Chicago Cubs Lineup (6/20/25): PCA Batting Cleanup, McGuire Catching, Boyd Starting
This has been a weird week, so I’m looking forward to some sunshine this weekend. Chicago may be getting a little rain in the late morning and early afternoon, but that should blow through prior to he game. In its wake will be the highest temps of the year, which could be made much worse by humidity. Stay hydrated, folks.
The heat could put even more pressure on each team’s respective pitching staffs, which could work in the Cubs’ favor. Matthew Boyd has gone at least six innings in each of his last four starts and in seven of the last eight, and keeping the bullpen rested heading into the mid-90s temps on Saturday and Sunday will be important. I don’t think anyone expected the oft-injured lefty to be second on the team in innings pitched, yet here we are with him at 80.2 so far.
Jameson Taillon is first at 86.2 innings, then it’s Boyd, Ben Brown (74.1), and Colin Rea (68). That the Cubs are doing as well as they are with that quartet as the primary starters is pretty wild. The bullpen has been incredible over the last month or more and the rotation should get a boost soon with Shota Imanaga’s return, but Boyd continuing to pitch like he has will be huge.
The offense came around a little against Milwaukee, even though it was a little too late to get a win on Thursday. Keeping the bats going against a Mariners squad with some high-end pitching talent is a must. Ian Happ leads off in left, Kyle Tucker is in right, Seiya Suzuki is the DH, and Pete Crow-Armstrong is in center. Dansby Swanson bats fifth, Michael Busch is at first, Nico Hoerner is at second, and Matt Shaw takes third. Reese McGuire rounds out the order behind the dish.
On the bump for the visitors is George Kirby, who is having a very rough campaign after three consistent seasons to open his career. His strikeouts are up significantly and his fastball is up to 96.2 mph, his highest average velo ever, but his walk rate has more than doubled over the last two years and he’s giving up loads of hard contact. That could be a function of his late start to the season due to a bout of right shoulder inflammation that has limited him to five starts so far.
The strikeout numbers might be a bit of a mirage too, as 14 of his 30 punches came in one start against the Angels. He went seven in that one, the only time he’s pitched beyond five innings so far. Kirby has traditionally pitched to almost even splits, but left-handed hitters have really gotten to him so far. That could be due to his four-seam and sinker blending together more than they have in the past.
Both pitches have identical velocity, but the four-seam is running more and the sinker is riding more. Those two make up nearly 60% of his repertoire, so not having them as sharp as in the past is obviously a detriment. The bigger issue, however, is a slider that has flattened out with more sweep and a little less depth than he had last year. His curveball is being thrown harder and with sharper break, so it’s making up for a little of what the slider has lost.
Finally, his splitter has been pretty terrible in limited usage. That and the curve are used mainly to lefty batters, so getting only mediocre value from that combo isn’t a good thing. As long as he doesn’t recapture his form this afternoon, the Cubs should be able to make a few loud noises to start this series with a bang.
First pitch is at 1:20pm CT on Marquee and 670 The Score. Sammy Sosa will be in the house for this one as well.
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— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) June 20, 2025
