Chicago Cubs @ St. Louis Cardinals – Series Preview (July 12-14): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
After winning a series against the Angels at Wrigley Field, the Cubs (45-49) swept the Orioles in Baltimore and have victories in six of their last seven games. The offense has woken up during this stretch with 41 runs, 21 of which came against the O’s.
Chicago’s starting rotation is also going strong right now despite some injury issues. They got good news on that front with word that Javier Assad will likely return from his forearm problem this weekend. They certainly could use reinforcements with four games in three days against the rival Cardinals at Busch Stadium to wrap up the first half.
St. Louis (48-44) got their record to a season-high six games over .500 before being swept in a doubleheader by the Royals on Wednesday. They have gone 33-20 since beginning the season 15-24 and currently find themselves in a playoff position. The offense has slightly improved, but the .692 team OPS is still just 19th best in baseball.
The return of Willson Contreras from a fractured left forearm is a major boost to the Cardinals lineup. Alec Burleson and Masyn Winn have also been very valuable in 2024. It’s been a tougher year for veteran sluggers Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado, but Cubs fans know well how dangerous they still can be on any given night.
St. Louis has a 3.98 team ERA, which is right in the middle of the pack. With the exception of Sonny Gray, the starting rotation has had some problems. The same cannot be said about a bullpen that boasts the sixth-best ERA in MLB with a 3.50 mark. Ryan Fernandez and JoJo Romero have been terrific in setup roles in front of closer Ryan Helsley, who has 31 saves already.
Craig Counsell finally has his team playing well after a slump that seemed like it was never going to end. The big question right now is whether or not this is just a temporary blip or something the Cubs can build on. The Cardinals provide a good test, so win this series and things might start to get spicy. Here’s hoping it’s a strong end to the first half.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Friday, July 12 at 7:15pm CT on Apple TV+.
- (GM 1) Saturday, July 13 at 1:15pm CT on Marquee.
- (GM 2) Saturday, July 13 at 7:15pm CT on Marquee.
- Sunday, July 14 at 1:15pm CT on Marquee.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 6/24 | Kyle Hendricks | 34 | R | 7.53 | 1-7 | 5.40 | 2.35 |
| Sonny Gray | 34 | R | 3.30 | 9-5 | 2.66 | 4.79 | |
| 6/25 | Hayden Wesneski | 26 | R | 3.67 | 3-5 | 4.72 | 2.65 |
| Lance Lynn | 37 | R | 4.48 | 4–4 | 4.44 | 2.64 | |
| 6/26 | Javier Assad | 26 | R | 3.04 | 4-3 | 4.18 | 2.39 |
| Kyle Gibson | 36 | R | 3.96 | 7–3 | 4.13 | 2.38 | |
| 6/27 | Jameson Taillon | 32 | R | 2.99 | 6-4 | 3.78 | 4.00 |
| Miles Mikolas | 35 | R | 4.88 | 7-7 | 3.94 | 4.17 |
What to Watch For
- Cody Bellinger went on the injured list Thursday with a broken left finger.
- Assad is expected to be activated to start one of the two doubleheader games on Saturday.
- Michael Busch reached base nine times against the Orioles and has been red hot.
- Dansby Swanson is starting to drive the ball after slumping badly for the last month.