The Cubs are not at their best right now, but they have won two straight games, giving themselves a chance to finish strong in the first half of the season. Here’s the lineup Joe Maddon has selected for finale against the always frustrating (for the Cubs) Ivan Nova:
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Kyle Schwarber, LF
- Javy Baez, SS
- Kris Bryant, 3B
- Anthony Rizzo, 1B
- Willson Contreras, DH
- Jason Heyward, RF
- Victor Caratini, C
- Robel Garcia, 2B
- Albert Almora Jr., CF
Ivan Nova always seems to squash the Cubs offense and did keep them fairly quiet the last time they met (6/18): 5.0 IP, 4H, 1ER, 2BB, 1K. But a few Cubs have had some legitimate success against him in the past.
For example …
Anthony Rizzo: 7-16, 2B, 2BBs
Jason Heyward: 9-24, 2B, HR, 3Ks
Kyle Schwarber: 4-16, 2HR, 3BBs, 5Ks
Willson Contreras: 5-11, 2B
And all four guys will get in the lineup tonight. Of course, Contreras won’t be the one behind the plate, as he’ll take over the DH duties. And that move pushes Robel Garcia to second base and Addison Russell to the bench. David Bote joins Russell on the bench, opening up third base for Kris Bryant, right field for Jason Heyward, and, in a roundabout way, center field for Albert Almora Jr. It’s a good lineup. Now let’s see if the Cubs deliver.
As usual, we’ll have your full Pre-Gamin’ post closer to game time (1:05 CT). And then, after the post-game with David Kaplan, you can watch Luis and I do another episode of Outside the Ivy on NBC Sports Chicago (or stream it live on Facebook).