Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati Reds preview, Monday 4/3, 5:40 CT

Monday notes...

• CUBS vs. REDS: Tonight’s game will be the 37th time that the Cubs have played their first road game of the season at Cincinnati since the current version of the Reds joined the National League in 1890. But it will be only the third time that the game is not also the Cubs’ season opener. From 1890 through 1982, the Cubs spent Opening Day in Cincinnati 29 times. Then, in 1983, the Cubs lost two games at home to the Expos before visiting Cincinnati, where they dropped four more. In five later seasons (1995, 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2007), the Cubs’ first road game again was at Cincinnati, each time to start the season. In 2020, under the shortened schedule prompted by the pandemic, the Cubs took two of three at home against the Brewers, then headed for Cincinnati, where they won, 8-7 and 8-5, before losing 12-7. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• GO DANSBY GO!: Dansby Swanson recorded a hit in all three games against the Brewers, and is 7-for-12 (.583) to begin his Cubs career. His seven hits in the first three games of his Cubs tenure are the most by a Cub in his first three games since Emilio Bonifacio (11 in 2014) and tied for the fifth-most all-time.
• HAPP-ENSTANCE: Ian Happ, who played college ball at the University of Cincinnati, has hit very well in his MLB career in Cincinnati. All-time, Happ is a .313/.411/.729 hitter at GABP, with 16 home runs in 144 at-bats. His 1.140 OPS there is his best in any ballpark where he’s played more than four games.
• UNIFORMITY: In 2022, the Cubs went 23-26 wearing the blue alternate jersey and 13-18 in road grays. Which one will they wear tonight? (The poll below will close when Marquee’s broadcast begins.)

Here are today’s particulars.

Cubs lineup:

Reds lineup:

Drew Smyly, LHP vs. Connor Overton, RHP

Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

USA TODAY NETWORK

Drew Smyly had a mediocre spring (6.06 ERA, six home runs in 16 innings) and commented that he was having trouble adjusting to the pitch timer. Let’s hope that part, at least, is behind him.

He posted a 2.63 ERA and 1.171 WHIP in three starts vs. the Reds last year. The only current Reds player who’s had any real success against him is Kevin Newman (4-for-15, a double, a triple).

Connor Overton is making his 16th MLB appearance (eighth start). Last September 30 at Wrigley Field, after the Cubs had hit starter Graham Ashcraft pretty hard, Overton threw 5⅓ innings of scoreless relief, striking out three, in his only career appearance against the Cubs.

He’s not really young (29) or a prospect and he’s been in a lot of organizations after being selected in the 15th round by the Marlins in 2014:

baseball-reference.com

It’s not listed above but the Reds signed him to a minor-league deal in November 2021.

A reminder that the pitch selection charts are from 2022 until the pitcher has 100 pitches thrown this year.

Statcast

Statcast

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. Here’s a list of providers currently carrying Marquee.

Here is the complete MLB.com Mediacenter for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Reds site Red Reporter. If you do go there to interact with Reds 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 2023 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.