NEWSLETTER
I doubt there’s much I can say to amp you up about a four-game weekday series against the first place Brewers at Wrigley Field, during which each of the Brewers top three starters (Freddy Peralta, Corbin Burnes, and Brandon Woodruff) should take the mound. But that’s not to say there’s nothing about which to get excited.
For one, the Hendricks vs. Woodruff Finale sounds pretty darn fun. We still like baseball and that should be a pretty cool matchup. For another, Alec Mills has been on a roll here lately, flashing some improvement against lefties and some solid numbers overall since joining the rotation (so I’m excited to see what he’s got against a playoff team). And last but certainly not least, we finally get to enjoy the long-awaited rotational debut of Justin Steele.
The Cubs slow-played Steele to perfection, introducing him first in the bullpen, before sending him back to the minors to stretch out and dominate, which is exactly what he did. And now we get to see the fruits of that labor. One start won’t define Steele’s future, but it sure would be nice to shut the Brewers down with a guy who could be in the rotation for years to come.
In the big picture sense, the Cubs could look to play spoiler for the Brewers, whose 5.0 game lead over the Reds is large, but not insurmountable, I guess, but Chicago has some interests of their own:
After being swept by the White Sox, the Chicago #Cubs are now a half-game out of the 9th pick in the 2022 MLB Draft and 1.5 games out of the 8th pick.
Heck, they're only 4.5 back of a top-5 pick, which figures to be as high as they could realistically go.
— Michael Cerami (@Michael_Cerami) August 9, 2021
So let’s just say I won’t fault any Cubs fan for picking either lane this week.
We’re Going Streaking
The Chicago Cubs (52-61) were just swept by the White Sox at Wrigley Field and have moved to a season-low nine games under .500. They’re a half-game out of the 9th pick in the draft and only 4.5 games out of a top-5 pick. The Milwaukee Brewers (66-46) have dropped two straight games, but remain 20 games over .500 with a commanding 5.0-game lead over the second-play Reds.
Game Times and Broadcasts Info
• Monday, August 9th at 7:05 CT on MARQ, 670 The Score
• Tuesday, August 10th at 7:05 CT on MARQ, MLBN, 670 The Score
• Wednesday, August 11th at 7:05 CT on MARQ, 670 The Score
• Thursday, August 12th at 1: 20 CT on MARQ, 670 The Score
Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Freddy Peralta (R) vs. Alec Mills (R)
Game 2: Aaron Ashby (L) vs. Justin Steele (L)
Game 3: Corbin Burnes (R) vs. Jake Arrieta (R)
Game 4: Brandon Woodruff (R) vs. Kyle Hendricks (R)
Chicago Cubs
• C – Willson Contreras
• 1B – Patrick Wisdom/Frank Schwindel
• 2B – David Bote
• 3B – Matt Duffy
• SS – Sergio Alcantara/Andrew Romine
• LF – Ian Happ
• CF – Rafael Ortega
• RF – Greg Deichmann
Unavailable: Dillon Maples, Nico Hoerner, Jason Heyward, Rowan Wick, Jonathan Holder, Austin Romine, Nick Madrigal, Jose Lobaton, P.J. Higgins, Kohl Stewart, Brad Wieck
Milwaukee Brewers
• C – Omar Narvaez
• 1B – Rowdy Tellez
• 2B – Kolten Wong
• 3B – Eduardo Escobar
• SS – Willy Adames
• LF – Christian Yelich
• CF – Jackie Bradley Jr.
• RF – Avisail Garcia
Unavailable: Hunter Strickland, Jandel Gustave, Jake Cousins, Josh Hader, Keston Hiura, Eric Lauer, Adrian Houser, Daniel Vogelbach, John Axford, Justin Topa Mark Mathias, Travis Shaw
By the Numbers:
Run Differential:
Cubs: -50
Brewers: +88
Runs Scored Per Game:
Cubs: 4.19
Brewers: 4.52
Runs Allowed Per Game:
Cubs: 4.64
Brewers: 3.73
Keep An Eye Out For …
Eduardo Escobar was one of the big deadline additions in Milwaukee, and so far so good for the Brewers: .273/.368/.576 (148 wRC+). In just 38 plate appearances, Escobar has hit two doubles, a triple, two homers, and walked 5 times against just 7 strikeouts while playing third base.
Patrick Wisdom. Just as we gave him some credit for reining in the strikeouts, Patrick Wisdom is letting them build back up. He’s struck out seven times in his last four games and it will not get any easier against this Brewers rotation or bullpen.
Ian Happ has been getting many more opportunities since the trade deadline, but so far he hasn’t taken advantage. He hasn’t had a multi-hit game since July 2nd. We really need to see some signs of life out of him soon.
I just can’t wait to see Justin Steele.
Can we talk about how nasty Justin Steele’s breaking ball is? 🤯
(📸: @iowacubs) @J_Steele21 pic.twitter.com/cRhAcaiDH4
— Cubs Zone (@CubsZone) August 4, 2021
