NEWSLETTER
After winning three straight against the Blue Jays and enjoying the off-day, Monday, the Cubs got off to great start in Cincinnati, winning the first of three games in convincing fashion (13-9).
The win also knocked their record up to ten games over .500 for the first time all season. As you can probably guess, then, another win tonight would set a new season high. Hopefully, they get it done and win yet another series.
Standing in their way is right-hander Asher Wojciechowski (Gesundheit), whose eye-popping lefty/right splits (combined with Kris Bryant’s unavailability) forced Joe Maddon to sneak just one righty into the lineup:
Versus Lefties: .312/.373/.615 (.409 wOBA)
Versus Righties: .252/.293/.515 (.337 wOBA)
On top of that, the Cubs crushed Wojciechowski (Gesundheit) the last time they faced him: 3.2 IP, 10H, 7ER, 5Ks. And he followed up that performance with a 2.0 inning, 2 earned run appearance out of the pen.
During that game, Jon Jay, Tommy La Stella, and Anthony Rizzo combined to go 9-15 with a double, a triple, and a homer. Javy Baez also grabbed two hits in that one, including a homer, and Kyle Schwarber reached base four times via a walk, a hit, and two HBPs (though one of those was ball four anyway). Needless to say, the offense was ALIVE the last time they met this pitcher.
Starting for the Cubs is Mike Montgomery, who’s taking the place of the injured Jon Lester. Montgomery took over for Lester when came out of his last start with a sore shoulder (coincidentally against these very Reds last week). After entering the game, Montgomery tossed 4.1 scoreless innings of relief, allowing three hits and one walk (against 4 strikeouts) in the process.
We recently discussed Montgomery’s past and potential future as a starter right here at Bleacher Nation, so be sure to check that out for more.
Overall, the Cubs seem like they’re in a good position to take the series.
Game Info
Chicago Cubs (67-57) at Cincinnati Reds (53-73) – 6:10 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: Mike Montgomery (L): 3.64 ERA, 4.23 FIP, 4.44 xFIP; 1.71 K/BB
versus
Reds: AsherWojciechowski (R): 5.36 ERA, 4.90 FIP, 4.52 xFIP; 5.89 K/BB
Cincinnati Reds:
- Billy Hamilton, CF
- Zack Cozart, SS
- Joey Votto, 1B
- Adam Duvall, LF
- Eugenio Suarez, 3B
- Scott Schebler, RF
- Jose Peraza, 2B
- Stuart Turner, C
- Asher WojaImgettingsickoftypinghisname, P
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Jon Jay, CF
- Kyle Schwarber, LF
- Ben Zobrist, 2B
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Alex Avila, C
- Tommy La Stella, 3B
- Jason Heyward, RF
- Javy Baez, SS
- Mike Montgomery, P
