Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates – Series Preview (April 10-12): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
The Cubs (6-6) won their last series in Tampa to climb back to the .500 mark in the early season. The offense finally woke up with a combined 15 runs in the final two games against the Rays to pick up consecutive victories for the first time in 2026.
Chicago gets a major boost to the lineup with the expected return of slugging outfielder Seiya Suzuki from a minor knee injury suffered in the WBC. His first action will be against the up-and-coming Pirates, who travel to Wrigley Field for a three-game set beginning Friday afternoon.
The Pirates (7-5) struggled in 2025, but they are starting to get a major infusion of young talent. Just last week, infielder Konnor Griffin, the top prospect in baseball, made his much-anticipated debut after signing a major contract extension. They also have reigning Cy Young winner Paul Skenes atop the rotation, but he won’t pitch this weekend.
The Bucs had a top-10 pitching staff in MLB last season with a 3.76 team ERA that ranked seventh. The Cubs will also avoid Mitch Keller in this series, but there are still a lot of live arms that will give them plenty of trouble.
The Pirates’ offense was well behind the pitching the past few seasons, with a .655 team OPS in 2025 that was comfortably the worst in baseball. Power was almost nonexistent in the lineup, with a shockingly low total of 117 homers as a team. That number is 31 fewer than the next-worst team, the Cardinals, had last year.
Center fielder Oneil Cruz is off to a hot start with four home runs in the team’s first 12 games. Switch-hitting outfielder Bryan Reynolds has been a perennial thorn in Chicago’s side ever since he first came to Pittsburgh.
The North Siders are going to have a tougher time with this current Pirates team than the recent versions. Their arrow is finally pointing up, and the Cubs better be ready for a battle this weekend.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Friday, April 10 at 1:20pm CT on Marquee.
- Saturday, April 11 at 1:20pm CT on Marquee.
- Sunday, April 12 at 1:20pm CT on Marquee.
Starting Pitchers (2025 numbers)
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 4/10 | Shōta Imanaga | 32 | L | 3.73 | 9-8 | 4.86 | 4.50 |
| Carmen Mlodzinski | 27 | R | 3.55 | 5–8 | 3.33 | 3.30 | |
| 4/11 | Edward Cabrera | 27 | R | 3.53 | 8-7 | 3.83 | 3.13 |
| Braxton Ashcraft | 26 | R | 2.71 | 4-4 | 2.78 | 2.96 | |
| 4/12 | Jameson Taillon | 34 | R | 3.68 | 11-7 | 4.45 | 3.63 |
| Bubba Chandler | 23 | R | 4.01 | 4-1 | 2.66 | 7.75 |
What to Watch For
- Cabrera has not given up an earned run in his two starts this season.
- Nico Hoerner has a 1.000 OPS and 1.0 fWAR through 12 games this season.
- Suzuki had a career high 32 home runs last season.
- Ian Happ missed the last two games with a bruised heel but should be ready to go Friday.
