Bleed Cubbie Blue - Cubs vs. Reds Friday game threadsA Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47557/cubbieblue.png2019-06-29T09:00:00-05:00http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/rss/stream/185236582019-06-29T09:00:00-05:002019-06-29T09:00:00-05:002019 Cubs Heroes and Goats: Game 82
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<figcaption>Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Early injury to Hamels, Cubs unable to recover from 6-0 deficit</p> <p id="AKYR8d">Ho hum. I feel like this was one of those bad 80’s sequels. On Thursday, the <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/">Cubs</a> built an early 6-1 deficit with swingman <span>Tyler Chatwood</span> being charged for all six runs. On Friday, the Cubs tried to top that by building a 6-0 deficit with swingman <span>Mike Montgomery</span> pressed into action after starter <span>Cole Hamels</span> left in some discomfort. On Thursday, the Cubs came from behind, ultimately winning 9-7. On Friday. the Cubs rally came up short and they lost to the <a href="https://www.redreporter.com/">Reds</a> 6-3. </p>
<p id="6nx47W">The team has been stuck in some kind of funk. Rather than re-type it all, I’ll just re-post this from yesterday:</p>
<blockquote><p id="ioEeFg">For a good long while, the <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/">Cubs</a> have been running fair to cold. On May 14, the Cubs were 25-14 after winning the first game of a series in Cincinnati (where they’ll play tonight, how serendipitous?). Since that day, the Cubs have <s>had only two days off </s> a record of 19-23. So things haven’t been going great. Not awful, but not great.</p></blockquote>
<p id="Lkh5rm">I said more than that, but that’s the gist of it. This team has gone through a long stretch with limited rest (and they’ve basically not spent one minute making excuses about it). During that stretch, <span>Kyle Hendricks</span> went down with an injury, <span>Carl Edwards Jr.</span> went down with an injury and now Hamels has gone down with an injury. To say that all of this is sub-optimal would be an understatement.</p>
<p id="ZHBpAN">There was some discussion in the pre-series and pre-game threads that the Cubs bullpen could be shorthanded Friday night due to some over-usage. On the upside, the Cubs didn’t really have problems filling the innings. On the downside, <span>Mike Montgomery</span> got rocked and the Cubs couldn’t recover from that. On the bigger downside, the Cubs bullpen had to throw seven innings and there is still no off day on the way. </p>
<p id="Hnhoq6">The Cubs had already announced that <span>Adbert Alzolay</span> would get another start in the upcoming series at Pittsburgh. It suddenly seems very likely that Chatwood will get another start unless the Cubs have a pitcher at Iowa who they feel comfortable with starting a game such as <span>Alec Mills</span>. </p>
<p id="ihXdTE">Wherever bottom is for this team, they haven’t hit it in this recent stretch (though one might argue they hit it in early April). On the bright side, the <a href="https://www.brewcrewball.com/">Brewers</a> lost again and the Central just keeps getting closer. </p>
<p id="DabxXN">With that, we turn our attention to yesterday’s game as we look at what WPA had to say about Heroes and Goats. As always the Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA (Win Probability Added — <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2018/3/28/17159170/cubs-heroes-and-goats-2018-season-primer">here’s a good explanation of how WPA works</a>) and are not in any way subjective. Many days WPA will not tell the story of what happened, but often it can give at least a glimpse to who rose to the occasion in a high leverage moment or who didn’t get the job done in that moment. Also note, for the purposes of Heroes and Goats, we ignore the results of pitchers while they are batting and hitters while they are pitching. With that, we get to the results.</p>
<p id="JOFlyb"><strong>Game 82, June 27: </strong>Cubs 3, Reds 6 (44-38)</p>
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<iframe src="https://www.fangraphs.com/graphframe.aspx?config=0&static=0&type=livewins&num=0&h=450&w=450&date=2019-06-28&team=Reds&dh=0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" height="450" width="450" style="border:1px solid black;"></iframe><br><span style="font-size:9pt;">Source: <a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/livewins.aspx?date=2019-06-28&team=Reds&dh=0&season=2019">FanGraphs</a></span>
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<p id="dpdXLp"><strong>THREE HEROES:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="lcdofY">
<strong>Superhero: </strong><span>Kris Bryant</span> (.033). Kris had a single and two walks in four plate appearances. Unfortunately, he did score despite setting the table all night. </li>
