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Cubs face Marlins on Thursday
By: Staff Writer - StatFox
Published: 6/23/2016  at  1:20:00 PM
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By Michael Rothman

CHICAGO CUBS (47-23)

at MIAMI MARLINS (38-34)

First pitch: Thursday, 7:10 p.m. ET
Line: Chicago -160, Miami +150, Total: 7.5

The Cubs travel to Miami to start a four-game series with the Marlins on Thursday.

Chicago comes into Thursday’s game on a three-game losing streak after getting swept at home by St. Louis. Even though the Cubs in the team’s last series, they are still entering the four-game series with the best record in the league (47-23). Chicago has been a great road team this season, going 22-12 when away from Wrigley. The Cubs will enjoy going against a lefty tonight because they are 16-6 when facing left-handers on the year. Miami, on the other side of the field, comes into the series on a bit of a hot streak, winning six of its last nine games. The Marlins are also a good team when facing lefties, going 11-5 this season and that should bode well considering tonight’s game features a pair of left-handers on the mound. LHP Jon Lester (9-3, 2.06 ERA, 92 K) will be on the hill for the Cubs against Miami’s LHP Wei-Yin Chen (4-2, 5.22 ERA, 65 K).

Tonight’s starting pitcher for the Cubs, Jon Lester, has been pitching like an ace this year. He has recorded five straight wins in his last five starts. In his last three starts, he only gave up three total runs over the stretch. His success has continued on the road this season, going 5-1 with a 1.69 ERA. Lester did struggle in his last outing against Miami, when he let up six runs in five innings in June of last season. The Cubs do, however, have the top record in the league with a combination of great hitting and pitching. They have the best ERA (2.73) as a club in the league and the third ranked team in runs scored (371). 1B Anthony Rizzo (.277, 17 HR, 54 RBI) has had a great week, hitting .533 with two homers and five RBI over the last seven days. 3B Javier Baez (.263, 6 HR, 19 RBI) has been hitting well over the last seven days, batting .353. The Cubs would really like their big offseason signee OF Jason Heyward (.236, 4 HR, 25 RBI) to step up and produce after getting a 184 million dollar deal this year though. He has been a massive disappointment thus far.

Miami’s starter, Wei-Yin Chen, has had a tough year in South Beach. Over his last three games, he has an abysmal 9.88 ERA. In his last start, he only lasted 2.1 innings and gave up six runs on just seven hits. In fact, the whole month of June has not been kind to Chen as he owns a 7.78 ERA over the stretch. Despite Chen’s lack of good pitching, Miami’s staff is ranked ninth in ERA (3.94). The other side of the ball has been a weak point for Miami, ranked 21st in the league in runs scored. OF Marcell Ozuna (.323, 15 HR, 43 RBI) leads the team in BA, homers, and RBI. He is also getting hot right now, hitting .421, three homers, and six RBI over the last seven days. 1B Justin Bour (.267, 12 HR, 36 RBI) is also finding his stroke, going .462 at the plate with two homers and four RBI in the last seven days. Miami’s big name OF Giancarlo Stanton (.211, 13 HR, 32 RBI) needs to find a way to get out of his current slump and start producing.


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