Chicago Cubs Look to Keep Offense Alive in Series Against Twins

Let's start with the good: the Chicago Cubs avoided being swept by the St. Louis Cardinals. It's a disappointing result considering that they took two out of three from the Miami Marlins earlier in the homestand. But it put them at 18-19, which sees them sit squarely in third in the NL Central.

Now to the bad: Chicago can't get its offense going. The inability to hit with runners in scoring position is a glaring reminder that the Cubs can have a great rotation. But without the bats, it's a futile effort. 

Minnesota, in a similar vein, is dealing with the same problem. Granted, the Twins sit first in the AL Central with a record of 21-17. Yet it's a weak division and they're the only team with a winning record. 

So where do both of the squads square up ahead of Friday night's game at Target Field at 7:10 pm CT.

Pitching Battles Take Center Stage

The Cubs' pitching is and continues to be the bright spot. Chicago is likely going to kick things off Friday night putting Drew Smyly on the mound against Sonny Gray. 

The left-hander is 3-1 with a 3.05 ERA. He's among the league's ERA leaders. In his past six out of seven starts, he's given up less than two runs. Granted, his last outing wasn't quite ideal. He went just 3 1/3 innings and gave up two earned runs on three hits and three walks. 

But to put him on the mound to start the series is wise. He'll be up against Minnesota's right-hander Sonny Gray. Gray is undefeated at 4-0 with an ERA of 1.35. He also leads the league in MLB starters with 30 innings pitched with an ERA of 1.35. 

Not. Shabby.

But starting Gray is not without a downside: his last outing was less than stellar. He gave up three earned runs on four hits and three walks in five innings of work. 

Saturday night, it'll likely see the Twins put in right-hander Joe Ryan against Chicago's righty Hayden Wesneski. Ryan has already struck out 47 batters this season and holds a record of 5-1 with a 2.45 ERA. He's also gone at least five innings pitched in most of his starts. 

Wesneski has put up half the strikeouts of Ryan. In his three starts, he's got an ERA of 3.93, allowed 15 earned runs and 23 strikeouts. 

Sunday it can be projected to see the Cubs go with Marcus Stroman against Minnesota's Louie Varland. Varland has yet to get a decision in his three starts in the 2023 season but has an ERA of 4.32 with 20 strikeouts over 16.2 innings pitched. 

Stroman on the other hand will come to pitch with a record of 2-3 and a 2.28 ERA. Over 47 1/3 innings pitched, he's struck out 44 with an ERA of 2.28 and a WHIP of 1.06. In the next three days, expect the pitching to shine as the high point between both squads.

Offense Battle Between Bad and Okay

To sum up the offensive battle between both squads it can come down to this: who will end up being the worst?

At first glance, they have a home record of 12-7 so to be favored at Target Field is easy to do. 

Dig deeper and see it will be an uphill struggle for Minnesota. They've had a bottom-10 offense for the whole of the 2023 season. Statistics-wise, the Twins have a .686 OPS and a league-worst .220 team batting average. 

Friday night it'll be rough as Minnesota has struggled against lefties so Smyly will have the advantage. 

Shortstop Carlos Correa has underperformed this season. At his 131 at-bats, he has five homers and 18 RBI with a batting average of .191. 

Only two players for the Twins hold an above .200 average: Jorge Polanco with .222  and Max Kepler with .224. And to their luck, Kepler is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. If the Cubs' pitching can keep Minnesota in the park, they'll keep that Twins offense at bay. 

Chicago is on the up with their bats. Over the last 15 games, there's been an uptick. Offseason member Dansby Swanson has proved he's worth the paycheck. He's batting .310 with three homers and 10 RBIs. A newcomer to the team, Cody Bellinger, is slugging an average of .269 with two homers and five stolen bases. 

Expect to see production from Ian Happ and Christopher Morel as well over the weekend. Chicago can easily outperform the Twins when it comes to their offensive work. They just need to be consistent. 

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