Wednesday notes…
- SCORING FIRST IS USUALLY GOOD: Last night’s loss was just the Cubs’ second of the season at home after they had scored first. But it was their second in three such games since a 10-0 start. They are 24-9 in all games when they have scored first; 14-27 when they have not. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- THREE IS THE NUMBER OF THE COUNTING: The Cubs are 35-16 when they have scored at least three runs; just 4-20 with no more than two. They lost last night despite making eight hits. They are 32-20 with at least seven. They lost despite hitting a homer. They are 33-20 with at least one. And they lost despite earning four walks. They are 32-23 with at least three. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- THE NICO FILES: No Cub batter started the season hotter than Nico Hoerner. Through his first 12 games, his OPS was exactly 1.000. It was last above .900 after 24 games, at .908. It was last above .800 after 37 games: .809. It was last above .700 after 56 games: .705. It now stands at .641. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: Jake Arrieta throws six shutout innings, striking out 11, and the Cubs defeat the Pirates 6-0 at PNC Park. They are 45-20 after this win and lead the NL Central by 10.5 games. It happened 10 years ago today, Friday, June 17, 2016.
Cubs lineup:
Rockies lineup:
Javier Assad, RHP vs. Sean Sullivan, LHP
Javier Assad has had two straight outstanding outings, first after coming into a game at Wrigley Field in an emergency after Jameson Taillon was injured, then in a start against the Giants last Friday in San Francisco, where he threw six shutout innings.
Keep up the good work, Javier. Last year, he threw six innings and allowed
three runs to the Rockies Aug. 30, 2025 in Coors Field. Perhaps Wrigley will be more pitcher-friendly to Assad.
Sean Sullivan was the Rockies’ second-round pick out of Wake Forest in 2023. He made his MLB debut last Friday against the A’s in Sacramento and threw three scoreless innings, which in Sacramento is pretty good!
Sullivan threw 49 pitches in that game. He was throwing 80-plus pitches for most of the year in his starts with Triple-A Albuquerque so he is likely going a bit longer tonight.
Obviously he’s never faced the Cubs or anyone on their active roster.
Based on the pitch chart below — and remember, it’s just 49 pitches — he appears to be a soft-tossing lefty.
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Here is the weather forecast for the area around Wrigley Field.
Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network.
Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Rockies site Purple Row. If you do go there to interact with Rockies 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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