The Chicago Cubs offense isn’t reliant on home runs, but long balls were pivotal in an 8-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday.

Dansby Swanson, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki all took Pirates ace Paul Skenes deep in the fifth inning as the Cubs pulled away for an 8-3 victory

Seiya Suzuki fell just a single shy of the cycle while leading the Chicago Cubs to a dominant 9-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates, highlighted by four home runs and a lights-out pitching performance.

The Chicago Cubs steamrolled the Pittsburgh Pirates all week, but MLB fans are more concerned with Shota Imanaga's willingness to teach Paul Skenes a few tricks

Dansby Swanson, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki all took Pirates ace Paul Skenes deep in the fifth inning as the Cubs pulled away for an 8-3 victory on Thursday. Suzuki later added a two-run shot off reliever Kyle Nicolas as Chicago took two of three from the last-place Pirates.

Paul Skenes could tell during his pregame bullpen session on Thursday that he wasn't quite right. The Chicago Cubs then went out and offered tangible proof, taking the Pittsburgh ace deep three times in the fifth inning of what became an 8-3 Pirates loss on Thursday in a performance that was decidedly unSkenes-like,