The Chicago Cubs (59-56) will be trying to bounce back from their series loss to the New York Mets when they face the Toronto Blue Jays (65-51) in the first game of their three-game interleague series on Friday night.
Javier Assad, 1-2, 3.35 ERA, will get the start for the Cubs. The Blue Jays will counter with Jose Berrios, 9-7, 3.38 ERA.
Chicago and Toronto split their last 10 meetings.
**This preview was written before Thursday’s game was played**
The Cubs followed up their series win over the Braves with a series loss to the struggling Mets and they’re not 2.5 games behind Milwaukee in the NL Central standings. They will try to bounce back from the loss with a win over the Blue Jays, which will give them their seventh win in their last 10 games and the series lead.
Chicago is averaging 5.06 runs per game. Their .256 batting average is eighth in the league. Their .334 on base percentage is fourth, while their .420 slugging percentage is ninth.
Nico Hoerner leads the Cubs with a .275 batting average and 58 RBI, while Patrick Wisdom leads the team with 19 home runs.
Chicago’s pitching has been good, with the team giving up 4.49 runs per game. Opponents have a .245 batting average against the Cubs, which is 15th in the league. Their 4.15 ERA is also 15th, while the ir 1.28 WHIP is 17th.
In his last start, Assad gave up five hits and two runs in 3.2 innings, leading to an 8-6 win over Atlanta. They will need a better effort from him if they want to win this game.