Chicago Cubs head to St. Louis with division in reach

The Chicago Cubs head to St. Louis with an opportunity to clinch the NL Central on their rivals turf. Kyle Hendricks will take the mound in the opener as he looks to make his case for Cy Young.

The Chicago Cubs and their unexpected Cy Young candidate Kyle Hendricks venture into St. Louis for a three-game series and a magic number of five. The Cubs (91-51) hope to clinch the division soon, but doing in front of the Cardinals would be a little bit sweeter for the fans. The Cardinals (75-67) continue to battle for the last Wild Card. They’re current one-half game behind the New York Mets.

Hendricks (14-7, 2.07) hasn’t allowed more than three runs in his last 19 starts. And he has the league lead in ERA with his 2.07. His streak of three runs or less allowed is the longest of any major league pitcher this season. Suddenly the comparisons made about Greg Maddux don’t seem so crazy anymore.

The Cubs are just 6-7 against the Cardinals this season but have had success ay Busch Stadium as they have won four of the last six. The Cubs haven’t won a season series against St. Louis since 2010, but this would be a great time to change that. A sweep would mean a Central-clinching win on Wednesday.

The Cards will send Mike Leake (9-9, 4.61) to the hill for just the second time since he returned from the DL with shingles. The Cubs have hit Leake hard; in 13 innings he’s posted a 4.15 ERA against the Cubs.

It’s possible the Cardinals could see Aledmys Diaz return to the starting lineup for the first time since July 31. After being activated off the DL on Sunday, they could use his .333 average (10-for-30 in nine games) in the lineup.

Here are the lineups for tonight’s series opener:

First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. CT. Out-of-market fans can catch it on MLBN, while the rest can see it on CSN Chicago. The radio broadcast will, as usual, be on 670 The Score. Be sure to check back during the game for more news!