Once again, there’s a chance of rain in Chicago Wednesday afternoon, though chances are decreasing. Just in case, here’s the local radar for you to keep handy:
Wednesday notes…
- GOING FOR A SWEEP: This is the 11th of the Cubs’ 37 series this year in which they won the first two games. They won the third game, too, in six of the previous 10. They last swept the Dodgers in three games at home in 2021. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- DAY vs. NIGHT: The Cubs are only 24-23 in day games this year. They are 17-13 at home, including 8-4 after night games. Last year, they were 43-32 in sunshine everywhere and 29-20 at home but 7-8 in day games at home after night games. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- COMING FROM BEHIND: Last night’s win was the Cubs’ 25th this season after their opponent scored first, one less than they had all of last year, when they won 26 and lost 52. They have lost 34 this year.
- They are 14-19 at home when they opponent scored first. They finished last year just 9-29. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- GOING DEEP: The Cubs have hit four and two home runs the last two games. They had not had back-to-back games with multiple homers in their previous 25 games, since they hit five and a team-record eight at home against the Padres on June 30 and July 1. They have hit at least two homers in two consecutive games five times. They did it in three straight games April 15-18 and June 20-24, and in five games in a row April 21-25. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
Cubs lineup:
Dodgers lineup:
Shōta Imanaga, LHP vs. Eric Lauer, LHP
Shōta Imanaga, as you know, had a great start to his 2026 season, then had a horrific four-start run, then followed that with another great run. Currently over his last
nine starts: 2.09 ERA, 1.065 WHIP, seven HR in 51.2 innings, excellent walk rate (4.5 percent).
He was charged with five runs (four earned) against the Dodgers April 26 at Dodger Stadium, though one of those runs scored after he left the game. Current Dodgers are batting .247 (20-for-61) against him with six home runs, three of those by Tommy Edman. Note to Shōta: Don’t feed meatballs to Edman!
Roki Sasaki was originally scheduled to start this game, but with the Dodgers’ addition of Tarik Skubal, Sasaki has been pushed back and instead, lefty Eric Lauer will go for L.A. this afternoon.
Lauer was pitching for the Blue Jays earlier this year and not well — 6.69 ERA and 1.486 WHIP in eight games (six starts). The Dodgers got him for cash considerations in May and poof! He’s throwing very well for them. In nine games (eight starts) he has a 2.69 ERA and 0.987 WHIP. In his last outing, July 29 vs. the Mariners, he threw six one-hit innings.
He hasn’t faced the Cubs since April 2, 2023 when he was with the Brewers and I post that boxscore link mostly for amusement value, because a lot of those guys aren’t on the team anymore. Current Cubs are batting .265 (18-for-68) against Lauer with two home runs (Nico Hoerner, Michael Conforto).
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Here is the weather forecast for the area around Wrigley Field.
Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. It’s also on MLB Network (outside the Cubs and Dodgers market territories).
Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Dodgers site True Blue LA. If you do go there to interact with Dodgers 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 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.
You’ll find the game preview, like this one, 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.
The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.
You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.
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