5 takeaways from the Chicago Cubs’ 5-3 exhibition loss to the White Sox, including Yu Darvish’s struggles with the split-finger fastball and Nico Hoerner playing center field

Here are five takeaways from the Chicago Cubs’ 5-3 exhibition loss to the White Sox on Monday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.

1. Yu Darvish is struggling with the command of his split-finger pitch.

Yu Darvish, who will face the Brewers on Sunday, allowed five consecutive hits to start the first inning, capped by a grand slam by Eloy Jimenez.

The inning was stopped after James McCann’s two-out single, ending a 29-pitch first for Darvish.

Cubs manager David Ross said Darvish struggled with the release point of his split-finger fastball.

“We talked a little bit,” Ross said. “He knew he just couldn’t get out in front of it and reach on that split-finger.”

Darvish made some adjustments and retired eight of the next 10 batters but was pulled after allowing an infield hit to Tim Anderson in the fifth to cap a 67-pitch outing.

The Cubs also made some interesting in-game adjustments, as Nico Hoerner started at second base, moved to shortstop in the seventh and caught the final out of the eighth in center field.

Hoerner played the final game of the 2019 season in center and made two putouts.

“There’s no telling some days if we might lose a guy for an extended period or even just a day,” Ross said. “We’ve got to be prepared for anything this season. We’ve got a lot of flexibility in this roster and we’ve got to take advantage of it, especially in a season like this.”

2. The trip to the South Side was smooth.

David Ross was extremely pleased that the Cubs’ visit to Guaranteed Rate Field went smoothly in accordance with COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

“The people here were very ready, and getting in here was smooth,” Ross said. “The security out front was easy.”

The Cubs had two locker rooms to enhance social distancing.

3. The future is now for the Cubs bullpen.

Spring training performances won’t carry the same weight as how relievers are faring this summer leading up to Thursday morning’s deadline for finalizing 30-man rosters.

“We’re going to need guys to be ready right out of the gate,” pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said. “March was important, but I would argue that right now what we’re seeing, what we feel is going to give us the best chance of winning right out of the gates, we have to be aggressive with that approach.”

Ryan Tepera struck out two in a scoreless sixth with the help of a sharp slider.

4. Kyle Schwarber and Jason Heyward welcomed a test vs. a left-hander.

David Ross said Kyle Schwarber and Jason Heyward accepted the option of facing Sox starter Dallas Keuchel, who limited left-handed batters to a .189 batting average last season.

Neither player had the opportunity to face lefties during summer training, so Ross thought it was important for them to see a left-hander before the season starts.

Schwarber ripped a single to center and grounded to first in his two at-bats against Keuchel. Heyward popped to short and struck out.

“To watch (Schwarber) take that game plan out there to execute, get a pitch to drive and get a good swing on it was very encouraging,” Ross said.

5. Nico Hoerner is making small adjustments.

Nico Hoerner admits he misses the noise of the crowd, especially when he walks out of the tunnel for pregame stretching.

“Usually that’s kind of like the ‘OK, now we’re playing’ kind of energy, and then we are running out on the field to start the game,” Hoerner said. “But I will say the (piped-in) crowd noise has actually been pleasant. I’ll never say it’s perfect, but it’s definitely better than complete silence.”

Hoerner, who’s only two years removed from finishing his amateur career at Stanford, likened the 60-game season to a college schedule.

“And this three-week buildup is exactly what we do in college with intrasquad (games), so I was kind of laughing to my dad about that,” Hoerner said. “It feels pretty familiar, and there’s no one in the stands, just like college baseball.”

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