, base hit up the middle, blooper to right field. Take all that other stuff off your plate; play with the joy of playing. I'll take what happens (as a result)."
