The Chicago Cubs are returning to Cleveland and Jon Lester is taking the mound. There is baseball in our lives again and for that I am grateful (… but boy would I like to stop saying that).
In case you forgot, Lester’s first two starts of the season were both really good – he left his first start with a no-hitter through 5.0 innings and allowed just 1 earned run through 6.0 IP in his second outing – so you’re feeling good about him going into tonight. With that said, Lester was initially slated to pitch on Friday, so his schedule has been thrown for a loop, and the Indians have been better (though still below average) against lefties (86 wRC+) than righties (75 wRC+) this season. They’ve also been a lot better at home (93 wRC+) than on the road (60 wRC+), so it’s not all working in Lester’s favor.
Of course, the Cubs caught a “break” themselves, because Mike Clevinger is not starting tonight’s game after breaking protocol … and lying (by omission) about it. Instead, they’ll get Adam Plutko, who’s made one start (6.0 IP, 5H, 2ER, 0BB, 4Ks) against the White Sox, and one additional scoreless relief appearance against the Reds.
I like the Cubs odds tonight, and they were certainly rolling before the break. We’ll see if that momentum carried over. Go Cubs.
Game Info
Chicago Cubs (10-3) at Cleveland Indians (10-7) – Tuesday, August 11th at 6:10 CT on MARQ, FS1, 670 The Score
Starting Pitchers
Indians: Adam Plutko (R)
versus
Cubs: Jon Lester (L)
Chicago Cubs (discussion here):
1. Kris Bryant, 3B
2. Anthony Rizzo, 1B
3. Javy Baez, SS
4. Kyle Schwarber, LF
5. Willson Contreras, C
6. Ian Happ, CF
7. Jason Heyward, RF
8. Victor Caratini, DH
9. Jason Kipnis, 2B
Cleveland Indians:
1. Cesar Hernandez, 2B
2. Jose Ramirez, 3B
3. Francisco Lindor, SS
4. Carlos Santana, 1B
5. Franmil Reyes, DH
6. Jordan Luplow, LF
7. Domingo Santana, RF
8. Sandy Leon, C
9. Delino DeShields, CF