Giants at Cubs
The Chicago Cubs return to the friendly confines of Wrigley Field for a six-game homestand that starts Tuesday against the San Francisco Giants after accomplishing a rare feat. Chicago won consecutive contests on the road for the first time since the All-Star break and second time since winning four straight from April 27-May 1 with Sunday's 7-1 victory over Pittsburgh at the MLB Little League Classic in Williamsport, Pa.
"It feels good, right?" Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo told reporters Sunday after belting a two-run homer and helping his club snap a 14-series winless skid on the road (0-12-2). "Every game is meaningful and to win the two in a row on the road, which has been a struggle for us, is nice." Chicago, which trails first-place St. Louis by one-half game in the National League Central, is 41-19 at home and 25-39 on the road - the third-worst record in the NL coming into the week and least prolific among any playoff contender in baseball. San Francisco, which boasts six wins in its last eight games, has a chance to make up ground in the wild card race as sits 3 1/2 games behind Chicago for the final spot. Cubs lefty Cole Hamels on Tuesday tries to bounce back after allowing a season-high eight runs in his last start and opposes a struggling Tyler Beede, who pitches his first game at Wrigley Field.
TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, NBCS Bay Area (San Francisco), NBCS Chicago Plus
PITCHING MATCHUP: Giants RH Tyler Beede (3-7, 5.77 ERA) vs. Cubs LH Cole Hamels (6-4, 3.69)
Beede yielded four runs and eight hits with five strikeouts in four-plus innings of a 9-5 loss to Oakland on Wednesday. The 26-year-old Massachusetts native is 0-4 with an 8.49 ERA over his last five outings, permitting four or five runs in each turn. Beede lost his only appearance against Chicago, allowing three home runs in 5 2/3 innings of a 4-1 loss to the Cubs on July 24.
Hamels has been roughed up in two of his three starts since missing July with an oblique injury, yielding five runs (four earned) over three innings of Chicago's 12-5 victory at Cincinnati on Aug. 8. The 35-year-old San Diego native, who pitched five shutout innings versus Milwaukee in his return Aug. 3, had a string of five straight quality starts snapped when he left the June 28 game against the Reds after one inning. San Francisco's Buster Posey is 13-for-24 with two home runs and six RBIs versus Hamels, who is 6-4 with 4.33 ERA in 16 career starts against the Giants.
WALK-OFFS
1. San Francisco OF Mike Yastrzemski is 10-for-26 with five home runs, a triple, double, eight RBIs and seven runs scored in his last six games.
2. Chicago starters have yielded one run in their last four games over 27 innings, lowering the unit's ERA to 3.99 this season.
3. The Giants took two of three from the Cubs last month as they bid for their first season series victory since 2014, losing three and tying one since.