Cubs accomplish a franchise first at Yankee Stadium

The Cubs' elusive win at Yankee Stadium was a long time coming, even if they had few chances to earn it. Entering play Friday, the Cubs had played only 12 games at Yankee Stadium as a franchise, dropping all of them. Before the introduction of interleague play, the Cubs lost a pair of matchups in the 1932 and 1938 World Series. Since then, the Yankees bested the Cubs in eight straight meetings in 2005, 2014, and 2022. 

On Friday, the Cubs used a strong pitching effort from Jameson Taillon and some timely hitting to make history. Taillon earned the win on the mound, keeping the Yankees scoreless through eight innings while posting four strikeouts. Meanwhile, former MVP Cody Bellinger continued his resurgence with the Cubs, finishing 2-of-3 with a home run in the victory.

With the win, the Cubs improved to 41-46. Trying to stay alive in the National League playoff race, the Cubs occupy third in the NL Central (41-46), trailing the first-place Cincinnati Reds (49-39) by 7.5 games. 

On the other side of things, the Yankees' struggles continue. Losers of three in a row, the Yankees are fourth in the American League East at 48-41 and are eight games back of the Tampa Bay Rays (57-34), who own the best record in the AL.