The Cubs host the second-place club in the NL Central.
Since the Cubs took two of three from the Brewers the first weekend of May, they are 23-14, tied with the Mets for the second-best record in the NL in that span, half a game behind the Phillies.
The Brewers, though, stand right behind the Cubs since May 4 with a 22-16 mark.
Something’s gotta give.
For more on the Brewers, here’s Harrison Freuck, manager of our SB Nation Brewers site Brew Crew Ball.
This should be a fun series between the top two teams in the NL Central. The Cubs have obviously had a fantastic year, and that makes this a huge series for the Brewers to keep themselves in contention at Wrigley.
After Christian Yelich went on a heater a few weeks ago, he’s cooled off considerably, but he still leads the team with 14 homers and 43 RBI. Jackson Chourio has been great in June after a cold start to the year, and he’s now hitting .259/.283/.453 with 12 homers, 42 RBI, 43 runs, and 13 steals. Sal Frelick has probably been the most consistent player this year for Milwaukee, as he’s hitting .294 this season. Like Yelich, Rhys Hoskins had a great stretch in May but has been ice cold the last few weeks, hitting just .094/.143/.188 over his last 35 at-bats. Brice Turang and William Contreras are the other key players offensively, as they play almost every day and can get on base as good as anyone else on this team.
On the pitching side, Freddy Peralta is still Freddy Peralta, which means plenty of traffic thanks to walks but also plenty of strikeouts. Abner Uribe looks like 2023 Uribe rather than 2024 Uribe, as he has a 1.31 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 34⅓ innings from the bullpen. Trevor Megill has been solid as the closer, though he’s faced a few speed bumps in recent weeks, and Nick Mears has also been a reliable bullpen arm. Besides Peralta, the rotation features a lot of youth plus a veteran presence in Jose Quintana. While Quintana won’t appear in this series, the Cubs will get a pair of rookies in Jacob Misiorowski and Chad Patrick. While Misiorowski’s 100+ mile per hour heater gets the attention, Patrick has been fantastic in his own right, with a 3.25 ERA and 71 strikeouts over 15 appearances (14 starts) this season.
I’m expecting this to be a good series that’ll come down to whether the Brewers’ offense shows up, which has been the X-factor all season for Milwaukee. I’ll take the Cubs to win two of three.
Fun facts
The Cubs have played 24 series. This will be their first at home against the Brewers. They met May 2-4 at Milwaukee, where the Cubs won two of three games. The Cubs already have hosted the Pirates and Reds. They will not welcome the Cardinals until July 4-6.
The Cubs’ rivalry with the Brewers is tied for their most closely contested against any National League opponent. The Cubs have won 221 games and lost 225, for a winning percentage of .496, the same as their percentage against the Dodgers, in nearly five times as many games (1,058-1,075-14). The Cubs are .505 vs. the Reds and .493 vs. the Pirates.
The Cubs have outscored the Brewers by exactly eight runs, 2,016-2,008.At Wrigley Field, the Cubs are 115-107. They have won 32 series, lost 30 and split 7.
They have swept seven series, two of four games and five of three games, most recently three games, Aug. 2-4, 2019. The Cubs lost five of the next six series, winning only six of 20 games, capped by four losses, Aug. 10-12, 2021.
They are 4-2-1 in series since then, with a record of 12-10. Last year, they won the first series, two games to one, after losing the first game, then lost the second series, two to one, after winning the opener.
(Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
Probable pitching matchups
Tuesday: Ben Brown, RHP (3-5, 5.71 ERA, 1.471 WHIP, 3.30 FIP) vs. Chad Patrick, RHP (3-6, 3.25 ERA, 1.259 WHIP, 3.47 FIP)
Wednesday: Jameson Taillon, RHP (7-3, 3.48 ERA, 0.980 WHIP, 4.60 FIP) vs. Jacob Misiorowski, RHP (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.800 WHIP, 3.47 FIP)
Thursday: Cade Horton, RHP (3-1, 3.47 ERA, 1.211 WHIP, 3.73 FIP) vs. Freddy Peralta, RHP (6-4, 2.60 ERA, 1.133 WHIP, 3.76 FIP)
Times & TV channels
Tuesday: 7:05 p.m. CT, Marquee Sports Network
Wednesday: 7:05 p.m. CT, Marquee Sports Network
Thursday: 1:20 p.m. CT, Marquee Sports Network
Prediction
Since our own SB Nation Brewers site manager, Harrison Freuck, says above that the Cubs will take two of three, I’m going to take this opportunity to agree with him. Two of three.
Up next
The Cubs host the Seattle Mariners in a three-game series at Wrigley Field beginning Friday afternoon.