Saturday notes:
- THE MARGIN OF VICTORY: In their 81 wins, the Cubs have outscored their opponents by an average of 4.25 runs per game. They have finished only two seasons since 1901 with a larger average margin in their victories: 4.33, in 2023, and 4.30, in 1970. Their next-biggest were 4.15, in 1929; 4.11, in 2019; 4.10, in 2016, and 4.00, in 1935 and 2017. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- HAPP-ENSTANCE: Ian Happ, last 17 games since Aug. 17: .345/.465/.655 (20-for-58) with six doubles, four home runs, 11 RBI, 13 walks and 15 runs scored.
- THIS DAY IN CUBS HISTORY: Augie Galan led off the bottom of the 10th with a walk-off home run as the Cubs defeated the Phillies 3-2, the third victory in what would become a 21-game winning streak. It happened 90 years ago today, Friday, Sept. 6, 1935.
- HAPPY BIRTHDAY, D-LEE: Derrek Lee, who is being honored this weekend with induction into the Cubs Hall of Fame, turns 50 today.
Cubs lineup:
Nationals lineup:
Matthew Boyd, LHP vs. Brad Lord, RHP
Matthew Boyd’s last five starts haven’t been bad — they just haven’t been up to the standard he set before then.
Okay, maybe those five have been
pretty not-good: 5.65 ERA, 1.221 WHIP, four home runs in 28.2 innings. He’s still getting fairly deep into games, and often one long ball has been his undoing.
He faced the Nats June 4 in Washington and threw 7.1 good innings, allowing two runs. The Cubs offense failed him that day. Here’s hoping for pitching just as good and some offense.
Brad Lord was the Nationals’ 18th-round pick out of the University of South Florida in 2022. He made his MLB debut earlier this year. He started a few games early on, did all right, but was moved to the pen, where he actually threw quite well: 26 games, 2.70 ERA, 1.091 WHIP, 35 strikeouts in 36.2 innings.
He was moved back to the rotation after the All-Star break and yikes: Eight starts, 5.82 ERA, 1.448 WHIP, six home runs in 38.2 innings. Four of those home runs and a 12.08 (!) ERA have been in his last three starts.
So let’s hope that invigorates Cubs bats, and for Jed Hoyer, a note: When the Nats DFA Lord in three years, pick him up and put him in the bullpen. Could be another Brad Keller.
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Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. You can find out if Marquee is available via a provider in your area here.
Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Nationals site Federal Baseball. If you do go there to interact with Nats 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 last year’s.
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.
