The Cubs dropped Game 1 earlier this afternoon, but they’ll try again tonight against left-handed Brewers pitching prospect Aaron Ashby.
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
1. David Bote, 2B
2. Matt Duffy, 3B
3. Patrick Wisdom, LF
4. Frank Schwindel, 1B
5. Rafael Ortega, CF
6. Robinson Chirinos, C
7. Johneshwy Fargas, RF
8. Andrew Romine, SS
9. Alec Mills, P
Tonight’s game will not be Ashby’s big league debut – that actually occurred against the Cubs earlier this year – but it will be his first big league start since then. If you recall, the Cubs managed to knock him out of that outing after he managed to record just 2 outs, thanks to 4 hits, 3 walks, and 7 total runs (4 earned). With that said … there is just one person who was in both lineups and that’s Patrick Wisdom.
Here’s how the Cubs lined up against Ashby on June 30th:
1. Willson Contreras, C
2. Patrick Wisdom, 1B
3. Joc Pederson, LF
4. Javy Baez, SS
5. Jake Marisnick, CF
6. Ian Happ, RF
7. Eric Sogard, 3B
8. Sergio Alcantara, 2B
9. Jake Arrieta, P
Is it much better lineup? I guess not, but going from Contreras, Baez, and Marisnick to Chirinos, Romine, and the lefty, Ortega, is well, a downgrade. With that said, David Bote and Matt Duffy are usually pretty good against lefties, so maybe they can make their presence felt and help the Cubs avoid a six-game losing streak.
As usual, we’ll have your full Pre-Gamin’ post closer to game time (7:05 CT).