Chicago Cubs @ Los Angeles Angels – Series Preview (August 22-24): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
The Cubs (73-55) won three of five from the first-place Brewers at Wrigley Field, handing them their first series loss since July. The North Siders still finds themselves seven games behind Milwaukee in the NL Central and a Wild Card berth is much more likely path to the postseason. They now heads out on the road to finish August with a West Coast trip beginning with three against the Angels starting Friday.
The Angels (61-66) have been hovering below the .500 mark most of the season and find themselves with faint hopes in the playoff race. They did get a boost with the return of superstar outfielder Mike Trout from injury, but the team OPS of .713 ranks just 15th in baseball.
The one thing the Angels have plenty of is power, with 179 total home runs, the fourth most in MLB. Left fielder Taylor Ward has 29 and center fielder Jo Adell has 28 to lead the way, with Trout up to 20 dingers. Shortstop Zach Neto is having a big year on defense and with the bat to lead the team in WAR (4.5).
The Halos’ pitching staff has been a mess most of the season, with a 4.67 team ERA that is the fourth worst in baseball. The ace of the rotation is probably former Mariner lefty Yusei Kikuchi, but the Cubs won’t see him in this series.
Los Angeles has had even more struggles with the bullpen, but veteran closer Kenley Jansen has amassed 23 saves with a 3.00 ERA in 2025. Former Cubs lefty Andrew Chafin and Luis García were acquired at the deadline from Washington to try and improve the relief unit.
Chicago faces three opponents with losing records on this trip, which provides an opportunity to win some games if they can take advantage of it. Things would be a lot easier on the North Siders if they could get their offense back into gear. Maybe this will be the weekend the bats wake up.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Friday, August 22 at 8:38pm CT on Marquee.
- Saturday, August 23 at 8:38pm CT on Marquee.
- Sunday, August 24 at 3:07pm CT on Marquee.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 8/22 | Javier Assad | 28 | R | 5.63 | 0-1 | 4.62 | 2.50 |
| Tyler Anderson | 35 | L | 4.77 | 2–8 | 5.65 | 1.88 | |
| 8/23 | Cade Horton | 24 | R | 3.08 | 7-4 | 3.87 | 2.50 |
| Victor Mederos | 24 | L | 5.54 | 0-1 | 6.34 | 1.00 | |
| 8/24 | Jameson Taillon | 33 | R | 4.26 | 8-6 | 5.02 | 3.71 |
| Kyle Hendricks | 35 | R | 4.93 | 6-8 | 4.84 | 2.50 |
What to Watch For
- Kyle Tucker, Seiya Suzuki, and Pete Crow-Armstrong have hit five combined homers in the second half (32 games) after combining for 67 in the first half (96 games).
- Horton had to leave his previous start early with a blister on his middle finger.
