NEWSLETTER
Tonight (very late tonight) the Cubs and Padres will kick off the first of three games at Petco Park. Adbert Alzolay will throw against the Padres, while the southpaw, Ryan Weathers, will face the Cubs for the second time in a row (his last start: 5.0 IP, 7H, 4ER, 1BB, 2Ks).
Patrick Wisdom and Willson Contreras each tagged him for a homer in that last game, and both are in the lineup tonight – the latter leading off against the lefty, as he does. Jake Marisnick is also back and in the lineup after returning from the IL, but Javy Baez is out. That means there’s finally space for Sergio Alcantara, but I’m not exactly thrilled with the reason.
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
1. Willson Contreras, C
2. Kris Bryant, RF
3. Anthony Rizzo, 1B
4. Patrick Wisdom, 3B
5. Jake Marisnick, CF
6. Ian Happ, LF
7. Sergio Alcantara, SS
8. Eric Sogard, 2B
9. Adbert Alzolay, P
Baez was injured yesterday, and we don’t know the full extent of the damage just yet. Apparently, we’ll find out soon.
Javy Baez not in the Cub lineup. He sustained a wrist or hand injury batting on Sunday. More info in 15 min
— Bruce Levine (@MLBBruceLevine) June 7, 2021
I figured he’d get at least a day, but I was hoping he wouldn’t have to sit against a lefty (… and that he was magically feeling much better, I guess). Joc Pederson is also not in the lineup after coming out of the game on Saturday with a back injury, but with a lefty on the mound that’s a little less surprising. If he wasn’t definitely 100%, I wouldn’t expect to see him in there. And even if he were, you still might go with the switch-hitting Ian Happ against a lefty.
But back to Alcantara.
The last time the Cubs faced Weathers, Sergio Alcantara drew his first big league start and went 2-3 with a double. However, tonight will be only his fourth start of the season. We still believe Alcantara should be starting over Eric Sogard everyday until Nico Hoerner returns, but David Ross clearly feels differently. So enjoy these starts when they happen, because they’re frustratingly rare. Alcantara has two singles, two doubles, two triples, three strikeouts, and one HBP in 15 PAs. He’ll start at shortstop tonight.
As usual, we’ll have your full Pre-Gamin’ post closer to game time.
Ryan Weathers:
