NEWSLETTER
The Chicago Cubs are back at it tonight with a fresh series against the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field. Both teams have a lefty on the mound, with Justin Steele hosting Blake Snell. Tonight (and tomorrow) feel like good matchups for the Cubs, who could definitely stand to get some momentum back on their side after a disappointing series loss to the Dodgers. So let’s hope this Cubs lineup has what it takes to get back in the win column.
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Nico Hoerner, 2B
- Dansby Swanson, SS
- Ian Happ, LF
- Seiya Suzuki, RF
- Patrick Wisdom, 3B
- Eric Hosmer, DH
- Trey Mancini, 1B
- Yan Gomes, C
- Nelson Velázquez, CF
In case you missed the news, Cody Bellinger just hit the paternity list (we knew that was coming), which means he’s out of the Cubs lineup for the time being. In his place, the Cubs recalled – and are starting – outfielder Nelson Velázquez. And, hey, with a lefty on the mound tonight, it wasn’t a half-bad time for this swap.
Velázquez is a fan favorite and already had the biggest moment of the Cubs entire season. You should expect to see plenty of him in center field until Bellinger returns.
Also returning to the Cubs lineup tonight is Ian Happ, who got a day off ahead of the off-day for some extra rest. It’ll be nice to have him back. It’s also nice to have Yan Gomes in the lineup. He’s been a league average bat this season (great for a catcher) and has absolutely crushed left-handed pitching: .286/.318/.571 (138 wRC+). He’s in there on most days, but this just feels like an especially good matchup.
San Diego Padres Lineup:
- Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
- Juan Soto, LF
- Manny Machado, 3B
- Xander Bogaerts, SS
- Jake Cronenworth, 1B
- Ha-Seong Kim, 2B
- Matt Carpenter, DH
- Austin Nola, C
- Trent Grisham, CF
Pitching Matchup:
Chicago Cubs: Justin Steele, LHP
Justin Steele is the last Cubs starting pitcher standing without at least one clunker on his 2023 resume. Like Marcus Stroman before him, Steele has rattled off four straight quality starts, totaling 25.0 IP, 14H, 4ER, 8BB, and 24Ks. It’s been a dream start for him, as he continues to evolve as a starting pitcher.
San Diego Padres: Blake Snell, LHP
Blake Snell had a slow start to his career in San Diego, delivering a 4.20 ERA (4.82 xERA) in his first season with the Padres. But he bounced back last season, earning a 3.38 ERA (with even better peripherals) over 24 starts and 128.0 IP. To the Cubs luck, he’s had a rough go of it again here in 2023, with two awful starts against the Rockies and Braves to start the year (8.0 IP, 7ER, 5BB, 11K) and two more better, but still bad starts against the Mets and Braves thereafter (10.0 IP, 5ER, 8BB, 10K). As you can see, he’s been pretty wild, walking 13 batters through 18.0 IP and has allowed too many homers (4 in four games). But he’s also been striking out plenty of batters.
That said, his line drive rate is among the highest in baseball and the Cubs do like hitting line drives, especially Nico Hoerner.
Broadcast Info:
Chicago Cubs (12-9) vs San Diego Padres (12-12) at 6:40 pm CT on Marquee Sports Network, MLBN, 670 The Score