<li id="M8Agur">
<strong>Hero: </strong><span>Kyle Ryan</span> (.015). Kyle recorded four outs while allowing two hits, a walk and striking out one. </li>
<li id="V4LbPO">
<strong>Sidekick: </strong><span>Steve Cishek</span>/<span>Brad Brach</span> (.006). Brach had the longer outing with 2⅓ scoreless innings. He allowed one hit, one walk and struck out three. Cishek had the higher leverage inning, throwing a scoreless eighth with the Cubs down three. </li>
</ul>
<p id="yzNEpZ"><strong>THREE GOATS:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="rCR6dI">
<strong>Billy Goat: </strong>Mike Montgomery (-.199). Mike was pressed into emergency duty and could not put out any fires. He recorded seven outs while allowing six hits, three walks and five runs. He did strikeout one. </li>
<li id="1OESUD">
<strong>Goat: </strong><span>Willson Contreras</span> (-.087). Willson made the final out in the eighth inning after the Cubs got the tying run to the plate. He was hitless in four at bats. </li>
<li id="Snu7r9">
<strong>Kid: </strong><span>Javier Baez</span> (-.077). Javy made the second out in the eighth inning with the tying run at the plate. Javy had one hit and one run along with two strikeouts in four at bats. </li>
</ul>
<p id="7boIVc"><strong>WPA Play of the Game: </strong><span>Phillip Ervin</span> was the first batter Montgomery faced. He hit a solo homer. (.092)</p>
<p id="QNZ0or">*Cubs Play of the Game: <span>Anthony Rizzo</span> was hit by a pitch in the eighth inning after <span>Kris Bryant</span> had already drawn a one out walk. (.046)</p>
<p id="oPQVrY"><strong>Cumulative Standings Top/Bottom 3:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="oYfJy0">Anthony Rizzo - 17</li>
<li id="seTnZj">Kris Bryant - 14</li>
<li id="xK5dZv">Willson Contreras - 12 </li>
<li id="yl2dPp">*Carl Edwards Jr. -9</li>
<li id="UOD1Fu">
<span>Yu Darvish</span> -12</li>
<li id="DbZ5dc">
<span>Jason Heyward</span> -14</li>
</ul>
<p id="52SDwu"><strong>Up Next: </strong>Game two of the series will see the Cubs looking to get back in the winning column, while the Reds look for back-to-back wins. The Cubs will have <span>Jose Quintana</span> starting. Jose is struggling a bit. On the season, he is 4-7 with a 4.50 ERA in 88 innings of work. Over his last seven starts, he is 0-4 with a 5.65 ERA in 36⅔ innings. Jose is clearly trending in the wrong direction. Last time out, he was shelled against the <a href="https://www.amazinavenue.com/">Mets</a>. In that one he allowed nine runs (eight earned) in just 4⅓ innings. He allowed nine hits, two walks and struck out three. </p>
<p id="zZwJXD">Quintana has already faced the Reds twice this year and is 0-2 and has allowed nine runs (eight earned) in 10⅓ innings of work. Current Reds have 196 career plate appearances against Q with a .795 OPS. <span>Jose Iglesias</span> leads the way with 32 PA (.594 OPS). <span>Joey Votto</span> has only 20 PA, but he’s had quite a bit more success (1.200 OPS). </p>
<p id="o7g8kP">The Reds have talented, young, right-handed pitcher <span>Luis Castillo</span> on the mound. Luis is 7-2 with a 2.56 ERA in 91⅓ innings. In his last seven games, Luis is 3-1 with a 3.86 ERA in 35 innings of work. Last time out, he took a loss in Milwaukee when he allowed six runs (four earned) in just 3⅔ innings . He allowed five hits, five walks and struck out six. He’s faced the Cubs once this year, actually in a game started by Jose Quintana. Castillo threw 5⅓ innings in that game against the Cubs and got a win. He allowed only two hits, one walk and two runs. He struck out six. </p>
<p id="oboeMt">The 26-year-old right handed pitcher has been much better against RHH (.503 OPS allowed) than LHH (.667). He’s also been much better at home (.465 OPS) than on the road (.725). Current Cubs have 146 plate appearances against Castillo with a .712 OPS. Anthony Rizzo has the largest number of PA at 16 (.466 OPS). <span>Daniel Descalso</span> (14 PA, 1.274) and <span>Kyle Schwarber</span> (12, 1.611) are two Cubs who have had some success in a limited number of PA. </p>
<p id="FbnUXt">Yet another tough matchup on paper. The Cubs are going to need a very strong start out of Q today. </p>
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https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2019/6/29/19493323/2019-cubs-heroes-and-goats-game-82Thomas Smith2019-06-29T08:00:00-05:002019-06-29T08:00:00-05:00Reds 6, Cubs 3: Cole Hamels injured in dull defeat
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<figcaption>Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>What else can go wrong?</p> <p id="eUcvZX">The <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/">Cubs</a>, 15-21 on the road entering this nine-game trip, surely needed to begin it in a better way than having <span>Cole Hamels</span> leave the game with what appears to be an oblique injury and <a href="http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2019_06_28_chnmlb_cinmlb_1">losing 6-3 to the Reds</a>.</p>
