The Cubs haven’t played up to their potential either but have started playing better of late, and should eventually take control in the National League Central. They are the better team and get these games at home so there is no question they will be favored to emerge victorious in the series.
This series will be contested from Monday, May 22 through Thursday, May 25, 2017 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois. Monday’s matchup will be shown on MLB Network, Tuesday’s game will be nationally televised on ESPN and Thursday’s game will be on MLB Network.
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Pitching Matchups
The Giants will start the series on Monday by sending Ty Blach to the mound. The right-hander has gone 0-0 with a 4.15 ERA on the season. He has started five games and allowed two runs or fewer in four of them. In the fifth, however, the Reds touched him up for eight earned runs in only three innings. The Cubs will counter with John Lackey, who is 4-3 on the season with a 4.37 ERA. He has solid peripheral numbers and a long track record of success, so he is a better hurler than this year’s ERA would suggest.
On Tuesday San Francisco is scheduled to throw Johnny Cueto. With Madison Bumgarner on the shelf, Cueto is the team’s best starter. He is 4-3 on the year with 4.50 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Cueto’s strikeout-to-walk ratio looks good and he has to work on keeping the ball in the ballpark, which has haunted him this season. Chicago is scheduled to start Kyle Hendricks. The soft-tossing right-hander is 3-2 with a 3.35 ERA. Hendricks has elite control and could be trouble for the Giants hitters.
The Giants’ Wednesday starter is scheduled to be Matt Moore. He is 2-4 on the season with a 5.37 ERA. Moore has good stuff but he’s been prone to wildness and bad outings throughout his career. He has the capability to shut down the Cubs’ potent offense but could also get roughed up. Chicago will start ace Jon Lester. He is 2-2 on the season with a 3.57 ERA. Lester is striking out more than a batter per inning and the San Francisco offense could be in for a long day.
In the series finale, the Giants will start Jeff Samardzija. He is just 1-5 with a 4.57 ERA but has a big fastball and has been good of late. Samardzija threw eight shutout innings last time out against the Cardinals but got a no-decision as the offense didn’t give him any help. The Cubs will start Eddie Butler, who is filling in as the fifth starter. He is 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA but has eight walks in nine innings of work, which could be an issue moving forward.
Struggling Sluggers
Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant has been as good as ever this season, but he’s not getting much help from the duo expected to slug with him. Kyle Schwarber is batting just .185 with six homers and 18 RBIs on the season. His OPS is only .660 and the burly left-hander needs to start picking it up in order to justify his presence near the top of the order.
Anthony Rizzo has also struggled in the earlygoing. He is batting only .226 with eight homers and a .781 OPS. While Rizzo still has an above-average on-base percentage, he’s been counted on to be a dominant piece in the middle of the order and has not yet done that.
While Schwarber and Rizzo are struggling, there’s no need to panic. Both are elite hitters and should be fine in the long run.
Key Stat
8. That’s the number of wins the Giants have registered in their past 11 games. However, they are still only in fourth place in the National League West and are sitting at least seven games behind the Rockies, Diamondbacks and Dodgers.
San Francisco is a perennial contender and hopes to get back in the divisional hunt, but it has dug itself a hole and doesn’t seem to be as talented as in past years. The Giants would be happy with a split while the Cubs are aiming to win at least three of four in this series.
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