NEWSLETTER
The Cubs really turned things around this weekend, eh? At a certain point on Saturday, it felt like the Cubs might get swept by the Reds for a second consecutive series, and leave the weekend without any starting NL All-Stars. But fast-forward a couple days and the Cubs won twice, and will have a total of three All-Stars (two starters) representing the team in Washington D.C. next week. Awesome.
But before we get there, there’s two more series to go, starting with three against the Giants in San Francisco and three against the Padres in San Diego. It’s a West Coast road trip, which is always tough, but it’s the final six games before the break. Finish strong.
We’re Going Streaking
The Chicago Cubs (51-36)Â just turned around a three-game series win against the Reds with a late comeback on Saturday and a walk-off win on Sunday. They’ve now won three straight series and are 15 games over .500. They’re still 1.5 games out of first, but have the same number of losses as the first-place Brewers.
The San Francisco Giants (47-45)Â just split a four-game set with the Cardinals after getting swept in three by the Rockies, after sweeping the Diamondbacks. So, you can say they’ve been about a .500 team for a while now, and their record mostly reflects that. As far as the standings go, though, they’re just 3.5 games out of first place, because the NL West has seen a lot of underachievement.
Game Times and Broadcasts Info
Chicago Cubs
Probable Pitchers:
Active Depth Chart:
Unavailable: Anthony Bass, Brian Duensing, Eddie Butler, Justin Hancock, Kris Bryant(?), Yu Darvish
San Francisco Giants
Probable Pitchers:
Active Depth Chart:
Unavailable: Evan Longoia, Joe Panik, Hunter Strickland, Julian Fernandez
Keep An Eye Out For …
Cubs Pitcher: Pedro Strop has made 36 appearances this season and has allowed an earned run just four times. Three of those four times have been for multiple runs, so his ERA is “up” at 2.50, but still that’s insanely impressive. Most times, when you hand him the ball, no one is touching the plate. Keep it up.
Cubs Player: Anthony Rizzo went 0-10 to close out the Reds series, but actually hit a bit of a hot streak just before that. In the seven games before Saturday, Rizzo recorded 12 hits – 3 for extra bases – in 26 at-bats. It’s been a while since his last homer, though, so expect him to send on deep some time soon. Of course, AT&T Park doesn’t make it easy on lefties.
Giants Pitcher: Johnny Cueto has only started six games this season thanks to injury, but he’s got a 1.95 ERA during those starts. His strikeout rate is way down, but his walk rate is low too and he’s gotten a TON of soft contact this season. He may have missed some time over the past two seasons, but he’s still Johnny Cueto. Don’t expect an easy matchup.
Giants Player: Andrew McCutchen may be only 31 years old, but it appears his career really is slowing down. After relatively falling off the face of the Earth in 2016 (105 wRC+, 1.1 WAR), McCutchen improved last season (122 wRC+, 3.6 WAR), but is down a bit this year (112 wRC+, 1.2 WAR). It’s hard to say he’s not a valuable player, because obviously he is, but he’s just so far away from where he was just four years ago as a perennial MVP candidate. He is working a three-game hit streak, though, so let’s hope he doesn’t rediscover his groove this week, eh?