<p id="prx2eX">But here we are:</p>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Maddon: Hamels will go on IL with left oblique strain. More info Saturday after MRI.</p>— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/1144798400841433088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2019</a>
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<p id="3ioc0c">Hamels allowed a run in the first inning, then threw two warmup pitches for the second and <a href="https://cuts.diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2019/2019-06/28/bc1ad6c9-6f433318-1a841aa7-CSVM-DIAMONDTMP-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4">walked off the mound [VIDEO]</a>.</p>
<div id="p7UnTL"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><video controls="" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;">Your browser does not support HTML5 video.<source src="https://cuts.diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2019/2019-06/28/bc1ad6c9-6f433318-1a841aa7-CSVM-DIAMONDTMP-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4" type="video/mp4"></source></video></div></div>
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<p id="QHbhJf">Oblique injuries can be tough to come back from and often take a month or more for full recovery. So... the Cubs just lost their most consistent starting pitcher for several weeks.</p>
<p id="yfEfkL"><span>Mike Montgomery</span> entered the game and served up a home-run ball to <span>Phillip Ervin</span> on the first pitch he threw. By the time he left in the fourth inning the Cubs were down 6-0, and I’ll spare you the carnage.</p>
<p id="FMp2AU">The rest of the bullpen did all right: <span>Brad Brach</span>, <span>Kyle Ryan</span> and <span>Steve Cishek</span> combined to throw 4⅔ scoreless innings, allowing three hits and two walks, striking out four, but the deficit was too much to overcome.</p>
<p id="4hj1y7">In the seventh, <span>Javier Baez</span> led off with a single, scooted all the way to third on a wild pitch, and one out later, <span>Jason Heyward</span> continued <a href="https://cuts.diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2019/2019-06/28/d77aba8b-b4ef3d77-d3ac4aba-CSVM-DIAMONDTMP-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4">his current hot streak [VIDEO]</a>.</p>
<div id="q1l3xj"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><video controls="" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;">Your browser does not support HTML5 video.<source src="https://cuts.diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2019/2019-06/28/d77aba8b-b4ef3d77-d3ac4aba-CSVM-DIAMONDTMP-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4" type="video/mp4"></source></video></div></div>
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<p id="VjFBT3">The blast was Heyward’s 12th of 2019. That’s a personal best for him as a Cub (he hit 11 in 2017) with almost half the season remaining. </p>
<p id="v57W5A">In the eighth, the Cubs brought the tying run to the plate when <span>Kris Bryant</span> walked and <span>Anthony Rizzo</span> was hit by a pitch with one out. But Baez and <span>Willson Contreras</span> grounded out to end that inning, and the Cubs failed to score in the ninth, and that was that.</p>
<p id="pLCcOr">Here’s an intriguing note on the Hamels injury:</p>
<div id="I7E4vS">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">No official moves by Cubs, but expecting them to call up two arms Saturday. In clubhouse, veteran Carlos Gonzalez was gathered with some teammates. Received a few handshakes and hugs.</p>— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/1144804447434002432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2019</a>
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<p id="qA9NNU">So this could be the end of the line for CarGo as a Cub. As I’ve noted before, it was certainly worth giving him a shot after the <a href="https://www.letsgotribe.com/">Indians</a> let him go. But watching him hit, you could clearly see his bat speed wasn’t what it was during his heyday with the <a href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a>, and he hit just .175/.306/.300 with one home run and <a href="https://cuts.diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2019/2019-06/03/d6f23db5-ffb5f264-496c26c3-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4">one really nice sliding catch [VIDEO]</a> in his four weeks as a Cub. I wish him well, but I suspect this might be the end of the line for CarGo.</p>
