First pitch: Sunday, 8:00 p.m. ET
Line: N/A, Total: N/A

The Cardinals will be hoping to beat the Cubs when the teams meet in Chicago on Sunday.

Sunday night’s ESPN matchup will be a big one, as the Cardinals continue to make their push for an NL Wild Card spot against a Cubs team that has its heart set on finishing the season with baseball’s best record. The starter for St. Louis in this game is set to be RHP Mike Leake (8-9, 4.79 ERA, 96 K). Leake has badly underperformed after signing a big deal with the Cardinals this season. The team will, however, forgive him if he is able to turn things around the rest of the way. Chicago, meanwhile, will trot out RHP John Lackey (9-7, 3.56 ERA, 151 K) to start in this game. Lackey spent the previous two seasons with the Cardinals, so he’ll be looking forward to getting out there and facing his former teammates. It’s worth noting that St. Louis will be without OF Matt Holliday (Thumb), 1B Matt Adams (Shoulder) and SS Aledmys Diaz (Thumber) for at least the next week or so.

Mike Leake can’t possibly be happy with the way he has pitched this year, but he should be ready for this game against the Cubs. In his only start against Chicago on the year, Leake pitched seven innings and allowed just three earned runs. Leake struck out six batters and walked just one in that Apr. 18 game and will be hoping for a somewhat similar performance when he takes the mound on Sunday. If he can turn in something close to a quality start then the Cardinals would be happy with him. The guys to look out for offensively for this Cardinals team are 3B Jhonny Peralta and OF Brandon Moss. The two of them are a combined 17-for-50 with two homers and eight RBI against Lackey in their careers. If they are in the lineup for this game then they’ll both be expected to continue their success against the Cubs’ righty.

The Cubs have been one of the most dominant teams in the league all year and John Lackey will be hoping to deliver them another win in this big Sunday night spot. Lackey was excellent his last time out, allowing just one earned run in eight innings of work against the Angels on Aug. 9. He struck out six batters in that game and allowed just three hits. One thing Lackey is doing lately is avoiding walks, as he has put just two batters on over the past three games. If he can keep that up then the Cardinals will have trouble scoring on Sunday. Offensively, 1B Anthony Rizzo is going to be chomping at the bit to get out and play in this one. Rizzo has terrorized Leake in his career, going 10-for-32 with two doubles, two homers and five RBI against him in his career. If he can go yard in this one then it’d give the Cubs a huge spark.