The Cubs have lined up their starters for a pivotal run against the Cardinals, and Friday’s opener will bring a notable debut at Wrigley Field: Clay Holmes is set to make his second start as a Cub and his first in Chicago.
Holmes’ first outing with the team was rough on the surface, with six hits and four earned runs allowed over 4.0 innings. Still, there’s reason for the Cubs to stay patient. He hadn’t pitched since May 15 because of a fractured fibula, and his heavy ground-ball profile makes him a strong fit for this setup.
Chicago enters the series in a good spot, having trimmed the Brewers’ division lead to 4.0 games thanks to its recent strong play. That puts even more weight on a stretch that, at least on paper, looks favorable for the Cubs while Milwaukee deals with a tougher road ahead against the Dodgers, Mariners, and Braves.
The matchup also gives Chicago a chance to keep pressing against a Cardinals club that has already taken a different path at the trade deadline and no longer looks like a postseason threat. Even so, St. Louis will be eager to play spoiler at Wrigley and make life harder for its division rival.
Friday’s pitching setup gives the Cubs a few different angles to attack. Matthew Liberatore has already seen them three times this season, and Chicago has had the upper hand lately after being held scoreless in the first meeting and scoring three earned runs against him in each of the last two. He’s also coming off a five-run outing against the Rockies that pushed his ERA back over 5.00.
Matthew Boyd has been one of Chicago’s most reliable arms of late. Over his last seven starts, he has posted a 2.35 ERA with 29 strikeouts and a 1.09 WHIP.
Against the Royals in his most recent outing, Boyd went 7.0 innings and gave up two earned runs, though he also issued three walks. Even so, the Cubs have consistently had a chance to win when he takes the ball, and that should again be true against Michael McGreevy.
McGreevy has had a solid season overall, but his last seven games have been a struggle. He’s carrying a 4.91 ERA over that stretch and has been giving up plenty of power, which could matter if conditions at Wrigley are favorable for the Cubs’ bats.
Shota Imanaga is coming off a more human outing after the Nationals tagged him for four earned runs and three home runs. That made it six homers allowed over his last three starts.
Even so, he still struck out five and surrendered only two hits that didn’t leave the park. The Cardinals have already shown they can bother him too, after hitting three home runs off him earlier this season.
Hunter Dobbins rounds out the group, and he’s been steady with a 3.40 ERA. He isn’t overpowering, but he does a good job of getting weak contact and limiting damage, which gives St. Louis its best chance to grab one at Wrigley.
In Other News...
Cade Horton Just Became A Bigger Cubs Concern Than Expected
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Horton is still working his way back, and the Cubs have had to balance optimism with the reality that recovery timelines rarely behave exactly as projected. The hope is that he can rejoin the picture next summer, but there is still plenty between where he is now and any meaningful return to the mound. For a team that could use every bit of pitching depth it can get, the uncertainty around Horton is the kind that lingers far longer than the initial injury report. [Read more 🡒]
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The Cubs have even been using Crow-Armstrong at designated hitter lately, a sign they are trying to keep his bat in the lineup while giving him a bit of a reset. With the National League Central race still in play, his role matters beyond any short-term slump, especially after the kind of stretch he produced since the break. The question now is less about whether the Cubs trust him and more about how quickly he can get back to the form that made him such a difference-maker. [Read more 🡒]
Edward Cabrera's Return Leaves Cubs With A Rotation Decision
Edward Cabrera is set to come off the injured list and take the mound Sunday against the St. Louis Cardinals, giving the Cubs a timely boost as they sort through the back end of their pitching plan. His return adds another healthy arm to a staff that has been juggling rotation depth, and it comes at a moment when every start matters in the push ahead.
The next step is less clear, because Cabreras activation forces the Cubs to make a roster call and they have not finalized the move yet. The club is also weighing whether to stretch into a six-man rotation over the coming weeks, a structure that could help manage workloads but would require some reshuffling before the schedule settles in. [Read more 🡒]