On The Horizon: Cubs vs. Cardinals series preview

There’s not much more I can tell you about the Cardinals that you don’t already know from seeing the Cubs face them last weekend.

Since the two teams last met Sunday, the Cubs have won three of four, one from the Angels and two of three from the Rockies. The Cardinals, meanwhile, have had some free time this week. They were scheduled off Monday, lost to the Reds Tuesday, were rained out Wednesday and defeated the Reds Thursday. The rainout shifted around the Cardinals’ rotation a bit; as a result the Cubs will wind up facing the same three starters they faced last weekend in St. Louis, in the same order. Perhaps that will help. Meanwhile, only one of the starters the Cardinals faced in St. Louis (Cole Hamels) will face them again.

Onward. Cubs/Cardinals series are always fun. Best rivalry in sports, in my opinion.

Fun fact

The Cubs swept the Cardinals at Wrigley in May, then the Cardinals swept the Cubs in St. Louis last weekend.

Before that, the last time each team swept the other in a three-game (or longer) series in the same season was 2006, when the Cubs swept the Cardinals twice at Wrigley Field (a three-game sweep in April, a four-game sweep in July) and the Cardinals swept the Cubs in a three-game set in St. Louis in August.

The Cubs won the season series from the Cardinals 11-8 that year, but the Cardinals wound up winning the World Series despite a pedestrian 83-78 regular-season record.

Pitching matchups

Friday: Cole Hamels, LHP (4-2, 3.62 ERA, 1.278 WHIP, 3.90 FIP) vs. Miles Mikolas, RHP (4-5, 4.41 ERA, 1.168 WHIP, 4.59 FIP)

Saturday: Jon Lester, LHP (4-4, 3.32 ERA, 1.307 WHIP, 3.64 FIP) vs. Jack Flaherty, RHP (4-3, 3.76 ERA, 1.144 WHIP, 4.13 FIP)

Sunday: Kyle Hendricks, RHP (6-4, 3.16 ERA, 1.104 WHIP, 3.19 FIP) vs. Adam Wainwright, RHP (5-5, 434 ERA, 1.372 WHIP, 4.68 FIP)

Times & TV channels

Friday: 1:20 p.m. CT, NBC Sports Chicago, MLB Network (outside Cubs and Cardinals market territories)

Saturday: 6:15 pm. CT, Fox-TV (regional — coverage map). Announcers: Joe Buck and John Smoltz.

Sunday: 6:05 p.m. CT, ESPN

Prediction

As noted above, the teams have traded sweeps this year. I don’t think this series will sweep either way, but the Cubs will take two of three.

Up next

The Cubs travel to Denver for a rematch with the Rockies, a three-game series beginning Monday night.