Chicago Cubs vs. Detroit Tigers preview, Sunday 6/8, 12:40 CT

The Cubs go for the series win.

DETROIT — Sunday notes…

• RUN PREVENTION: In the three games of their series at Cincinnati on May 23-25, the Cubs gave up 20 runs: six, six and eighth. Since then, they have allowed only 24 more runs, in 11 games — and six of those 24 came in a single game, with only 18 in the 10 others, including just 13 in the last seven: 0, 3, 3, 2, 1, 3 and 1. The last time they allowed fewer than 13 runs over seven games was July 5-12 of last year, when they gave up 12. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• SEIYA SOON: Seiya Suzuki, last 16 games since May 14: .344/.423/.721 (21-for-61) with eight doubles, five home runs, 12 runs scored and 16 RBI.
• THE BUSCH LEAGUE: Michael Busch, last seven games since May 30: .500/.609/1.222 (9-for-18) with two triples, three home runs, nine RBI, five runs scored, five walks and only two strikeouts.
• THE BULLPEN REMAINS AWESOME: In the last 21 games since May 14, the Cubs bullpen has posted an ERA of 0.83 (seven earned runs in 76 innings), the lowest mark in the majors in that span.

Here are today’s particulars.

Cubs lineup:

Tigers lineup:

Cade Horton, RHP vs. Jack Flaherty, RHP

Cade Horton’s overall numbers (3.51 ERA, 1.208 WHIP) are getting better by the start and I believe he has thrown really well overall in his first five MLB appearances (four starts). The Cubs have won all five games in which he has appeared.

This will be his first-ever appearance against the Tigers. Hopefully that means good things to come. This will be his toughest test since his MLB debut against the Mets May 10.

Speaking of that ERA and WHIP, they were higher until a couple of days ago (Bluesky link):

Hello, old Cardinals friend Jack Flaherty! This will be Flaherty’s 18th career start against the Cubs, but he hasn’t faced them since 2023, when he was still a Cardinal. Thus many current Cubs have not faced him, but Kyle Tucker is 2-for-6, both home runs, and Dansby Swanson is 5-for-14 (.357) with a home run.

Flaherty has thrown well recently, allowing just one run in his last two starts covering 12 innings, with 12 strikeouts.

Baseball Savant

Baseball Savant

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. You can find out if Marquee is available via a provider in your area here.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Tigers site Bless You Boys. If you do go there to interact with Tigers fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2025 Game Thread procedure will be identical to last year’s.

You’ll find the game preview posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game, including the First Pitch Thread and the overflow thread, as well as the recap when it’s published. The recap will also live on the front page as a separate post.

You will also be able to find the preview, First Pitch Thread and the overflow thread in the box marked “Chicago Cubs Game Threads” at the bottom of the front page (you can also find them in this section link). The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

The First Pitch thread will post at five minutes before game time, then an overflow thread at 90 minutes after the scheduled game time.

Discuss amongst yourselves.