Series Preview: Milwaukee Brewers (15-9) @ Chicago Cubs (11-10)

Team Leaders

Now that I’m lazy and copying the earlier Series Preview, I'll use the teams' 2017 numbers here instead.

Cubs

OBP: Kris Bryant (.409)
ISO: Ian Happ (.261)
HR: Anthony Rizzo (32)
R+RBI: Rizzo (208)
wRC+: Bryant (146)
BSR: Bryant (4.8)
Defense: Willson Contereras (12.8)
SP K/9: Jose Quintana (10.46)
SP BB/9: Quintana (2.24)
SP FIP: Quintana (3.25)
RP FIP: Carl Edwards Jr (12.75)
RP BB/9: Brandon Morrow (1.85)
RP FIP: Morrow (1.55)
WAR: Bryant (6.7)

Beers

OBP: Eric Sogard (.393)
ISO: Eric Thames (.271)
HR: Thames / Travis Shaw (31)
R+RBI: Shaw (185)
wRC+: Domingo Santana (126)
BSR: Lorenzo Cain (3.5)
Defense: Manny Pina (12.5)
SP K/9: Chase Anderson (8.47)
SP BB/9: Brent Suter (2.05)
SP FIP: Anderson (3.58)
RP K/9: Corey Knebel (14.92)
RP BB/9: Oliver Drake (3.76)
RP FIP: Knebel (2.53)
WAR: Christian Yelich (4.5)

Injuries, transactions, vengeance pacts, etc.

Eric Thames is injured for this one, which means that if we cross our fingers and hope real hard we might get Ryan Braun at first base at some point in this series. He has 20 innings there this season. Corey Knebel is still injured from facing the Cubs earlier this year, but the bullpen has been obscenely good this year even without him. In a perfect world, the Cubs will jump on the Brewers early and often – I don’t like their chances if the game is tied going into pen play.

Pitching Probables

K/9, BB/9, ERA listed for each pitcher.

Thor's Day: Chase Anderson (RHP) (6.83, 2.93, 3.25) vs Kyle Hendricks (RHP) (7.77, 2.86, 4.09) 7:05 PM CT

Chase “Ace” Anderson has a K/9 that would fit right in on the 2013 Cubs. He’s extremely hit-lucky so far (though the hits he does give up have ended up on the other side of the fence), so some regression is probably due. Kyle Hendricks has looked bad this year with respect to the long-ball – he’s already given up 5 dingers this season and even his walks have been up this season. He desperately needs a clean start.

Freya's Day: Brent Suter (LHP) (6.75, 2.13, 5.68) vs Yu Darvish (RHP) (9.61, 5.03, 6.86) 1:20 PM CT

We are still waiting for pre-WS Darvish to show up. In the interim, Jake Arrieta looks incredible in Philadelphia. *sheds single tear*

Saturn's Day: Junior Guerra (RHP) (8.44, 3.38, 0.56) vs. Jose Quintana (LHP) (7.32, 5.03, 7.78) 1:20 PM CT

I have a vague recollection of Guerra being a Cubs killer. He is: 1.89 ERA in 19 innings so far. 3 of his 6 appearances against the Cubs were as a reliever, though, so do they really count? (no. they don't count.) Quintana is being infected by his starts being adjacent to Tyler Chatwood's.

Sun's Day: Zach Davies (RHP) (6.99, 3.18, 4.45) vs. Tyler Chatwood (RHP) (9.55, 7.89, 3.74) 1:20 PM CT

If you went to central casting and said "give me a #3 starter on an average team," they'd give you Zach Davies. He's not going to wow you, but he'll do a serviceable job and keep you in games. By the time this sentence finishes, Tyler Chatwood will have already walked somebody.