Baseball felt, at times, almost secondary because of the wackiness of the night.<\/p>\n
A large thunderstorm barreled through Wrigley Field, causing a nearly one-hour delay before a pitch was even thrown. When the rain cleared, an American flag that covered most of the outfield was unfurled during the national anthem, and the fog slowly crept in.<\/p>\n
The haze grew as Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt hit the first pitch of the game off Cubs starter Shota Imanaga for an opposite-field home run. Visibility lessened as the Cardinals tacked on a third-inning insurance run and, by the sixth inning, clearly began to affect play.<\/p>\n
Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn hit a flyout to Crow-Armstrong, who zigzagged a bit before making a slightly awkward catch for the first out of the frame.<\/p>\n
![\"Cardinals](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/CTC-Z-CUBS-CARDS_fdb90f.jpg\")
Cardinals pitcher Kyle Leahy throws the ball in the dense fog against the Cubs during the sixth inning Saturday, July 4, 2026, at Wrigley Field. (David Banks\/AP)<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was playable and then at some point, at least from our perspective, the upper deck disappeared, the flag in center field disappeared,\u201d Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. \u201cI know that Pete caught in center field, our other fielders had a little bit of a trouble seeing it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cardinals third baseman Jos\u00e9 Ferm\u00edn appeared to raise his hands to signal he couldn\u2019t locate a foul ball that ended up in the upper deck down the third-base line in the bottom of the sixth.<\/p>\n
When Ian Happ made the final out of the frame, the umpires convened and called a delay, a rare stoppage because of the fog-shrouded Wrigley Field.<\/p>\n
The crowd of 38,872 joined in singing John Denver\u2019s \u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d as the delay began. The song has emerged during the World Cup, with U.S. players joining tens of thousands of fans in singing it at the end of matches.<\/p>\n
When play resumed, the weather took a turn.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt didn\u2019t affect anything that happened in the game,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cJust talking to (Happ) during the game, never seen anything like it. It was heavy fog and there was the period of time when they stopped the game that you couldn\u2019t see a fly ball.\u201d<\/p>\n
The fog then cleared, and it looked and felt like a perfect summer night. But the Cubs\u2019 offensive malaise remained.<\/p>\n
They stranded Nico Hoerner at first base after a leadoff single in the seventh. Crow-Armstrong and Alex Bregman reached to start the eighth but were stranded on second and third. The Cubs were 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left eight runners on base in the loss.<\/p>\n
Imanaga recovered a bit after the leadoff home run, but the Cardinals lineup coaxed long at-bats and drove up his pitch count, chasing the left-hander from the game after 4 2\/3 innings.<\/p>\n
It was his second-shortest outing of the season, a bit of a letdown for a pitching staff that has been crushed by the injury bug this season. The Cubs have 13 pitchers on the injured list, and Imanaga is the only starter from their opening-day rotation to have not hit the IL.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s so important about Shota this year is he\u2019s made every start,\u201d Counsell said before the game. \u201cAnd in a season where we\u2019ve had a lot happen, we\u2019ve been able to count on Shota and Colin (Rea), frankly. That\u2019s a good feeling.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, you are kind of looking around to when Shota\u2019s day is coming because it feels stable a little bit and we\u2019ve needed that this year and our team has needed that this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cubs sign Woodford<\/p>\n
The Cubs\u2019 seemingly endless search for pitching continued Saturday as they signed right-hander Jake Woodford to a major-league contract. The team designated right-hander Bryse Wilson for assignment to make room for Woodford on the roster.<\/p>\n
Woodford, 29, posted a 6.94 ERA in 16 games for the Milwaukee Brewers this season before he was designated for assignment on June 5. He stayed in the Brewers\u2019 minor-league system, pitching for Triple-A Nashville before exercising an opt-out clause.<\/p>\n
He has a lifetime 5.25 ERA in 127 games across parts of seven seasons. Woodford\u2019s best year came in 2022 with the Cardinals, when he posted a 2.23 ERA in 27 games.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019re trying to create some availability and make sure that regardless of what happens in a game, that we\u2019re ready for the next game,\u201d Counsell said before Saturday\u2019s contest.<\/p>\n