Well, if this weekend slate were playoff series, it would be an exciting one! Through four of their five games, the Cubs and Cardinals are split at two wins a piece. That makes tonight a rubber match on Sunday night baseball, pairing the Cardinals veteran righty, Adam Wainwright, against the Cubs young lefty, Justin Steele.
Steele has been up and down lately, with a couple of good starts against the Diamondbacks, followed by his worst ever start against the Reds, followed by a fine outing against the Brewers (5.0 IP, 3ER with 6Ks but also 4 walks). Unfortunately, this will be a very difficult matchup for Steele, as the Cardinals have been the single best offense against southpaws in MLB this season (128 wRC+). Meanwhile, Wainwright, 40, has been pretty freakin’ excellent this season, with a 2.75 ERA over 10 starts, including six starts of 6.0 innings pitched.
Plus, the Cubs are at the end of a brutal stretch with 11 games in 9 days, including two games that went into extra innings. Needless to say, tomorrow will bring a much-needed off-day.
GO CUBS.
Game Info
St. Louis Cardinals (31-23) at Chicago Cubs (23-31) – Sunday, June 5 at 6:08 CT on ESPN, 670 The Score, ESPN 1000
Starting Pitchers
Cardinals: Adam Wainwright (R)
versus
Cubs: Justin Steele (L)
Chicago Cubs (Lineup Discussion):
1. Christopher Morel, CF
2. Willson Contreras, C
3. Ian Happ, LF
4. Frank Schwindel, 1B
5. Patrick Wisdom, 3B
6. Rafael Ortega, DH
7. Nico Hoerner, SS
8. Jason Heyward, RF
9. Nick Madrigal, 2B
St. Louis Cardinals:
1. Tommy Edman, 2B
2. Paul Goldschmidt, 1B
3. Nolan Arenado, 3B
4. Albert Pujols, DH
5. Juan Yepez, LF
6. Harrison Bader, CF
7. Yadier Molina, C
8. Edmundo Sosa, SS
9. Brendan Donovan, RF