The Battle for the Central at the Deadline: Cubs at Cardinals, July 30-August 1, 2019

Well isn’t this a big series?

MLB is knocking at the door of the (only) trade deadline as the Cubs and Cardinals get set to square off in St. Louis with the division up for grabs. And as if that weren’t enough, the Brewers are just 1.0 game out of first with a weekend series against the Cubs coming up.

If the worst case scenario happens, this is what the top of the NL Central standings could look like for the start of the Brewers series:

Worst-Case Scenario:

1. Cardinals: 59-49
2. Brewers: 59-51 (1.0 GB)
3. Cubs: 56-52 (3.0 GB)

I don’t know why I did that. I think I thought it was going to make me feel better. It … did not. Maybe the best-case scenario will do the trick.

Best-Case Scenario: 

1. Cubs: 59-49
2. Cardinals: 56-52 (3.0 GB)
3. Brewers: 56-54 (4.0 GB)

Ah … can’t you just imagine how relaxed your life would be if the Cubs and A’s swept the Cardinals and Brewers heading into this weekend? I never read “The Secret,” but maybe it’s time. Go Cubs.

Wow. I made it through that entire intro without saying St. Louis Is Boring. Oops.

We’re Going Streaking

The Chicago Cubs (56-49) probably could have swept that series in Milwaukee, twice carrying (ultimately blown) late leads, but it wasn’t to be. Now, they are exactly tied for first in the NL Central with the Cardinals with the Brewers just 1.0 game back.

The St. Louis Cardinals (56-49) have won 7 of their past 10 games and are 12-5 in the second half of the season. They did, however, just drop two of three to the Astros (and were nearly swept). Maybe this princess is turning back into a pumpkin or … how does that go?

Game Times and Broadcasts Info

Tuesday, July 30th at 7:15 CT on NBCSCH, MLBN, 670 The Score

Wednesday, July 31st at 7:15 CT on WGN, ESPN, 670 The Score

Thursday, August 1st at 6:15 CT on NBCSCH, MLBN, 670 The Score

Pitching Matchups

Game 1: Yu Darvish (R) v. Adam Wainwright (R)
Game 2: Kyle Hendricks (R) v. Miles Mikolas (R)
Game 3: Jon Lester (L) v. Jack Flaherty (R)

Chicago Cubs

C – Willson Contreras

1B – Anthony Rizzo

2B – Robel Garcia(?)

3B – Kris Bryant

SS – Javy Baez

LF – Kyle Schwarber

CF – Ian Happ(?)

RF – Jason Heyward

Bench: Albert Almora Jr., David Bote, Victor Caratini, Martin Maldonado
Unavailable: Xavier Cedeno, Daniel Descalso, Cole Hamels, Brandon Morrow, Allen Webster, Ben Zobrist

St. Louis Cardinals

C – Matt Carpenter

1B – Paul Goldschmidt

2B – Kolten Wong

3B – Tommy Edman

SS – Paul DeJong

LF – Tyler O’Neill

CF – Dexter Fowler

RF – Jose Martinez

Unavailable: Matt Carpenter, Jedd Gyorko, Yadier Molina, Brett Cecil, Jordan Hicks

Keep An Eye Out For …

Cubs Pitcher: Yu Darvish hasn’t been great this season, but he has given the bullpen some legitimate rest.

They haven't actually all been good starts, but Darvish has gone 6.0+ innings in 10 of his last 12 starts with 77Ks.

He's also allowed just a tiny 28.4% hard-hit rate during that stretch – second best in MLB (behind only Stephen Strasburg)!

— Michael Cerami (@Michael_Cerami) July 30, 2019

So you can just about pencil him in for an inning and two-third tonight.

Cubs Player: Anthony Rizzo has been scorching hot since the All-Star break, with a .352/.429/.556 (157 wRC+) slash line. Let’s hope he keeps that going this weekend in St. Louis.

Cardinals Pitcher: Jack Flaherty will face the Cubs on Sunday and he has been HOT in the second-half of the season: 3 starts, 17.1 IP, 3ER, 12H, 6BB, 24Ks. That’s a 1.56 ERA, 2.42 FIP.

Cardinals Player: Paul Goldschmidt has a seven-game hitting streak brewing and, until yesterday, a six-game homer-streak. Yeah. His season-numbers aren’t too impressive, but he’s been as hot as it gets here lately. Avoid him.