It hasn't been long since these teams faced each other, with the Miami Marlins (16-17) sweeping the Chicago Cubs (16-16) in Florida. Now, the series has shifted to the North Side, as Wrigley Field is hosting these clubs for three matchups. The first game took place Friday afternoon, with the home team leaving happy after a 4-1 victory. This is game two, with the first pitch set for 2:20 p.m. EDT on Saturday. While this may not carry the weight of the infamous 2003 NLCS between these franchises, there's still plenty to know about both sides.
.@ihapp_1 visits the bleachers! pic.twitter.com/zjqr2ElcCp
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) May 5, 2023
The Miami Marlins are 1-6 against the Atlanta Braves after getting swept by them this week. They entered this series 15-10 against everyone else. If Miami wants to compete this season, they can't let those games carry into other series. Miami could use any semblance of consistent offensive life though. The Marlins came into this weekend 29th in runs scored, along with a bottom-10 walk rate and strikeout rate. They have Luis Arraez in the lineup too, who came into this series with a casual .424/.482/.535 slash line. Most of the lineup is severely underperforming thus far.
On the pitching front, the Marlins haven't been much better, entering the weekend 22nd in ERA. They're 25th as a unit in FIP, with a reliever group that's bottom-10 in WAR, ERA, and FIP. Bryan Hoeing will start for Miami in this one, with a chance to lead the team over the Cubs again. He faced them last week and pitched 5.0 inning s, only giving up two runs. Hoeing walked one batter but allowed five hits. It was much better than his only other start this season, where he allowed four runs in 3.2 innings.
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