NEWSLETTER
In the second half of the season, the Chicago Cubs have gone 33-24, good for a .579 winning percentage. If they won at this rate over the course of the entire season, they’d win roughly 94 games. Thanks to a slightly stronger first half, the Cubs are actually on pace to win about 95 games (according to FanGraphs projections), which would be three more than the Brewers when all is said and done.
To win 95 games and escape the regular season with 95 wins, the Cubs will have to go 7-5 over their final 12 games, starting tonight. Now, frankly, I think they can finish better than 7-5 and I think drawing a swing starter (Matt Andriese) tonight in Arizona after beating Patrick Corbin last night should help.
With any luck, Mike Montgomery will be on top of his game. He’s had a few short outings here lately (ever since returning from the DL) and I’m not quite sure if it’s been due to his performance, a pitch count, lingering injuries, or just a desperate need to win some games (and, thus, to turn to the bullpen sooner). But regardless of the cause, I hope we see him reach the at least the 5th or 6th innings tonight.
The Cubs can drop their magic number to single digits tonight with a win.
Game Info
Chicago Cubs (88-62) at Arizona Diamondbacks (78-73) – Tuesday, September 18th at 8:40 CT on WGN, 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): 3.87 ERA, 3.94 FIP; 2.00 K/BB
versus
Diamondbacks: Matt Andriese (R): 4.76 ERA, 4.42 FIP; 3.22 K/BB
- A.J. Pollock, CF
- Eduardo Escobar, 3B
- Paul Goldschmidt, 1B
- Jose Peralta, LF
- Steven Souza Jr., RF
- Nick Ahmed, SS
- Ketel Marte, 2B
- Jeff Mathis, C
- Matt Andriese, P
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Daniel Murphy, 2B
- Kris Bryant, 3B
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Javy Baez, SS
- Ben Zobrist, LF
- Willson Contreras, C
- Jason Heyward, RF
- Mike Montgomery, P
- Ian Happ, CF
