The end of the first half is upon us, and the Cubs need a win to guarantee sole possession of first place in the NL Central. There’s no better pitcher to have on the mound than Shōta Imanaga, unless that man is Matthew Boyd. Either way, it’s a really good lefty. The concern with Imanaga is that he’s a fly-ball pitcher facing a team that thrives on exploiting that short porch in right.
This could be one of those games where one team is just going to have to out-slug the other, which is why Craig Counsell is going with Michael Busch and his .924 OPS in the leadoff spot. The manager said yesterday that Nico Hoerner will get leadoff reps against lefties, and now we’re seeing what the strategy may be against righties. Kyle Tucker serves as the DH, Seiya Suzuki is in right, and Pete Crow-Armstrong takes center.
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Carson Kelly bats fifth as the catcher, Ian Happ is in left, and Dansby Swanson is at short. Hoerner slides down to the eight-hole as the second baseman and Vidal Brujan mans the hot corner. Remember when there was a rotating door at third base earlier in the season? Yeah, it’s not any more fun now than it was then.
They are up against Will Warren, who wears a number just one digit shy of Aaron Judge. The 26-year-old righty is on for the 20th time, which will tie him for the MLB lead at least temporarily. He’s posted big strikeout numbers and limits homers, though he’s given up 85 hits with 41 walks over 90 innings. Warren has only made it past five innings seven times this season, though five of those have come in his last seven starts.
He has pitched to massive splits this season, allowing a .278/.370/.444 slash to left-handed hitters with a .356 wOBA that is exactly 100 points higher than righties have managed. Warren is also much better at home against all hitters, so those right-handed Cubs hitters could struggle this afternoon. You’d think this is a guy with big velo, but Warren is kind of a throwback.
His 93 mph fastball has gotten tremendous value despite not displaying any outstanding characteristics, and his bowling ball sinker keeps the ball in the yard. His big sweeper gets huge horizontal movement, making it a weapon against hitters on both sides of the plate. The sinker is thrown almost solely to righties, hence the big splits. Lefties will see a lot of changeups and curves, neither of which is very good. Again, you see why the splits are what they are.
The Cubs will have to remain patient and hunt mistakes, something Tucker has done all season. I think we’ll know how this game is going to go based on what Busch does in his first plate appearance. First pitch is at 12:35pm CT on Marquee and 670 The Score.
Last one before the break!
Watch the game live on the Marquee Sports Network App. pic.twitter.com/KE2pN0ed6S
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 13, 2025
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The post Chicago Cubs Lineup (7/13/25): Busch Leads Off, Bruján at 3B, Imanaga Closing First Half appeared first on .