Alex Bregman takes blame for Cubs' offensive woes after loss - ESPN

CHICAGO — Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman put the blame for his team's offensive woes squarely on himself after going 0-for-5 and making the last out in his team's 2-1 loss in 10 innings to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday night.

«I've been terrible,» Bregman said. «I need to play better. Offensively, it's been awful. I've failed many times in this game. I've struggled. I've started slow before. I've started fast before. When you're struggling, there is only one way forward and that's straight, head-on through it. It comes down to executing in the game.»

Bregman is in the first year of a five-year, $175 million contract he signed with Chicago in the offseason after spurning offers to return to the Boston Red Sox, with whom he produced an OPS of .821 last year while also spending a considerable amount of time on the injured list. The Cubs expected him to produce at the plate and in the clubhouse. He has been accountable for his poor season, but he can't break out of his seasonlong slump after playing for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic in March.

«I haven't executed all year,» Bregman said. «Runners in scoring position, I've been god-awful. I need to be better. If I'm better over the last how many games, we probably win the majority of them.»

The Cubs have not led entering the ninth inning of a home game in a month. If not for two walk-off wins last week, they'd be on a 12-game home losing skid after winning their previous 15 in a row at Wrigley Field. Their offense has been a huge contributor to the woes, led by Bregman, who saw his OPS drop to .669 after Sunday's defeat. He is hitting .178 with runners in scoring position.

«I need to be better with runners on base, plain and simple,» Bregman said. «They brought