Chicago Cubs Lineup (8/9/24): Paredes Bats Second, Bellinger DH, Taillon Starting
The Cubs have a very odd weekend, with this two-game series against the White Sox sandwiched between days off. That wouldn’t be strange if this set was in the middle of the week, but playing on Friday and Saturday means the Cubs have Sunday off. I mean, whatever, it’s just goofy.
Jameson Taillon gets the nod in this first game and he’ll look to repeat his last effort against the Cardinals in which he tossed six innings of one-run ball. It seemed evident Taillon was flustered by the looming trade deadline in his previous outing, so being further removed from that should work in his favor. It probably helps that he’s facing what could be the worst team ever.
That said, his performance won’t matter if the offense doesn’t support him. I’d type the lineup out, but I just got off a flight and don’t have much time so you’ll just have to make due with the card below.
They’re up against lefty Garrett Crochet, who closed out his rookie season against the Cubs a veritable lifetime ago in 2020. He was a late reliever way back then and remained in that role prior to this season in part due to injury issues, but he’s exclusively a starter now. Does anyone want to remember the Cubs pitchers from that contest back on September 26 of the pandemic season?
Jon Lester started, then the Cubs went with Ryan Tepera, Jason Adam, Craig Kimbrel, Dan Winkler, and Jeremy Jeffress. Cool.
That Crochet was not moved at the deadline was a bit of a surprise to some, but he’s only making $800K and is still under club control via arbitration for two more seasons. That means Reinsdorf can continue to be cheap as hell with him and wait until Crochet is making some serious money before dealing him. Maybe I should get to the stats.
The 25-year-old Crochet is one of the best power pitchers in the game, boasting a 100th-percentile fastball in terms of value. His heater sits 97 mph and works from the middle to the top of the zone, playing up due to his extension. The four-seam is complemented by a nasty 92 mph cutter that’s so tight it stays mainly to the arm side of the zone. Crochet needs those pitches because his 84 mph sweeper is a mess and his 91 mph changeup is just meh.
Crochet throws the harder stuff about 80% of the time, which, especially with the location of the cutter, means he doesn’t have big platoon splits. Opposing lineups avoid left-handed batters when he’s on the bump, but there’s not much to suggest that’s entirely effective. While right-handed batters have hit all 12 homers he’s given up, we’re talking about 400 batters vs. 78 from the left side.
This dude gets a lot of grounders and keeps the ball in the yard, so the plan may just be to grind him down and get to the bullpen. I’m interested to see the vibes on the South Side now that Pedro Grifol has been relieved of his duties. As awful as things have been at 35th and Shields, the idea that they’re at least trying to move in the right direction could provide a little boost.
First pitch is at 7:10pm CT on Marquee and 670 The Score.
Chicago Cubs @ Chicago White Sox – Series Preview (August 9-10): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4