Chicago Cubs Lineup (8/30/22): Stroman Pitching, Morel at Third, Contreras Catching

It sure felt like the Cubs gave one away on Monday night after breaking out to a 4-0 lead. It comes as no big surprise that the Cubs bullpen ranks dead last in fWAR (-1.4) and has the fifth highest ERA (4.99) since the trade deadline, which saw the Cubs trade away their top four relievers. And it was their bullpen that cost them the game last night.

Marcus Stroman will make the start for the Cubs tonight and he’ll likely need either a big cushion or seven-plus innings to pull out the win. When Stroman is good he’s been very good, allowing two or fewer earned runs in 12 of his 18 starts this season. In four of his starts he’s allowed five or more runs. However, he boasts a 2.08 road ERA this season, not to mention Toronto is a homecoming for him, so there’s reason to believe that we’ll see a solid outing from him tonight.

Nick Madrigal leads playing second, Willson Contreras is catching, Ian Happ is in left, Seiya Suzuki is in right, and Franmil Reyes is DH. Nico Hoerner is at short, Nelson Velazquez is in center, P.J. Higgins is at first, and Christopher Morel is at third.

First pitch tonight is scheduled for 6:07pm CT from Toronto, Ontario.

Here is tonight's #Cubs starting lineup in Toronto. pic.twitter.com/K1VOZOCYfp

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 30, 2022