With the Milwaukee Brewers having the night off, the Chicago Cubs can extend their lead in the NL Central to a full game with a win against the Pittsburgh Pirates tonight.
Here is the group that will responsible for putting runs on the board and making it happen:
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Daniel Murphy, 2B
- Ben Zobrist, RF
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Javy Baez, SS
- Kyle Schwarber, LF
- Ian Happ, CF
- Willson Contreras, C
- Jon Lester, P
- David Bote, 3B
Pirates starter Trevor Williams has been a tough cookie against the Cubs, limiting Chicago’s batters to a .195/.250/.415 slash line in 44 plate appearances. Scary stuff, but that just means guys like Ben Zobrist (0-for-6) and Javy Baez (0-for-5) are due to run into one and make things happen for the offense. As if the task wasn’t difficult enough, the Cubs lineup is without Kris Bryant again as he continues to sit out after being hit in the wrist by a pitch earlier in the week.
At least Kyle Schwarber has had some success against Williams this year, , going 3-for-5 with two homers and a double against Williams. Anthony Rizzo is 2-for-3 with a double. And if you browse through the all-time numbers, Ian Happ appears to have Williams’ number. Happ is 5-for-14 with a double against Williams all-time.
The Cubs really, really, really need a win tonight. Let’s see if they can pull it off. As usual, we’ll have your full Pre-Gamin’ closer to game time (7:05 CT).