Washington Nationals (37-56, fifth in the NL East) vs. Chicago Cubs (43-49, third in the NL Central)
Chicago; Monday, 8:05 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: MacKenzie Gore (4-7, 4.42 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 108 strikeouts); Cubs: Drew Smyly (7-6, 4.50 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 79 strikeouts)
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Cubs -145, Nationals +124; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Chicago Cubs host the Washington Nationals to begin a three-game series.
Chicago has a 22-24 record in home games and a 43-49 record overall. The Cubs have hit 100 total home runs to rank 10th in the NL.
Washington is 37-56 overall and 22-24 on the road. Nationals hitters are batting a collective .260, which ranks third in the NL.
Monday’s game is the fifth time these teams square off this season. The Nationals are ahead 3-1 in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Nico Hoerner has 15 doubles, four triples and five home runs for the Cubs. Cody Bellinger is 16-for-37 with a double, five home runs and 12 RBI over the past 10 games.
Lane Thomas has 24 doubles, two triples, 14 home runs and 50 RBI for the Nationals. Joey Meneses is 10-for-37 with two doubles, four home runs and 10 RBI over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Cubs: 5-5, .244 batting average, 5.46 ERA, outscored by three runs
Nationals: 3-7, .251 batting average, 5.60 ERA, outscored by 13 runs
INJURIES: Cubs: Dansby Swanson: 10-Day IL (heel), Nick Madrigal: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Brad Boxberger: 60-Day IL (forearm), Brandon Hughes: 60-Day IL (knee), Adrian Sampson: 60-Day IL (knee), Nick Burdi: 60-Day IL (appendicitis), Codi Heuer: 60-Day IL (elbow), Ethan Roberts: 60-Day IL (elbow)
Nationals: Jeimer Candelario: day-to-day (thumb), Cade Cavalli: 60-Day IL (elbow), Thad Ward: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Carl Edwards Jr.: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Victor Robles: 10-Day IL (back), Israel Pineda: 10-Day IL (finger), Stephen Strasburg: 60-Day IL (ribs/shoulder), Tanner Rainey: 60-Day IL (elbow), Victor Arano: 60-Day IL (shoulder)
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
