NEWSLETTER
The Cubs couldn’t quite make it happen in Pittsburgh, leaving worse off then when they arrived (insert Pittsburgh joke). And now it’s further east to Philadelphia, with a presumptive stop in Hershey for some sweets.
Oh, and something something Ryne Sandberg.
We’re Going Streaking
The Cubs lost three of four to the Pirates, knocking them back down among the dregs of the league. But for the Rays, the Cubs would once again have the worst record in the league.
The Phillies aren’t much better – they lost 8 of 9 (before sweeping the Padres) to fall to just two games better than the Cubs. That’s right: if the Phillies let the Cubs sweep ’em, they’ll be the proud holders of a $160 million worst record in the NL.
Game Times and Broadcasts
Expected Starters and Lineups
These lineups are likely to be pretty close to what actually gets fielded, but you’ll want to check each day’s Pre-Gamin’ post for the actual lineup.
Cubs
Starters: Jake Arrieta (2.50 ERA, 2.58 FIP; 2.69 K/BB), Edwin Jackson (4.70 ERA, 3.54 FIP; 2.35 K/BB), Travis Wood (4.95 ERA, 4.09 FIP; 2.25 K/BB)
Lineup (some guesswork here):
- Junior Lake, LF
- Luis Valbuena, 3B
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Starlin Castro, SS
- Nate Schierholtz, RF
- Ryan Sweeney, CF
- John Baker, C
- Darwin Barney, 2B
- Pitcher
Phillies
Starters: Roberto Hernandez (4.35 ERA, 4.71 FIP; 1.53 K/BB), David Buchanan (6.08 ERA, 4.56 FIP; 4.00 K/BB), A.J. Burnett (4.24 ERA, 4.36 FIP; 1.63 K/BB)
Lineup:
- Ben Revere, CF
- Jimmy Rollins, SS
- Chase Utley, 2B
- Ryan Howard, 1B
- Marlon Byrd, RF
- Carlos Ruiz, C
- Domonic Brown, LF
- Reid Brignac, 3B
- Pitcher
Hot or Not and Whom to Watch
The Cubs don’t have a lot of hot streaks going on right now outside of Luis Valbuena.
At least Jake Arrieta continues to look good, and maybe Edwin Jackson will put together a dominant start because I feel like it.
Ryan Sweeney could make his return to the big league team in this series, after a hamstring injury cost him more than a month of action.
After a surprisingly warm April, Ryan Howard is back to doing Ryan Howard things: .225/.288/.373. No worries, Phillies – Howard is under contract for just two more years and $60 million.
In all, though, the Phillies still have some productive hitters – all of Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Carlos Ruiz, and Marlin Byrd sport wRC+’s over 110. It’s just that, well, they’re also all over 35.
Domonic Brown sure hasn’t had much success outside of that one awesome month last year. Since the start of July 2013, Brown is hitting just .239/.294/.360 with a .286 wOBA and a 78 wRC+.
