Kyle Hendricks kicks off weekend series on the South Side vs White Sox

Skipper Joe Maddon and this red-hot Chicago Cubs team will begin a brief three-game weekend “road trip” this afternoon when they travel to the South Side of the city to take on the Chicago White Sox.

Yesterday, this offense blasted off with a total of five home runs – three of which came during the fifth inning. Dexter Fowler, Kyle Schwarber, and Anthony Rizzo each deposited one in the bleachers that inning while Schwarber added another during the seventh which extended the Cubs (65-48) lead to 7-2 over the Milwaukee Brewers.

Their sweep of the Brewers gave them their first unbeaten homestand of at least seven games since the 2008 campaign and extended their winning streak to seven games. Which is second best behind the Toronto Blue Jays and their stretch of 11 games.

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Now, Kyle Hendricks will look to keep things rolling when he takes the bump opposite another former Cub in right-handed pitcher, Jeff Samardzija. Hendricks (6-5, 3.73 ERA) has picked up two starts to open up the month of August and has won both while visiting the Brewers on the road and hosting the defending World Series champions.

He’s allowed a combined four earned runs on nine hits including one big fly while issuing four walks and recording 11 strikeouts across 12 1/3 innings of work. The 25-year-old has worked through 128 frames this season.

Samardzija (8-7, 4.62 ERA), on the other hand, has struggled in his previous two outings for the White Sox (54-58) with a total of 16 earned runs on 14 hits in only 9 1/3 of work. He has allowed only two home runs with four walks, three batters plunked and four strikeouts against the Yankees and Royals.

Hopefully, these young bucks will continue their air show since this offense was almost non-existent before the All-Star break. The White Sox claimed 2-of-3 at Wrigley Field in mid-July.

First pitch is slated for 3:10 p.m. central time and will air live on CSN, WBBM 780.

Here’s a look at today’s starting lineup’s:

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