Chicago Cubs Lineup: PCA Batting Ninth, Busch Fifth ...Middle East

CUBS LINEUP — Matthew Boyd is back, the Phillies are reeling, and the Cubs are streaking. Let’s go win us another ballgame, eh? Here’s a look at the Chicago Cubs lineup for Game 3 against the Phillies at Wrigley Field.

Chicago Cubs Lineup:

With a lefty opener, today’s Cubs lineup features Michael Busch at five and PCA all the way down at nine … which is good because they’ve both been pretty brutal against southpaws. But note, Taijuan Walker is coming into this game for the bulk (or that’s what they say the plan is, at least), so you do want both of those guys, plus Moises Ballesteros, in there.

That leaves Matt Shaw on the bench alongside Michael Conforto, Scott Kingery, and Carson Kelly.

Philadelphia Phillies Lineup:

Pitching Matchup:

Chicago Cubs: Matthew Boyd, LHP

Matthew Boyd has had an odd start to the year. His first game, against the Nats on Opening Day, featured a ton of hits and runs and was just generally disappointing. On the surface.

But under the hood, he actually had a lot of good things going for him, including seven strikeouts and 20(!) whiffs.

And then, in his next start (against the Angels on April 1), the results were much better: 5.2 IP, 2H, 1ER, 2BB, 10K). Plus, he got ANOTHER 20 whiffs, this time amounting to double-digit strikeouts.

So moving forward from there, given all the swing and miss, we felt like he was in a pretty good place to contribute meaningfully all season … and then he got hurt.

Five days after that start, Boyd hit the Injured List with a left bicep strain, and Javier Assad came up to replace him. The mood was optimistic and the timeline was expected to be short (and it was), but that definitely changes the flavor of his season.

Remember, before last year, when he made 31 starts in the regular season + 3 more in the playoffs, Boyd hadn’t thrown a full season since 2019. In fact, his 31 starts last year were more than the previous three seasons COMBINED.

But because we didn’t experience that first-hand last year, I don’t know how much we are all really prepared for how unavailable he might be this season. That doesn’t mean he’s destined for season-ending injuries at every turn, but the Cubs might be more aggressive than usual putting him on the IL like they were in early April. That will be in part to make sure he is available throughout the season, but mostly so that he’s not fatigued come October like he was last year. And that’s triple important now that Cade Horton is done for the season.

But the good news, at least for tonight, is that Matthew Boyd is a lefty and the Phillies have been, so far, the worst offense in baseball facing left-handed pitching. So maybe there’ll be a bit of a soft landing for him as he re-enters the Cubs rotation long-term.

Philadelphia Phillies: Opener + Taijuan Walker, RHP

Technically speaking, Kyle Backhus is “starting” tonight’s game for the Phillies, but the 6’4″ lefty is a reliever and an opener for this one. Not the bulk guy. He’s made seven appearances so far this season, five of which were scoreless, the other two, however featured a combined 4 earned runs and just three outs total. Thus, a 5.40 ERA. Lots of strikeouts though.

After he exits the game, Taijuan Walker, a righty, is expected to enter for the bulk. He’s made four starts this season, the first and last of which each tallied 7 runs a piece.

As you can see, he’s also allowed a LOT of home runs already this year (6, t-2nd most in MLB), though I should note that the wind is blowing in slightly from center according to the forecast.

Broadcast Info:

Chicago Cubs (13-9) vs Philadelphia Phillies (8-14) at 6:40 CT – Marquee Sports Network, 104.3 The Score

Cubs vs Phillies – Key Injuries:

Chicago Cubs:

Philadelphia Phillies

Cubs vs Phillies – Wrigley Field Weather Report

Location: Chicago, ILTemperature: 55 degreesWind: Blowing in from center, weak

Tonight vs Phillies: 55° ?️ Wind blowing in from CF at 7mph? Gusts up to 10mph #Cubs #Weather

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