EDITOR’S NOTE: With the late start to this game, Josh Timmers will write up a Rapid Recap (remember those from past postseasons?) that will post shortly after this game is over. That will run instead of BCB After Dark tonight.
Then I will post a full game recap at 8 a.m. CT tomorrow.
Monday notes…
- UNDER THE LIGHTS: This will be the Cubs’ first post-season game at night since their 2-1, 13-inning loss to the Rockies, 2-1, in 13 innings in the Wild Card game at Wrigley Field on Oct. 2, 2018. They have played six consecutive post-season day games since then. The Cubs have not played a post-season game at night on the road since a 5-2 loss to the Dodgers in Game 1 of the Championship Series on Oct. 14, 2017. They last won under the lights on the road two days earlier, 9-8, at Washington in the decisive fifth game of the Division Series. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- OFF DAYS: This is the Cubs’ 29th post-season series. It is the second that had a day off between Game 1 and Game 2 — but the first in which the day off was planned. In the 2020 Wild Card Series, the Cubs lost Game 1 to the Marlins, 5-1, on Tuesday, Sept. 30. Game 2 was scheduled for the next day, but postponed due to bad weather. On Thursday, the Marlins beat the Cubs, 2-0, to win the series. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- THAT SECOND GAME: In the regular season this year, the Cubs lost the opener of 17 series on the road. They won the second game in 12 of them. One of the five losses was at Milwaukee on July 29. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- THIS DAY IN CUBS HISTORY: A squirrel ran around the outfield at Wrigley Field for part of the game, entertaining fans during a 13-2 win over the Pirates. It happened 24 years ago today, Saturday, Oct. 6, 2001.
Cubs lineup:
So. Clearly, Justin Turner is in the lineup to have one at-bat against Aaron Ashby — sort of a “lineup opener.” He’s likely out of the game after that — maybe
even for the bottom of the first.
The following stat lines seem important here:
Busch vs. LHP, 2025: 95 PA, .207/.274/.368, 4 HR
Turner vs. LHP, 2025: 109 PA, .276/.330/.429, 3 HR
It’s just a fact. Turner hit LHP better than Busch did this year. It’s a defensible move by Craig Counsell.
Brewers lineup:
Shōta Imanaga, LHP vs. Aaron Ashby, LHP
This was not the decision most of us would have made, but here we are.
Here’s a review of what Shõta Imanaga did against the Brewers in the 2025 regular season. He made three starts against the Brewers in 2025.
May 4 in Milwaukee, he left with a hamstring injury one out short of a quality start. No runs scored while Imanaga was in the game; the two runs charged to him were allowed to score by Julian Merryweather, who’s no longer around. The Cubs lost the game 4-0.
July 30 in Milwaukee, he threw five innings and allowed two runs, both on solo homers by William Contreras. The Cubs won the game 10-3.
Aug. 21 at Wrigley Field, he held the Brewers to two runs in seven innings. Both runs scored on a home run by Brice Turang.
Overall against Milwaukee this year, Imanaga had a 3.57 ERA and 0.849 WHIP, with three walks and 17 strikeouts in 17.2 innings.
Do good, Shōta.
Aaron Ashby is almost certainly an opener for Game 2 for the Brewers, as he has not thrown more than 39 pitches in an outing since mid-August, and that number just once.
The Brewers could use Quinn Priester after Ashby, or perhaps Chad Patrick. Patrick last threw on Sept. 28, Priester on Sept. 26.
Ashby recorded a 4.15 ERA and 1.038 WHIP in three relief appearances against the Cubs this year covering 8.2 innings. He allowed just three home runs this year in 66.2 total innings. One of those homers was hit by Ian Happ, June 19 at Wrigley Field.
This is quite the intriguing matchup for a postseason game.
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Today’s game is on TBS, truTV and streaming on HBO Max. Announcers: Alex Faust and Ron Darling, with reporter Lauren Jbara.
Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Brewers site Brew Crew Ball. If you do go there to interact with Brewers 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 2025 Game Thread procedure will be identical to previous years.
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) live game discussion.” 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 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.
