The Cubs get back to a more familiar look Thursday afternoon at Wrigley Field, and they’ll try to ride the wave from a series sweep before heading out on the road.
Chicago hosts the Toronto Blue Jays in a makeup game at 1:20 PM CT, with Marquee Sports Network carrying the action. The radio call is on 104.3 The Score, TUDN, and WPPN 106.7 / TUDN.
Pete Crow-Armstrong is back in center field after working as the DH for the first time on Wednesday, though he stays right where he’s been all season at the top of the order. That alignment may not be a one-day thing, either. With Tyrone Taylor now in the mix, the Cubs could keep giving Crow-Armstrong some DH time over the next few weeks to help manage his workload.
He’s certainly earned that kind of flexibility. Crow-Armstrong kept his huge season rolling in the series finale against the Dodgers, powering Chicago’s sweep with two home runs and an RBI double. Going head-to-head with Shohei Ohtani, it felt like another moment where Crow-Armstrong pushed himself even deeper into the MVP conversation.
The rest of the lineup shifts back into a more standard shape. Michael Busch returns to the three spot, which bumps Alex Bregman into the cleanup role.
Ian Happ is back in left field, Michael Conforto will start in the other corner, and Seiya Suzuki moves into the DH spot. For Conforto, it’s his first start of August.
Toronto arrives at Wrigley with a 54-61 record and fifth place in the crowded American League East. The Blue Jays didn’t fully punt at the deadline, but the picture around them is still cloudy, and their long-term focus appears to be aimed at 2027. Even so, this is an experienced club, and it has now won three straight series.
On the mound, the Cubs hand the ball to David Peterson, and the early returns have been strong. Since joining Chicago, he has posted a 1.52 ERA across his last four starts. The ground-ball lefty just struck out eight Yankees, too, continuing to show the spark the Cubs were looking for after the change of scenery.
That matchup looks friendly on paper, especially against a Blue Jays offense that owns a league-worst OPS and one of baseball’s lowest hard-hit rates.
The challenge for Chicago comes on the other side. Dylan Cease takes the mound for Toronto, and he’s been one of the most dominant arms in the game. In 20 games in 2026, he has a 2.41 ERA, along with a 36.2 percent strikeout rate and a 35.4 percent whiff rate, both in the 97th percentile or better.
Cease leans on a high-90s four-seamer and a sharp slider, and he has also dealt with some control trouble. He has allowed at least three batters to reach base in three of his last four games, which gives the Cubs a possible opening. Chicago has been one of the better teams in the league at drawing walks, so that patience could matter this afternoon.
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