Chicago Cubs @ Milwaukee Brewers – Series Preview (June 28–30): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
The Cubs (38-44) continued to struggle but were able to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Giants by winning the final game of four in San Francisco on Thursday. The persistent problems of an inconsistent offense and an unreliable bullpen remained front and center without much evidence to indicate they are improving. Things don’t get any easier for Chicago with a trip to Wrigley North and a matchup with the first-place Brewers starting Friday.
The Brewers (48-33) have shown no signs of slowing down and currently hold a 6.5-game lead in the National League Central. Christian Yelich and William Contreras are still the big bats in a lineup that has the 9th-best OPS (.732) in baseball. They scored 24 runs in four games against the Cubs when these teams squared off in late May.
The Brewers have their usual excellent bullpen in 2024, headlined by Elvis Peguero and closer Trevor Megill. The starting rotation has not been nearly as good with a 4.27 ERA, and injuries forced the Brew Crew to acquire veteran Dallas Keuchel. The bearded soft-tosser was pitching for the Mariners in AAA and was immediately given a big league start Wednesday.
Some would say this is an important series for the Cubs, but their opponent really doesn’t matter at this point. They just desperately need to win some games and start to move back toward the .500 mark. If they don’t do that, the season will be finished much earlier than previously anticipated.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Friday, June 28 at 7:10pm CT on MLB Network (out of market only) and Marquee.
- Saturday, June 29 at 3:10pm CT on FS1 and Marquee.
- Sunday, June 30 at 1:10pm CT on Marquee.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 6/28 | Jameson Taillon | 32 | R | 2.90 | 4-3 | 3.83 | 3.31 |
| Colin Rea | 33 | R | 3.62 | 6-2 | 4.80 | 2.08 | |
| 6/29 | Justin Steele | 28 | L | 3.08 | 0-3 | 3.64 | 4.06 |
| Tobias Myers | 25 | R | 3.12 | 5–2 | 4.41 | 2.81 | |
| 6/30 | Kyle Hendricks | 34 | R | 6.87 | 1-5 | 5.08 | 2.53 |
| Freddy Peralta | 28 | R | 4.03 | 5-4 | 3.54 | 3.61 |
What to Watch For
- Seiya Suzuki has a double, a triple, and a home run in his last two games.
- Steele has allowed just four runs over 20 innings in his last three starts but the Cubs have won just one of those games and he has no wins all season.
- The Brewers have won four of the seven matchups between these two teams in 2024.