The Cubs are hosting the Reds for the final time this season tonight (thank god), but unfortunatly, the best they can now hope to achieve is a 9-10 record against Cincinnati this season. Given how important a win tonight would be in the standings, I’ll take it.
Here’s the lineup for Game 3 against Tyler Mahle and the Reds.
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Ben Zobrist, 2B
- Nicholas Castellanos, RF
- Kris Bryant, 3B
- Kyle Schwarber, LF
- Willson Contreras, C
- Victor Caratini, 1B
- Jason Heyward, CF
- Nico Hoerner, SS
- Jon Lester, P
This lineup should look pretty familiar tonight, as it’s basically the exact same thing as yesterday. Well, it is the exact same order, the only difference is that Willson Contreras is now behind the plate, catching Jon Lester, and Victor Caratini is covering for Anthony Rizzo at first.
As for the matchup, the Cubs have faced Mahle just once this season (all the way back on May 25th) and they got to him early and often: 5.0 IP, 9H, 6ER, 1BB, 5Ks. Let’s hope for a repeat of that performance tonight and a big bounce back for Jon Lester who hasn’t quite been himself over the last two starts (10.1 IP, 12ER, 5BB, 9Ks).
As usual, we’ll have your full Pre-Gamin’ post closer to game time (7:05 CT).