Jon Lester gets the call to open up weekend series vs the D’backs

Following Jake Arrieta‘s no-hitter this past Sunday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, it’s been a disappointing homestand thus far for the Chicago Cubs who dropped two games out of three to the Cincinnati Reds.

Skipper Joe Maddon will call upon southpaw Jon Lester to get things going as they welcome in the Arizona Diamondbacks (65-69) for a three-game weekend set.

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Lester (8-10, 3.59 ERA) was issued the loss in his previous outing this past Saturday against former Red, Mat Latos. Los Angeles chased him with five earned runs on eight hits while recording seven strikeouts across six innings of work.

Chicago (75-57) had Lester on the mound during a weekend road set against Arizona and ended up working a no-decision. Jon held the D’backs to two earned runs on five hits prior to exiting after the seventh.

Thankfully, the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants are riding a combined 10-game losing streak. While the losses to the last-place Reds haven’t necessarily hurt them, being unable to take advantage of Pittsburgh and San Francisco’s late decline is somewhat disappointing and frustrating.

However, there’s still plenty of time to extend their N.L. Wild Card lead while catching the Pirates for second place.

The man looking to get in Lester’s way is former Cubs 10th round draft pick, Zack Godley. Godley (4-0, 1.90 ERA) was traded to Arizona this year in a deal that involved Miguel Montero coming to the North Side of Chicago.

He made his big league debut against the Milwaukee Brewers on July 23 and has been lights out ever since. Godley has made five appearances for the D’backs, three of which were starts and has allowed only five earned runs on 15 hits with a 1.10 WHIP and 22/8 K/BB ratio across 23 2/3 innings.

First pitch is slated for 1:20 p.m. and will air live on CSN, MLB Network, and WBBM 780 A.M.

Here’s a look at today’s starting lineup’s for both clubs:

Next: Is it time for a change in the starting rotation?