Jake Arrieta looks to lead Cubs to series win over Reds

Even with last night’s loss, the Chicago Cubs showed a lot of fight late, and will look to carry that momentum over into Thursday afternoon’s matchup with the Cincinnati Reds, aiming for a series win at the Great American Ballpark.

Right-hander Jake Arrieta (7-45, 2.53 ERA) will take the ball for Chicago (59-73), looking to show he can be as good on the road as he has been at Wrigley Field this season. At home, the right-hander is 3-1 with a 1.86 earned run average, but is just 4-3 with a still-respectable 3.12 ERA on the road this season. He beat Cincinnati at home back on June 24, allowing just two runs over seven innings of work.

[related-content]

Cincinnati (64-69) will look to a right-hander of their own, Dylan Axelrod (0-0, 3.00 ERA) in this afternoon’s finale. He earned a no-decision in his Reds debut on Aug. 17, allowing two runs on seven hits against the Rockies. Thursday marks his first career start against Chicago.

Chris Coghlan will be a player to keep an eye on today – he’s been better on the road and during day games, meaning today seems to be optimal conditions for the Chicago outfielder. He’s hitting over 30 points higher on the road than at Wrigley this year, and 23 points higher during day games than night contests. He has, however, cooled off in August, hitting just .247, as opposed to a staggering .376 in the month of July.

Today’s game will be on both WGN and MLB Network and WGN-AM 720 will have the radio call. First pitch is slated for 11:35 a.m. CT.

Here are the starting lineups: