The Cubs host a struggling team from the AL West.
Today’s roster move: Here
Tuesday notes…
- THE WEATHER: The chances of rain fade after 7 p.m., so they should get this game in. Just for your reference, here’s the point forecast for Wrigley Field, and here’s the local radar for you to keep handy:
- EXTRA! EXTRA!: The Cubs have made at least one extra-base hit in 18 straight games. They have a long way to go to match their single-season record: 94 games, in 1995. They had streaks of 76 games in 1929 and 2000, and streaks of 60, 61, 62, 63 and 64 in 1930, 2001, 1930, 2018 and 1987, respectively. This is their 275th streak of at least 18 since 1901, including five last year: 19, 20, 28 twice and 50, June 6-Aug. 8.
- THE NICO FILES: Nico Hoerner, last 13 games since April 8: .380/.418/.540 (19-for-50) with six doubles, a triple, six RBI and 10 runs scored.
- RANKING HIGH: The Cubs rank seventh in MLB (fifth in the NL) in runs with 119. They are also seventh in SLG at .408 and in OPS at .735.
- STILL WINNING: Despite splitting the series with the Marlins over the weekend, the Cubs are 6-3 since April 12, the third-best record in the National League over that span.
Here are today’s particulars.
Cubs lineup:
#Cubs lineup vs #Astros tonight pic.twitter.com/1WBzEfij5N
— Al Yellon (@bleedcubbieblue) April 23, 2024
Astros lineup:
#Astros lineup vs #Cubs tonight (France P) pic.twitter.com/BFfiFA9SQv
— Al Yellon (@bleedcubbieblue) April 23, 2024
Jordan Wicks, LHP vs. J.P. France, RHP
Jordan Wicks has had a bit of a rough go so far this year, though his FIP (3.70) and other peripherals suggest he’s pitching in a bit of tough luck.
In four starts he’s yet to complete the fifth inning. That would be useful. The Cubs have won two of the four starts anyway.
He’s never faced the Astros or anyone on their active roster.
J.P. France pitched a long time in the Astros system, six years after being selected in 2018, before making his MLB debut last year. He pitched pretty well in 2023 (3.83 ERA, 1.357 WHIP, 1.5 bWAR). This year he’s made three decent starts and one bad one, the bad one vs. the Rangers (eight runs in four innings).
He’s never faced the Cubs or anyone on their active roster. Is that sort of thing starting to sound familiar?
Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. You can find out if Marquee is available via a provider in your area here. It’s also on TBS (outside the Cubs and Astros market territories). TBS announcers: Bob Costas and Jeff Francoeur.
Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Astros site The Crawfish Boxes. If you do go there to interact with Astros 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 2024 Game Thread procedure will be like last year’s, similar to what we’ve used for Spring Training.
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.