Kansas City Royals at Chicago Cubs

In a tightly contested game at Sloan Park, the Chicago Cubs edged the Kansas City Royals 9-8, with late-game officiating precision playing a pivotal role. The story of this game’s ABS review centered around the critical impact of pitch-call challenges, especially in the bottom of the ninth inning where three of the five total challenges occurred.

Throughout the game, five challenges were made, with three ultimately overturned, reflecting a generally effective use of the review process. The Cubs led in successful challenges, overturning two out of three attempts, while the Royals had one out of two overturned. These reviews significantly influenced pitch counts and rhythm, notably in high-pressure moments. In the ninth, Cubs hitters Matt Halbach and Justin Dean both benefited from overturned ball calls that altered their counts to more favorable positions, directly affecting their plate approaches and momentum against a narrow 8-9 score. Earlier, in the seventh inning, Royals hitter Lane Thomas also saw a ball call turned into a strike, shifting his count and momentarily changing the offensive dynamics with the game hanging at 6-5.