NEWSLETTER
CUBS LINEUP — The Cubs already took the toughest game of the series last night, with a nail-biting, kinda-lucky, Nico-fueled, extra-innings win over Merrill Kelly and the Arizona Diamondbacks. Now, they have two chances to win the series before heading back home to face the Miami Marlins.
Kyle Hendricks is on the bump tonight for the Cubs, looking to rebound from a brutal three-game start to his season. And the Diamondbacks are countering with their 26-year-old, soft-tossing southpaw Tommy Henry. Here’s a look at the Cubs lineup for Game 2 at Chase Field (our final late-late game until June 24!).
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Nico Hoerner, 2B
- Dansby Swanson, SS
- Cody Bellinger, CF
- Chris Morel, 3B
- Garrett Cooper, DH
- Michael Busch, 1B
- Ian Happ, LF
- Miguel Amaya, C
- Alexander Canario, RF
Although Tommy Henry actually has reverse splits for his career (meaning that fellow lefties have actually hit him better than righties), Craig Counsell is running with his normal “vs LHP” Cubs lineup tonight. And I like the timing.
With almost everyone (that’s healthy) in the Cubs lineup scuffling at the moment, this group was due for a little shake up. And this lineup gets last night’s hero, Nico Hoerner, up top while letting Ian Happ try to shake off his slump lower in the order.
Of course, on the flip side, with Seiya Suzuki out, and Michael Busch presumably better against righties than lefties, this version of the Cubs lineup sure lacks its usual potency. We’ll just have to hope Garrett Cooper (tonight’s DH) can continue his early-season, small-sample success. This is why he’s here, after all.
But I’ve accidentally buried the lede. The guy who came up for Seiya Suzuki and is starting in right field tonight, Alexander Canario, could provide a nice spark off the bench. Ideally, he won’t be limited to just games against lefties, but we’ll cross the bridge when we get to it.
Canario had a nice start to his season in Triple-A overall (123 wRC+), but was especially hot over his last four games, with seven hits including a double and a homer, plus a walk. I don’t know what Canario’s future holds, but if he can start hitting right away, he’ll probably get a good run in right field while Seiya Suzuki is out.
And even in Hoyer’s optimistic timeline, that will be over a month.
Arizona Diamondbacks Lineup:
- Ketel Marte, 2B
- Corbin Carroll, CF
- Lourdes Gurriel, LF
- Christian Walker, 1B
- Joc Pederson, DH
- Eugenio Suarez, 3B
- Gabriel Moreno, C
- Jake McCarthy, RF
- Blaze Alexander, SS
Pitching Matchup:
Chicago Cubs: Kyle Hendricks, RHP
Kyle Hendricks has had a brutal start to his season so far, but as we’ve discussed, he’s faced some tough teams, still has his velocity, and it’s still a really small sample.
Here’s a quick look back at those numbers, in case you already mentally blocked out the trauma.
@TEX: 3.2 IP, 9H, 5ER, 2BB, 2K
vsLAD: 4.0 IP, 8H, 5ER, 2BB, 4K
@SDP: 5.0 IP, 9H, 7ER, 0BB, 2K
Perhaps against a lesser lineup (D-Backs are weak vs RHP) and a little more luck, he’ll bounce back tonight. If he doesn’t, the Cubs might have a tough decision on their hands, given how good Ben Brown looked last night.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Tommy Henry, LHP
Tommy Henry made his big league debut in 2022 (5.36 ERA over 9 starts), but didn’t settle in until last season: 4.15 ERA over 16 starts and one relief appearance. So far this year, he’s made three starts (two against the Rockies), allowing a combined 9 earned runs in 14.0 IP. His best start, surprisngly, came against the Braves: 5.0 IP, 4H, 2ER, 2BB, 5K. Henry doesn’t strike out a ton of guys, he walks more than his fair share, and the contact against him has been pretty loud. If I didn’t know better than to jinx it, I’d say this is the juiciest matchup for the Cubs lineup in a while! But I’d never say that.
Broadcast Info:
Chicago Cubs (10-6) at Arizona Diamondbacks (8-9) at 8:40 pm CT – Marquee Sports Network, 670 The Score
