Well, the biggest news is that the Cubs are playing the White Sox, but the second-biggest news is that Greg Deichmann’s debuting. Before that, a couple hits from yesterday:
- The frustration of Jake Arrieta starts has worn off. You just kind of look for him to get through innings, and getting through four yesterday was fine even if he allowed four runs on three dingers. Kind of nice that the Cubs’ bullpen is such a hodgepodge and the leverage is so nonexistent that you aren’t worried about them overusing anyone.
- Willson Contreras’s energy is awesome at a time like this. Gives you moments where you can forget about the standings and enjoy a game of baseball.
- Not a lot of hard contact aside from the Contreras double. The rally was fun, though.
- Dan Winkler probably had the best relief appearance and he’s the one we care about the least because he’s a free agent after September.
Ok, Deichmann. Deichmann’s only the 20th-rated prospect in the Cubs system, so this is not some huge debut, but he’s a 40+ guy, and 40+ guys sit between 15th and 30th in the system right now, and that’s not that bad a spot to sit. A former 2nd-round pick out of LSU, he’s had some injuries over the years, never playing more than eighty games in a season, but he’s been hitting well at AAA this year after struggling in 2019, with especial improvement in the strikeout and walk departments (at the expense of power, though). We’ll see what he can do. The projection on him is to be a fourth outfielder, but right now the Cubs only have two outfielders locked in for next year and they’re at a combined -0.2 fWAR, so maybe Deichmann can be a little like Rafael Ortega and at least lead us on.
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The Diaspora:
Javy Báez struck out in all five of his plate appearances in Miami as the Mets fell to within half a game of Philadelphia (and a game and a half of Atlanta) in what’s getting to be a scary race for the fellas in Queens. Kris Bryant had a three-hit night with two doubles as the Giants edged the Diamondbacks in ten. Ryan Tepera had a good two-strikeout inning for the White Sox. Joc Pederson homered against the Cardinals. Probably some other stuff too. It’s a big diaspora. I miss things in this section a lot.
Around the Division:
The Reds added Ender Inciarte, whom Atlanta released earlier this year. Probably just insurance and/or a lottery ticket, but it’s news as the Reds try to get the seven-game gap down to something manageable and/or chase down the Padres in the wild card arena. The Brewers didn’t put anyone new on the Covid IL, which is a victory for them but they also didn’t play so maybe they’ll just announce it today? Hopefully everyone’s ok up there.
Up Next:
The White Sox
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Whom:
Cubs vs. Chicago (AL)
Where:
Wrigley Field
When:
1:20 PM Chicago Time
Weather:
Slight chance of rain during the game. Temperatures around 80. Wind blowing out at ten to fifteen miles per hour.
Starting Pitchers:
Kyle Hendricks vs. Lance Lynn
The Opponent:
Overall, the White Sox are still without Yasmani Grandal and Luis Robert, but Eloy Jiménez is back. Lynn’s a Cy Young candidate, second in the AL in bWAR and fourth in fWAR. He’s not quite at the qualified innings threshold (missed a few starts back in April), but my impression is he’ll be there in the morning unless the Cubs really light him up and chase him early. Among guys with 100 innings or more, he leads baseball in ERA, he’s fifth in xERA, and he’s eleventh in FIP. Not as much of a workhorse as usual (under six innings per start), but highly effective and productive.
The Numbers:
The Cubs are +165 underdogs with the Sox at -180 for an implied Cubs win probability of about 35%. Over/under’s at nine and favors the under.
Cubs News:
Jason Heyward’s going on the IL with finger inflammation. Willson Contreras gets a day off. For those curious about where the Cubs stack up numerically for next year, Dan Szymborski ran the numbers (and explained them well).
Cubs Thoughts:
A little bit of a bummer to have Hendricks have to face Lynn, but hopefully the Cubs can at least grab one this weekend. Would take some pressure off if it was today’s.
