The slog through the NL West continues, and the Cubs get to close out their regular season games with the Dodgers. When I first saw that the Cubs were the ‘home’ team in Tokyo I was a little annoyed, both because of who the real home team would be with Ohtani in Tokyo, and because they’d wouldn’t have any ‘true’ home games to give them what advantage they could against the best team in the game. Luckily I was wrong and the schedulers managed to squeeze in a two game series here. At least we’re getting the Dodgers in here while the weather is mostly un-LA-like. Even better, Ohtani is out on paternity leave dammit, he’s back already. Ah well.
Team Leaders
Fun with small sample sizes edition
Dodgers
- OBP: Will Smith (.443)
- ISO: Freddie Freeman (.385)
- HR: Tommy Edman?! (7)
- R+RBI: Edman (30)
- wRC+: Freeman (176)
- BSR: Ohtani (0.6)
- Defense: Edman (4.4)
- SP K/9: Tyler Glasnow (12.8)
- SP BB/9: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (2.17)
- SP FIP: Yamamoto (2.03)
- RP K/9: Kirby Yates (17.32)
- RP BB/9: Tanner Scott (0.00)
- RP FIP: Yates (1.58)
- WAR: Edman (1.2)
Cubs
- OBP: Kelly (.531)
- ISO: Kelly (.600)
- HR: Kelly/Tucker/Suzuki (6)
- R+RBI: Tucker (46)
- wRC+: Kelly (284)
- BSR: PCA (2.0)
- Defense: PCA (4.4)
- SP K/9: Rea (10.80)
- SP BB/9: Rea (1.08)
- SP FIP: Rea (0.99)
- RP K/9: Keller (12.00)
- RP BB/9: Roberts (1.69)
- RP FIP: Keller (1.70)
- WAR: Tucker/Kelly (1.3)
Who isn’t available?
A few of the Cubs Spring Training injury guys are working their way back in earnest. Assad was supposed to pitch on Sunday, and is now slated to pitch on Tuesday instead due to a rainout. Tyson Miller has made two appearances for the I-Cubs and is slated to make back-to-back appearances this week. Steele is of course done for the year. Jordan Wicks was sent back down to Iowa after the Cubs picked up injury reclamation project Drew Pomeranz from the Mariners, for some reason. I guess he’s the new second lefty out of the pen. He hasn’t appeared in the bigs since 2021, and has pitched about 20 innings total in the intervening three years. 
For the Dodgers, starter Tyler Glasnow was pulled from his start over the weekend, but it looks like he just had leg cramps. Reliever/nutjob Blaque Treinen is out indefinitely with a forearm sprain, though it looks like it doesn’t need surgery, maybe he’ll just rub some horse paste on it. Blake Snell is on the IL with shoulder inflammation, though it looks like he’ll be back soon without a rehab start. His gift to us is that we won’t have to watch him pitch. On the pitching side Ohtani is slowly working his way back up, and threw 30 pitches in a bullpen session last week. They also have 8-10 other starters on the 60-day recovering from TJS or shoulder surgeries.
Pitching Matchups
Projected K/9, BB/9, ERA listed for each pitcher
Tuesday: Dustin May, RHP (8.89, 3.02, 3.41) vs Shota Imanaga, LHP (8.93, 2.26, 3.72), 6:40 PM CT
ZiPS has May mostly projected as a reliever so take those numbers above with a grain of salt. Or don’t, I can’t tell you how to season your numbers. He’s coming off a six inning, seven strikeout performance against the beyond-scuffling Rockies offense, but he’s been pretty solid in his other starts this year as well.
Shota’s last two outings have been a little shorter than usual, in part due to some tight zones that drove up his pitch count. He faced the Dodgers on the Opening Opening day and shut them down breezily despite a few walks.
Wednesday: Landon Knack?, RHP (8.33, 3.17, 4.52) vs Matt Boyd, LHP (9.08, 3.03, 3.74), 6:00 PM CT (also on MLB network)
The Dodgers haven’t announced Wednesday’s starter yet, and any one of Knack, Bobby Miller, or even Yamamoto could be available rest-wise. But if they stick to their rotation it would be Knack’s turn.
Boyd has been a fun surprise this year. Performance on the mound aside, someone (Sahadev?) mentioned that he has also taken Cyle’s place as the most unassumingly nice guy on the team.
Go Cubs. Or don’t. I can’t tell you what to do. Unless that thing is to extend Kyle Tucker. Do that.
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