<p id="5Hh2Np">Thus it appears that the Cubs will go with three bench players for a brief time, given that the bullpen has been somewhat overworked over the last few days. If I had to hazard a guess, I’d think <span>Dillon Maples</span> and <span>Alec Mills</span> will be the arms called up, with Mills eventually replaced by a position player. <span>Rowan Wick</span> and <span>Tony Barnette</span> could potentially also be recalled. Both have been optioned within the last 10 days, but the 10-day period optioned players must stay in the minors is waived in case of an injury.</p>
<p id="JSNMcY">Beyond all that speculation, the Cubs, amazingly, remained in first place in the N.L. Central thanks to the <a href="https://www.bucsdugout.com/">Pirates</a>, who defeated the <a href="https://www.brewcrewball.com/">Brewers</a> Friday evening. On June 9, the Cubs defeated the <a href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">Cardinals</a> and were 37-27, tied for first place. They’ve gone 7-11 since then and... gone one game ahead in that time, as the Brewers are 5-11 in that span. The Cubs have either been in first place, or second no more than one game behind, since June 4, despite an 11-12 record in that span.</p>
<p id="Mnr8h7">That’s amusing and horrifying at the same time. This team is simply going to have to play better to win the division. I believe they can do so, but they’re now also going to have to deal with the absence of Hamels for an unknown amount of time. Other starters are going to have to step up.</p>
<p id="ENVL3v">The series in Cincinnati continues Saturday afternoon. <span>Jose Quintana</span> will start for the Cubs and <span>Luis Castillo</span> goes for the Reds. Game time is 3:10 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via ABC7 Chicago.</p>
https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2019/6/29/19785459/cubs-reds-recap-cole-hamels-jason-heyward-mlb-scoresAl Yellon2019-06-28T19:10:00-05:002019-06-28T19:10:00-05:00Overflow thread 1: Cubs vs. Reds, Friday 6/28, 6:10 CT
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<figcaption>Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p id="wYIq6k">——</p>
https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2019/6/28/18759612/overflow-thread-1-cubs-vs-reds-friday-6-28-6-10-ctAl Yellon2019-06-28T18:05:00-05:002019-06-28T18:05:00-05:00First pitch thread: Cubs vs. Reds, Friday 6/28, 6:10 CT
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<figcaption>Jim Young-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p id="wYIq6k">Go get ‘em, Cole.</p>
https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2019/6/28/18759609/first-pitch-thread-cubs-vs-reds-friday-6-28-6-10-ctAl Yellon2019-06-28T16:00:00-05:002019-06-28T16:00:00-05:00Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati Reds preview, Friday 6/28, 6:10 CT
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<figcaption>Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Cubs open a nine-game road trip in Cincinnati.</p> <p id="nun8qU">Friday notes!</p>
<ul>
<li id="VAMEDl">
<strong>SAVING THE DAY:</strong> <span>Craig Kimbrel</span>’s first Cubs save Thursday was the 334th of his big-league career. He’s the active leader in that category and ranks 14th all-time. Next up on the all-time list: Rollie Fingers (341) and former Cub Randy Myers (347). He won’t get to 40+ saves this year, but he has five 40-plus save seasons in his career. Only three pitchers in MLB history have more such seasons: <span>Francisco Rodriguez</span> (six), <span>Trevor Hoffman</span> (nine) and <span>Mariano Rivera</span> (nine).</li>
<li id="GrJUZf">
<strong>COMING FROM BEHIND:</strong> Thursday, the Cubs recorded their largest come-from-behind win since July 26 of last season vs. the <a href="https://www.azsnakepit.com/">Diamondbacks</a> (down 6-1, won 7-6). <span>Anthony Rizzo</span> won that game with a walkoff homer moments after <span>David Bote</span> had tied it with a two-run shot.</li>
<li id="QtCC92">
<strong>HEY HEY J-HEY! </strong><span>Jason Heyward</span> is batting .524/.524/.905 (11-for-21) with three doubles, a triple, a home run and five RBI in his last six games, including four multi-hit games. The triple Thursday was his third of 2019 and 33rd of his career.</li>
<li id="q7nm1h">
<strong>HEY NOW, YOU’RE AN ALL-STAR:</strong> <span>Javier Baez</span> has a five-game hitting streak and over his last nine games is hitting .323/.382/.645 (10-for-31) with two doubles, a triple and two home runs (and only six strikeouts).</li>
<li id="1JqTmy">
<strong>HEY NOW, YOU’RE AN ALL-STAR, PART DEUX:</strong> <span>Willson Contreras</span> has a 10-game hitting streak in which he’s hitting .417/.475/.889 (15-for-36) with three doubles, a triple, four home runs and 13 RBI.</li>
</ul>
<p id="PFQzlL">Here are today’s particulars.</p>
<p id="HAZTFQ"><a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/">Cubs</a> lineup:</p>
