Cubs at Pirates
The Chicago Cubs were already in the middle of a forgettable road trip before their latest meltdown away from Wrigley Field, blowing a prime opportunity to retake sole possession of first place in the National League Central. The Cubs hope to turn things around on their 10-game trek beginning Friday when they open a three-game set with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Chicago (64-57) was on the verge of avoiding a three-game sweep in Philadelphia on Thursday before losing in spectacular fashion, blowing a four-run lead in the ninth inning after surrendering a grand slam to Bryce Harper to cap a six-run rally by the Phillies. The Cubs fell to 2-5 on their road trip - which include losses of 10-1 and 11-1 - and 23-38 on the road overall to remain tied with St. Louis atop the division. Chicago enters this series having dropped five of its last six but has won four straight meetings against Pittsburgh, which has dropped 25 of 31 since the Midsummer Classic. Two of the club's six victories over that stretch came earlier this week, however, as the Pirates earned their first series win of the second half despite losing 7-4 to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, WGN (Chicago), AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs RH Kyle Hendricks (8-9, 3.48 ERA) vs. Pirates RH Joe Musgrove (8-11, 4.71)
Hendricks' seven-game streak of allowing two runs or fewer came to an emphatic halt Saturday in Cincinnati after he was pummeled for seven runs on 12 hits - three homers - over 2 2/3 innings. The Dartmouth product posted a 2.35 ERA but managed only one win over his impressive stretch as the offense failed to provide him with more than two runs of support five times. Hendricks permitted two runs in three frames and did not factor into the decision July 2 at Pittsburgh.
Musgrove's rollercoaster second half continued Saturday in St. Louis, falling to 2-4 with a 6.53 ERA since the All-Star break after yielding three runs across 5 1/3 innings. The 26-year-old has held the opposition to three runs or fewer in half of his six post-break starts, but he surrendered a total of 17 earned runs in 13 frames over the other three. Anthony Rizzo (0-for-11) and Kris Bryant (1-for-8) have struggled mightily versus Musgrove, who is 2-2 despite a 1.23 ERA in five career starts against the Cubs.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cubs OF Kyle Schwarber homered for the 100th time in his 453rd game Thursday, becoming the fastest player to reach that mark in team history (Bryant, 487).
2. Pittsburgh rookie OF Bryan Reynolds leads the NL with a .335 batting average and ranks fifth in the majors with a .410 on-base percentage.
3. Chicago is 0-10-2 in its last 12 road series and has lost 16 of its last 24 away contests.