Somewhere, Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer are raising champagne glasses, toasting to their new left-handed pitcher.
The front office looked rather brilliant on Sunday as Jose Quintana performed masterfully in his Cubs debut. His final line: seven innings, three hits, 12 strikeouts and zero walks. Oh, and he didn't allow a run.
Unlike his tenure on the South Side, Quintana was backed up by his offense. The Cubs bats spotted him four early, sending the Twittersphere into a sarcastic frenzy:
After just two innings, the Cubs had given him more support than he's averaged in his career:
The debut was special, but not unheard of. Remember Matt Garza? He put up comparable numbers in his first start with the club:
In Q's last start, which was with the White Sox, he also dominated hitters. He whiffed 10, putting him in an elite group, per ESPN:
We'll see if Quintana helps the champagne flow into October.