Chicago Cubs at Cleveland Guardians

Edward Cabrera bounced off the mound in the fifth inning on Sunday afternoon, pounding his glove and shouting after striking out Gabriel Arias. In that moment, the Cubs' starter had preserved his no-hitter, continuing his strong opening statement as the newest member of Chicago’s rotation. Cabrera did not factor into the final decision, but his effort set the tone for a 1-0 victory over the Guardians in Game 1 of Sunday’s doubleheader at Progressive Field. On a difficult afternoon to generate offense for both clubs, Cabrera locked horns with Cleveland’s Slade Cecconi and helped the North Siders to a combined one-hit shutout. That set the Cubs up to be able to walk away with a split of the twin bill, following a 6-5 loss in the nightcap. “Everyone has seen this guy pitch,” Cubs catcher Miguel Amaya said of Cabrera. “The season that he had last year was very solid. Bringing that to this team, it’s pretty helpful for us. Like he’s said before, he feels like he’s the best when he’s up there. And that’s how he looks.” After spinning six scoreless innings in his Cubs debut on Monday, Cabrera followed with another solid performance against the Guardians. The big right-hander worked into the sixth inning, limiting Cleveland’s lineup to one hit and sidestepping the potential harm of five walks issued. Through two outings, Cabrera has allowed just two hits to the 41 batters he has faced, striking out nine over 11 2/3 innings in that span. “I want to thank God for the two outings that I’ve had,” Cabrera said via team interpreter Fredy Quevedo Jr. “That’s all I have to say.” Lefty Shota Imanaga, who limited Cleveland to one run in five-plus innings in Game 2, has been impressed by Cabrera so far. “As a starter, you want to keep the team in the game,” Imanaga said via his interpreter, Edwin Stanberry. “He’s able to dominate, and I think there’s a lot to learn from him. I want to be able to do what he’s doing and dominate the hitters.” The Guardians’ lone breakthrough against Cabrera came in the sixth inning, when CJ Kayfus led off by pulling a Cabrera curveball high over right field. Cubs right fielder Michael Conforto initially took a couple steps in before sprinting back, as a strong wind helped carry the ball to the warning track for a leadoff double. That wound up being the only hit by Cleveland against Cabrera and relievers Caleb Thielbar, Hoby Milner and Daniel Palencia. It marked the 25th one-hit shutout in a 1-0 win for the Cubs on record, and the first since M