<div id="wcbAUa">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here is tonight's <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cubs?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cubs</a> starting lineup. <br><br>Game preview: <a href="https://t.co/FxtM79Gbjx">https://t.co/FxtM79Gbjx</a> <a href="https://t.co/wXy0g2XuWF">pic.twitter.com/wXy0g2XuWF</a></p>— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) <a href="https://twitter.com/Cubs/status/1144676957902331904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 28, 2019</a>
</blockquote>
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<p id="6ZfO7W"><a href="https://www.redreporter.com/">Reds</a> lineup:</p>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="und" dir="ltr"> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BornToBaseball?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BornToBaseball</a> <a href="https://t.co/DeCkL6Hbs4">pic.twitter.com/DeCkL6Hbs4</a></p>— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) <a href="https://twitter.com/Reds/status/1144636831646044161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 28, 2019</a>
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<h2 id="V5jSYv">
<span>Cole Hamels</span>, LHP vs. <span>Sonny Gray</span>, RHP</h2>
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<cite>Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports</cite>
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<cite>Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports</cite>
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<p id="Q4Xpvd">Cole Hamels has had a tremendous June: five starts, 1.00 ERA, 0.889 WHIP, 36 strikeouts in 36 innings. He should be in the running for National League Pitcher of the Month.</p>
<p id="4qRPL3">He has not faced the Reds this year, and in two starts against them last year he posted a 1.72 ERA and 1.277 WHIP. Current Reds are hitting .235 (23-for-98) against him.</p>
<p id="SfZ2qI">Sounds like a recipe for another good game from Cole.</p>
<p id="zgzH8K">Conversely to Hamels, June has been the worst month of Sonny Gray’s 2019 season: 5.40 ERA, 1.450 WHIP in four starts. He has made one start against the Cubs this year, <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN201905150.shtml">May 15 in Cincinnati</a>, and allowed three runs in five innings, including home runs by <span>Addison Russell</span> and <span>Albert Almora Jr.</span> The Cubs bullpen blew a ninth-inning lead in that one, hopefully that situation (“blown ninth-inning lead”) has been addressed.</p>
<p id="LaZgfc">No current Cub has more than eight career at-bats vs. Gray.</p>
<p id="DIbTfl">Today’s game is on WGN. It’s also on MLB Network (outside the Cubs and Reds market territories).</p>
<p id="cxuSIp"><a href="https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/2019/06/28">Here is the complete MLB.com Mediacenter for today.</a></p>
<p id="Xe5URc"><a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2019_06_28_chnmlb_cinmlb_1">MLB.com Gameday</a></p>
<p id="iDRiK8"><a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/previews/2019/CIN201906280.shtml">Baseball-reference.com game preview</a></p>
<p id="AScVZw"><span>SB Nation game preview</span></p>
<p id="c01E3n">Please visit our SB Nation <a href="https://www.redreporter.com/">Reds</a> site <a href="http://www.redreporter.com/">Red Reporter</a>. 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.</p>
<p id="4R9cxt">The 2019 Game Thread procedure will be the same as the one used in previous years. Here’s how it works.</p>
<p id="uNrOo7">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).</p>
<p id="Jy7Er2">At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page. The First Pitch Thread and all the overflow threads will be published in that stream, as well as the recap. The recap will also live on the front page as a separate post, and at the time I write the recap I will rename the stream “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of Week) Game Threads” so you can go back and find every thread related to that particular game.</p>
<p id="F5ehVY">You will also be able to find the preview, First Pitch Thread, all the overflow threads and recap in the box marked “Chicago Cubs Game Threads” at the bottom of the front page (you can also find them in <a href="http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/chicago-cubs-game-threads">this section link</a>). They will also appear in the game’s StoryStream as noted above.</p>
<p id="pjBR1E">The First Pitch thread will post at five minutes before game time, then an overflow thread at one hour, two hours and 2:45 after the scheduled game time.</p>
<p id="cWIBoH">Discuss amongst yourselves.</p>
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https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2019/6/28/18715333/chicago-cubs-cincinnati-reds-preview-fridayAl Yellon