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Forget the rest of the division for now; The Cubs are only one game away from .500. That’s all that matters at this point. And he still has a chance to tie it with Marcus Stroman against lefty Matthew Liberatore of the Cardinals (Jack Flaherty got scratched, Here’s a look at the Cubs lineup for the finale in London.
Chicago Cubs Lineup:
- Nico Horner, 2B
- Seiya Suzuki, RF
- Chris Morrell, CF
- Dansby Swanson, SS
- Ian Happ, LF
- Trey Mancini, 1B
- Miguel Amaya, DH
- Nick Madrigal, 3B
- Tucker Barnhart, C
Let’s work backwards here: Tucker Barnhart is once again behind the plate, and I increasingly agree with that. He’s still a liability offensively (though he had a good game last time!), but he’s clearly becoming Marcus Stroman’s personal catcher (for example, despite him being the lefty on the mound for St. Louis today). starting with). And this is more important.
Marcus Stroman Catcher Splits:
Barnhart: 9 games, 60.2 IP, 1.63 ERA
Gomes: 7 games, 38.0 IP, 3.32 ERA
any significance there? I can’t say for sure, but Strowman clearly thinks so, And it was supposed to be Barnhart’s highest value add, so there’s no question that he’s finally making a deal with some people.
Also, we have a very different looking Cubs lineup today. Nick Madrigal continued to start from third place. But with a lefty on the mound, both Cody Bellinger and Mike Tochman are getting fired. This opens up center field for Chris Morrell, who moves up in the lineup, and first base for Trey Mancini, who is basically 1B vs. LHP or nothing. Hopefully he’s working on strengthening that defense…
Ian Happ (as a right-hander) is batting fifth after a torrid three-game summer that included two homers yesterday, and Nico Horner is your leadoff man.
One more win and the Cubs are back at .500. Let’s do it.
St. Louis Cardinals Lineup:
- Brendan Donovan, LF
- Paul Goldschmidt, 1B
- Lars Knutbar, RF
- Nolan Arenado, 3B
- Wilson Contreras, C
- Nolan Gorman, 2B
- Jordan Walker, DH
- Paul DeJong, SS
- Tommy Edman, CF
Pitching Matchup:
chicago cubs, Marcus Strowman RHP
This year has been a full stop for Marcus Strowman. He has been one of the best pitchers in all of baseball, leading everyone in quality starts and leading the NL in earned run average (2.28 ERA, third in MLB). With a long start today, he can get the lead in the innings. Stroman pitched particularly well in his last seven games, allowing only 7 earned runs over 48.2 IP (1.29 ERA). In more ways than one, he’s driving this team
st louis cardinals, Matthew Liberator, LHP
The Cubs lineup is loaded with right this afternoon as Matthew Liberatore has a very important left/right split for his career. The big league sample isn’t huge, but the righty is hitting .318/.396/.553 (.404 WOBA) from the Liberator with a 1.23 HR/9 and 15.8% K-rate. You don’t often want to sit down with Cody Bellinger and Mike Tauchman right now, but today? Got it.
Broadcast Information:
Chicago Cubs (37-38) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (31-45) 9:10 AM CT on ESPN, 670 Score
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