Cubs @ Braves Series Preview (April 26-29): TV and Game Info, Starting Pitchers, Insights

After sweeping the Mets and trouncing the Brewers on Friday, the Cubs (10-11) looked ready to ride that momentum through the weekend. Unfortunately, Milwaukee took the final two games of the series behind a pair of quality pitching outings. The Cubs’ bats again exploded for double-digit runs in their win and did little in the two losses, so now they hope to find more consistency on the road starting with four in Atlanta.

The Braves (9-12) were just at Wrigley last week, where they won two of three while scoring 22 runs. Their offense completely stalled in a doubleheader with the Diamondbacks Sunday during which Atlanta had one hit in 14 innings as they were outscored 11-0 in the sweep. Still, don’t sleep on the power hitters that gave Kyle Hendricks such a rough ride on Sunday Night Baseball.

The Braves bullpen has struggled this season and the starting staff has battled injuries, so there’s room for the Cubs to score runs. Having Ronald Acuña Jr. back after missing a couple games with an ab muscle strain removes a little margin for error, though. This is a talented team, but a very beatable one at the moment.

After four in Atlanta and three in Cincy, the Cubs return home to face the Dodgers. If they handle this stretch well, the schedule eases up a bit after that. The problem is that pesky if. Stumbling over these next 10 games could push Jed Hoyer closer to beginning that overhaul that’s been looming for a while now. Time for the Cubs players to make that decision more difficult with some wins.

Game Time and Broadcast Info

  • Monday, April 26 at 6:10pm CT on ESPN and Marquee
  • Tuesday, April 27 at 6:20pm CT on Marquee
  • Wednesday, April 28 at 6:20pm CT on FS1 and Marquee
  • Thursday, April 29 at 6:20pm CT on MLB Network and Marquee

Starting Pitchers

Date Pitcher Age T ERA W/L FIP K/BB
4/26 Zach Davies 28 R 8.80 1-2 5.64 0.91
Charlie Morton 37 R 3.91 1-1 3.05 3.86
4/27 Trevor Williams 29 R 4.66 2-1 3.36 2.38
Ian Anderson 22 R 3.27 1-0 4.28 2.09
4/28 Kyle Hendricks 31 R 5.68 1-2 7.57 2.25
Huascar Ynoa 22 R 3.68 1-1 4.32 6.25
4/29 Adbert Alzolay 24 R 5.40 0-2 3.56 3.40
TBD

What to Watch For

  • Nico Hoerner is back with a vengeance and he reached base eight times against the Brewers.
  • Hendricks looked a bit better in his last start and he usually gets more locked as the season progresses.
  • Ian Happ is just 3 for his last 19 as his struggles continue.
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