Game Twenty-Seven – Cubs (9-17) vs. Cardinals (15-14)
- Game Time – 1:20pm CDT
- Coverage – TV: Comcast SportsNet – Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channels 183, 844
- Location – Wrigley Field, Chicago
Travis Wood (1-3, 3.52/1.34/3.26) vs. Adam Wainwright (5-1, 1.20/0.78/2.35)
Weather permitting … The Cubs begin a five-game homestand this afternoon with the first of three against the Cardinals. The Cubs face the White Sox for a pair of games under the lights on Monday and Tuesday to close out the first set of games at Wrigley in May.
The decade themed homestands continue this weekend. The Cubs will honor the 1920s throughout the weekend and into the two-game series against the White Sox. The Cubs will wear throwback jerseys celebrating the 1929 team on Sunday night. The 1929 National League Champions was the first Cubs’ team to play in a World Series at Wrigley Field. The Cardinals will also wear throwback jerseys from 1929 for ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball telecast.
The Cubs are coming off a 2-3 road trip but won two of the last three games of the two-city trip through Milwaukee and Cincinnati. The Cubs played one of their better games on Wednesday to close out the rain-shortened series. Rick Renteria’s team is facing an extremely challenging homestand and seven-game stretch within the Chicago city limits.
The Cubs lost two of three to the Cardinals at Busch Stadium at the end of the second week of the season (April 11-13) but will try to keep the Cardinals on the losing end of ballgames over the next three days.
After this afternoon’s match-up of Travis Wood and Adam Wainwright, Jake Arrieta makes his first start of the season on Saturday afternoon against Michael Wada. A well-rested Jason Hammel is scheduled to close out the series on Sunday night against Lance Lynn.
Starting today the Cubs play 17 games in a row before a day off on May 19. And of the 28 games on the schedule for the month, only 10 are at Wrigley Field. The Cubs wrap up the month with a West Coast trip through San Diego and San Francisco before spending the last two days (May 30-June 1) in Milwaukee.
This afternoon all starts with Travis Wood …
Travis Wood is coming of a not-so-good start in Milwaukee. Wood struggled with his command and was hit rather hard before he was able to complete six innings. The Brewers pounded Wood to the tune of five runs on seven hits with three walks and three strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings. Wood must keep the ball down this afternoon in his first start of the season against the Cardinals.
Wood has thrown the ball rather well at Wrigley Field this year. Wood has allowed six runs, five earned on 16 hits with four walks and 26 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings (2.33 ERA, 1.03 WHIP).
The Cardinals like hitting baseballs thrown by Travis Wood. The Cubs’ southpaw has struggled throughout his career against the Redbirds. Wood is 3-5 in 11 career starts against the Cardinals with a 5.16 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP. Last year, Wood posted a 1-3 record against St. Louis in five starts with a 4.91 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP.
Cardinals Career Numbers against Travis Wood
- Matt Holliday: 8-for-26 with two doubles, two home runs and one walk
- Yadier Molina: 11-for-27 with three doubles and three home runs
- Jon Jay: 10-for-22 with two doubles and three walks
- Allen Craig: 7-for-22 with one double, two home runs and one walk
- Matt Carpenter: 4-for-16 with one double, one home run and two walks
- Mark Ellis: 2-for-9 with one double and one walk
- Daniel Descalso: 3-for-7 with one triple
- Adam Wainwright: 0-for-5
- Matt Adams: 2-for-4
- Tony Cruz: 1-for-3 with one double
- Jhonny Peralta: 1-for-3
What can be said about Adam Wainwright that already hasn’t been said? Adam Wainwright remains one of the best pitchers in baseball and he’s coming off a truly dominating performance against the Pirates. Wainwright tossed eight innings of shutout ball while allowing just three hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. Wainwright has not allowed a run, of any kind, since he faced the Cubs on April 12. Wainwright tossed a complete game, two-hit shutout against the Nationals. He gave up four hits over seven shutout innings to the Mets then dominated the Pirates.
Adam Wainwright has not allowed an earned run in the last 26 innings he’s pitched (0.00 ERA, 0.54 WHIP) while surrendering only nine hits with five walks and 18 strikeouts.
The Cubs executed the game plan against Wainwright in St. Louis. The Cubs scored four runs on seven hits with no walks and eight strikeouts in seven innings. The Cubs lost the game 10-4 but Junior Lake took Wainwright deep in the first inning.
Adam Wainwright is 9-6 in 32 career games, 23 starts, against the Cubs with a 4.28 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP.
Cubs Career Numbers against Adam Wainwright
- Starlin Castro: 8-for-28 with one double, one triple and two walks
- Darwin Barney: 8-for-29 with two doubles and one home run
- Nate Schierholtz: 6-for-19 with four doubles
- Anthony Rizzo: 4-for-16 with one walk
- Luis Valbuena: 4-for-11 with three doubles and one walk
- John Baker: 1-for-10
- Welington Castillo: 1-for-8
- Junior Lake: 3-for-9 with one double and one home run
- Ryan Sweeney: 3-for-9 with two double and one home run
- Emilio Bonifacio: 1-for-7 with one walk
- Travis Wood: 2-for-6 with one home run
Let’s Talk Cubs Baseball …