Cubs are set to face their biggest test of the season against Braves
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What makes the Cubs vs. Braves series a significant matchup?
This is Rahimi Harrison-Grody on a Tuesday, 104.3 The Score. And we come to you talking ahead of a Cubs and Braves series that certainly looks like the matchup of two of the best teams in baseball right now. American League, I'm not talking to you. Everybody's 19 and 20 or something in the AL. So it's definitely Cubs and Braves. And we were talking in our pre-show meeting today about Colin Ray taking the hill, facing off against Grant Holmes. And Marshall, you had a usage question for Colin Ray that I thought that on both sides of town, we were past the idea of the opener. But I think you make a decent case that
Well, look, Layla, you have to understand something. This Cubs team has chosen that they're very good here to start the season, one of the best records in all of baseball. And one of the reasons is Craig Council has expertly been able to navigate being short starters, whether it's Matthew Boyd, whether it's the delayed return of Justin Steele, whether it's Cade Horton being out for the season. And one of the things he's had to employ is this idea that Colin Ray is more than just a swing guy. Colin Ray has had himself quite the run with the Cubs over the last two years. He'll be getting the start tonight. And you go back to last year and understand that even though he was supposed to be in the bullpen,
Out of his 32 appearances, 27 of them were starts. And then this year, now he's up to five games started out of eight appearances. One of those was in a bulk roll against the Philadelphia Phillies, in which Craig Council kind of got this whole thing started. When you talk about their 20-5 stretch, because he used an opener. Going up against the best offense in baseball from a run scored from a batting average perspective, it would make sense to me if Craig Council had chosen that route. And he might be making a mistake by not using an opener in this one. Understanding that his outings have been solid, right? He hasn't given up more than three runs except for one time.
How has Colin Ray's role evolved in the Cubs' pitching strategy?
And that one time was against the Dodgers, another elite offense. Now you're going up against another elite offense. I think to help them stretch out what they get from their bulk out-getter, that's what we'll call them because that's what Craig Council likes to say, putting an opener here might soften things because that top of the order is quite dangerous if you're the Atlanta Braves.
Especially at home, and it's important to note that when you mentioned that Phillies game, 4-14, April 14th, that was the beginning of their first of two 10-game win streaks. So when you put it that way, I think it's a compelling argument. Phillies, as we know, are not the juggernaut that we thought they were. But I think the Braves, Mark, are every bit of what we think they are. This is a matchup, even record-wise. You're looking at two of the best teams with the 27-14 Cubs team, even though they got shut out in back-to-back games in Texas, and then 28-13 Braves.
The Braves are coming off a series in L.A. against the mighty, mighty Dodgers in which they took two out of three in the last two games were identical scores of seven to two. So the Braves really planted their flag right there to say, yeah, we're legit. And they're going to want to further legitimize when the Cubs come through town. To Marshall's point, the Braves right now are leading the league in runs per game, batting average, and slug. So I am all for doing what you have to do during the course of a game pitching-wise to beat a team like the Braves. I hear you, Marshall, but I think I'd rather see Colin Ray just go from the beginning. He was really strong in his previous two starts, and I get it, what you're saying about the Dodgers against Cincinnati and Arizona.
Only bad game, really, of the year, if you want to make the point, was against the Dodgers, and that's why Colin Ray's ERA right now reads .403. The other reason, though, too, is I think the Cubs are going to go off on Grant Holmes in this game. Maybe this is being offensively explicit.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What makes the Cubs vs. Braves series a significant matchup?
0:00–2:04
2
How has Colin Ray's role evolved in the Cubs' pitching strategy?
2:04–5:48
3
What are the implications of Craig Council's pitching decisions?
5:48–9:37
4
How do the Cubs' recent performances affect their confidence against the Braves?
9:37–11:22
5
What stats highlight the Braves' offensive strength this season?
11:22–16:10
Speakers
3 identifiedMore from Rahimi & Grote Show
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