NEWSLETTER
All right! Last night was quite the rebound for the Cubs. Let’s see if they can keep it going tonight.
Jon Lester takes the ball for Chicago, while pitching to David Ross, as usual. It’s a nice matchup for the Cubs, then, because the lefty starter for Cincinnati, John Lamb, has been a bit worse against righties this season (he’s actually had a reverse split for his short big league career, though).
Willson Contreras is also getting yet another start in left field and has essentially become to the 2016 Chicago Cubs what Kyle Schwarber was supposed to be (and sort of was, last year, as well). Given how well his bat has played, it’s going to be hard to keep him out of the lineup. That is, until, Jorge Soler and Dexter Fowler return. At that point, there may be fewer starts available in the outfield – although, perhaps more will come elsewhere.
Kris Bryant may have had the game-of-the-day yesterday, but Reds first baseman Joey Votto was no slouch himself. After hitting two homers and taking a walk (a very Votto-esq performance), Votto raised his wOBA by 10 points (now at .352) and his wRC+ by 7 (now at 118), despite having more than 300 plate appearances on the season. In June, he’s hitting .325/.471/.538 with four home runs and a walk rate over 20%. He remains a very scary part of that Reds lineup.
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Game Info
Chicago Cubs (49-26) at Cincinnati Reds (29-48), 6:10 CT on CSN, 670 The Score.
Game Thread and Series Preview
Your game thread is down there in the comments, so have fun. But keep it “safe for work” type fun, all right?
The Series Preview lives here. The Lineup Discussion lives here.
Starting Pitchers
Cubs: Jon Lester (L): 2.10 ERA, 3.20 FIP, 3.29 xFIP; 4.30 K/BB
versus
Reds: John Lamb (L): 4.78 ERA, 5.24 FIP, 5.07 xFIP; 1.42 K/BB
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Cincinnati Reds Lineup:
1. Zack Cozart, SS
2. Joey Votto, 1B
3. Brandon Phillips, 2B
4. Jay Bruce, RF
5. Adam Duvall, LF
6. Eugenio Suarez, 3B
7. Billy Hamilton, CF
8. Ramon Cabrera, C
9. John Lamb, P
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
1. Ben Zobrist, 2B
2. Jason Heyward, RF
3. Kris Bryant, 3B
4. Anthony Rizzo, 1B
5. Willson Contreras, LF
6. Javy Baez, SS
7. Matt Szczur, CF
8. David Ross, C
9. Jon Lester, P
