The Cubs begin their second to last series of the season at Wrigley Field tonight. Here’s the lineup for Game 1.
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Daniel Murphy, 2B
- Ben Zobrist, RF
- Javy Baez, SS
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Kyle Schwarber, LF
- Kris Bryant, 3B
- Jason Heyward, CF
- Cole Hamels, P
- Victor Caratini, C
Tonight’s Pirates starter, Jameson Taillon, has been very good this season, but it would be misleading to say that it’s been an even performance. Against fellow righties, Taillon has allowed almost no offensive production (.260 wOBA) and has a stellar 2.86 FIP. But against lefties, well, the conversation changes quite a bit
Versus lefties: .268/.339/.405 (.324 wOBA); 4.00 FIP
He’ll face seven lefties tonight, plus the 2016 NL MVP, Kris Bryant, and one of the leading candidates for the 2018 NL MVP, Javy Baez. That’s a tall order – hopefully, the Cubs make him pay. As usual, we’ll have your full Pre-Gamin’ closer to game time (7:05 CT).