Chicago Cubs Lineup (7/22/25): Hoerner Leads Off, Turner at 1B, Boyd Facing Hill

The Cubs fell out of first place in the division with last night’s loss, but their position is more about the Brewers riding an insane hot stretch. As long as Craig Counsell‘s squad continues to play good baseball on the whole, they should be able to outlast their rivals to the north. Getting a win tonight would be a good way to start.

Matt Boyd is on the bump for the first time in 10 days as the Cubs balance the need to throw him as much as possible with the reality that his durability remains questionable. Though the lefty has gotten better as the season has gone on, closing the first half with his best start of the season, his 111.2 innings are his most in a season since 2019.

And we’re talking 33 more innings than in any of the last five seasons. That’s how you end up with bullpen games once a week, something that has not served the Cubs well at all during that stretch. The need for pitching help has been obvious for some time now, and they’re not doing themselves any favors when potential trade partners can smell the stench of desperation wafting from their personnel moves.

Alas, getting another big game from Boyd would help to calm things down a little bit. Getting a dozen runs or so would also be nice. Nico Hoerner leads off with a southpaw on the mound, Kyle Tucker is in right, and Seiya Suzuki is the DH. Carson Kelly is behind the dish, Pete Crow-Armstrong returns to the lineup in center, Dansby Swanson is at short, and Ian Happ is in left. Justin Turner gets the start at first because the Cubs want to shield Michael Busch from the Royals’ juggernaut lefty, and Matt Shaw is at third.

They’d better have brought their hiking shoes, because they’re going to have to summit Rich Hill tonight. Or Dick Mountain if you’d prefer to address him more formally. Hill was drafted by the Cubs in 2002, about six months before teammate Jac Caglianone was born, and debuted just over 20 years ago. This is his first start of the season for the Royals, making them the 14th MLB team he’s pitched for in 23 total seasons.

Among those, only three — Red Sox (6), Yankees, and Cubs (4) — have employed him for more than one season. What I admire most about Hill is that it’s so obvious how much this dude obviously loves to pitch and just play ball. I’m only about nine months older, and I can barely get my body right to play old-man softball once a week in the summer. Yet here’s this 45-year-old man grinding his way back through the minors.

That’s why I’m almost upset about what should be a big game from the Cubs. Hill had a 5.22 ERA over 11 starts with the Royals’ ACL and Triple-A affiliates, and he’s given up 11 homers on 50 total hits over 50 innings. He has struck out 61, though, so the aged lefty still has plenty of junk in his hobo sack.

Barring a wild upgrade, he’ll be combining an 86 mph fastball with a 70 mph sweeper that gets tons of horizontal break coming from a low slot. Hill also has a cutter at 84, a massive slurve that gets nearly as much H-break as his sweeper with above-average depth to boot, and the occasional sinker. That’s what he was throwing last year, anyway. Hill dominated left-handed hitters in a very brief stint with Boston last season, but his career splits are mild.

This is not a pitcher who should give Cubs hitters much trouble at all tonight, but we’ve seen on more than one occasion how the bats can go cold. My hope is that this is one of those games where we can spend a little time marveling at the fact that a dude in his mid-40s can still pitch at the highest level before scratching our heads and asking whether a dude in his mid-40s should be pitching anywhere other than a locall men’s league.

First pitch is at 7:05pm CT on Marquee and 670 The Score.

Boyd day.

Watch tonight’s game on the Marquee Sports Network App. pic.twitter.com/pkrf7ske8o

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 22, 2025