NEWSLETTER
The tour of the American League Central continues this week, with three straight games against the Detroit Tigers.
The Cubs have just 8 interleague games left this season (two against Cleveland, three against the Twins, three against the White Sox), and they’re all near the end of September. So enjoy them while they last. After this, the Cubs have an off-day on Thursday, four games (including a double-header) against the Reds over the weekend, and another off-day on Monday. They won’t be home again until next Friday against the Cardinals, so let’s hope they can bring some momentum into that series.
Oh, by the way, after just facing Dylan Cease and Eloy Jimenez on the South Side of Chicago, the Cubs will get a look at two more former prospects, Isaac Paredes and Jeimer Candelario, in Detroit this week.
We’re Going Streaking
The Chicago Cubs (17-10) have technically won 4 of their last 7, which sounds nice, but isn’t really all that great when you consider the four losses that preceded it. They’re still in first place of the NL Central, but their run differential is down to +4, they’ve gone 4-6 in their last 10, and the offense is still sputtering a bit.
The Detroit Tigers (11-15) have had a rough go of it lately. Since last-last Friday, they dropped three straight to the Indians and four straight to the White Sox (seven consecutive losses), before breaking out of the funk with a win over Cleveland last Friday night. They’re in fourth place of the AL Central, 6.5 games behind the Twins.
Game Times and Broadcasts Info
• Monday, August 24th at 6:10 CT on MARQ, FS1, 670 The Score
• Tuesday, August 25th at 6:10 on MARQ, 670 The Score
• Wednesday, August 26th at 6:10 CT on MARQ, 670 The Score
Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Alec Mills (R) v. Casey Mize (R)
Game 2: TBD v. Spencer Turnbull (R)
Game 3: Jon Lester (L) v. Michael Fulmer (R)
Chicago Cubs
• C – Willson Contreras
• 1B – Anthony Rizzo
• 2B – Jason Kipnis/Nico Hoerner
• 3B – David Bote
• SS – Javy Baez
• LF – Kyle Schwarber
• CF – Ian Happ
• RF – Jason Heyward
• DH – Victor Caratini
Unavailable: Jose Quintana (?), Brad Wieck, James Norwood, Daniel Descalso, Tyler Chatwood, Steven Souza Jr., Kris Bryant
Detroit Tigers
• C – Austin Romine
• 1B – Jeimer Candelario
• 2B – Jonathan Schoop
• 3B – Isaac Paredes
• SS – Niko Goodrum
• LF – Christin Stewart
• CF – JaCoby Jones
• RF – Cameron Maybin
• DH – Miguel Cabrera
Unavailable: C.J. Cron, Harold Castro, Dario Agrazal, Ivan Nova, Troy Stokes, Jordan Zimmermann
Keep An Eye Out For …
Cubs Pitcher: Alec Mills will definitely have most of my attention this week, after his first blowup start of the season against the Cardinals. Mills allowed 6 earned runs in that one over just 3.2 IP thanks to seven hits and a ton of hard contact. The good news for him is that the Tigers are a much less formidable lineup than the Cardinals, particularly against right-handed pitching this season: 77 wRC+, 27th in MLB. With Jose Quintana still not back and Tyler Chatwood still out, the Cubs could really use a quality performance from Mills in the near-term.
Cubs Player: Victor Caratini has bounced back a bit after a rough stretch at the plate, slashing .343/.410/.457 (140 wRC+) over his last 39 plate appearances, including a 10.3% walk rate and 17.9% strikeout rate. At 50%, his ground ball rate is still a touch too high during that stretch, but it’s better than it was before, so progress is being made. Given how many opportunities he’s gotten out of the DH spot, his continued success is paramount.
Tigers Pitcher: Michael Fulmer’s return from Tommy John surgery hasn’t gone as well as he hoped so far, with four starts under his belt and 6 home runs allowed in just 11.1 IP. He’s still a very talented pitcher, but his fastball velocity is down almost 3 MPH. He’s just not all the way back yet.
Tigers Player: Isaac Paredes, 21, is the former Cubs prospect who just made his debut about a week ago and so far, things are going well for him: .250/.318/.450 (108 wRC+). In fact, he just had a 3-hit game against the Indians yesterday with the first double of his career. He’s not quite the offensive threat that Eloy Jimenez is and he never reached the prospect heights of Dylan Cease, but he’s still a guy, he’s still extremely young, and he still has a bright future ahead of him. Let’s hope it starts after this weekend.
