Here it is, the night you’ve all been waiting for … Brett bartending at the Nisei Lounge to raise money for the BNBlogathon (A.K.A. the Make-A-Wish! Foundation)!
Oh, and the finale of the North Side/South Side Crosstown Cup will be going on in the background. So come in and order complicated drinks and beers that Brett has never heard of, so as to make the night as difficult for him (and hilarious for you) as possible.
Luis and I will also be in attendance (I’ll be the guy wearing a giant poop emoji on my shirt), and, of course, it’s all in the name of charity, so seriously, please stop by.
Mike Pelfrey is starting for the White Sox tonight and, like James Shields before him, he’s been killed by lefties this season (.368 wOBA, 6.53 FIP). So, the Cubs have filled the lineup with four lefties and a switch-hitter to attack Pelfrey’s weakness. Beyond that, Willson Contreras returns to the lineup after a rest last night and Javy Baez (whom the Cubs are sticking with, for better or worse) gets one more break before rejoining the starting lineup.
Jon Lester is on the bump for the CUbs, but be warned, the Sox 105 wRC+ against southpaws this season is the 5th best mark in MLB. And Jose Abreu’s individual 181 wRC+ against lefties is particularly intimidating – we’ll have to see if Lester attacks him cautiously.
Alright, let’s go Cubs, and I’ll see you tonight!
Game Info
Chicago Cubs (53-47) at Chicago White Sox (39-59) – 7:10 CT on CSN-C, 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: Jon Lester (L): 3.95 ERA, 3.87 FIP, 3.54 xFIP; 3.32 K/BB
versus
White Sox: Mike Pelfrey (R): 4.46 ERA, 5.32 FIP, 5.39 xFIP; 1.33 K/BB
Chicago White Sox:
- Tim Anderson, SS
- Melky Cabrera, LF
- Jose Abreu, 1B
- Matt Davidson, 3B
- Tyler Saladino, DH
- Yoan Moncada, 2B
- Willy Garcia, RF
- Kevan Smith, C
- Adam Engel, CF
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Ben Zobrist, 2B
- Kris Bryant, 3B
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Willson Contreras, C
- Kyle Schwarber, DH
- Jason Heyward, RF
- Jon Jay, LF
- Addison Russell, SS
- Albert Almora Jr., CF