I’ll spare you the cliches about a fresh start and a big series and a turning point and all that stuff. If the Cubs win two of three in this series, we’ll say that stuff. If they lose the series or, God forbid, are swept, we’ll search for reasons why it totally wasn’t all that important.
It’s the way a fan’s mind works.
Today’s series opener pits John Lackey nominally against the Cardinals, but he will at least be pit as much against his own penchant for giving up too much hard contact in the air. And if the weather is as warm and windy as it projects to be, today could be all the more adventurous. Here’s hoping Lackey has his good stuff working.
On the other side, Lance Lynn will face a lefty-heavy Cubs lineup, which has given him fits this year. He’s not an extreme fly ball pitcher or anything, but he’s also not a huge groundball guy, either. The Cubs should have a chance to get some up there.
Game Info
St. Louis Cardinals (26-25) at Chicago Cubs (25-27) – 1:20 CT on CSN-C, MLB-N (out-of-market only), 670 The Score
Game Thread and Series Preview
Your game thread is down in the comments, so let’s have some good, clean (safe-for-work) fun today.
Starting Pitchers
Cubs: John Lackey (R): 5.18 ERA, 5.04 FIP, 3.95 xFIP; 3.16 K/BB
versus
Cardinals: Lance Lynn (R): 2.93 ERA, 4.73 FIP, 4.24 xFIP; 2.65 K/BB
St. Louis Cardinals:
- Dexter Fowler, CF
- Matt Carpenter, 1B
- Stephen Piscotty, RF
- Yadier Molina, C
- Jhonny Peralta, 3B
- Aledmys Diaz, SS
- Paul DeJong, 2B
- Magneuris Sierra, LF
- Lance Lynn, P
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Ian Happ, CF
- Kris Bryant, 3B
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Ben Zobrist, 2B
- Jason Heyward, RF
- Miguel Montero, C
- Kyle Schwarber, LF
- Addison Russell, SS
- John Lackey, P