Chicago Cubs Lineup (5/30/26): PCA Leading Off, Amaya Catching, Brown Bump Day
I feel like this has been happening so often lately that my apologies are becoming a little trite, but this is going to be another abbreviated breakdown. We have spent most of the day so far at high school baseball sectional games, and now it’s time to load up a Bagster with all the detritus from our basement and garage. Fun times indeed. The good news is that I’ve got a massive cowboy ribeye to grill up when the day is done.
Ben Brown has been nothing short of a revelation in his return to the rotation this season, a move that only came as a result of multiple injuries. That he’s 0-1 in four non-opening starts despite a 1.89 ERA tells you all you need to know about the lack of run support he’s gotten. The righty’s fastball velocity has increased each time out, an impressive feat considering he’s gone deeper in his last two starts, and one of the few Cubs starters who doesn’t give up loads of homers.
The inability to keep the ball in the yard was the Cubs’ undoing last night, and that’s been the case most of the season. Living the Cards to base knocks should give the lineup a chance.
Pete Crow-Armstrong is primed for a breakout as he keeps hitting the ball hard without the big results, and he’s leading off again in center. Nico Hoerner bats and plays second, Michael Busch bats third at first, Alex Bregman cleans up at third, and Ian Happ is looking for his fourth straight game with a homer. Seiya Suzuki bats sixth, Moisés Ballesteros is the DH, Miguel Amaya is the catcher, and Dansby Swanson handles short.
They’re up against 28-year-old Kyle Leahy, who is only the third MLB player in history with that surname and the first to debut after the 19th century. That’s fitting because he’s kind of a throwback, what with that pedestrian 93.7 mph fastball. Believe it or not, that puts him in the 35th percentile this season. That velo plays up a little due to Leahy’s 7.2-foot extension, which is about the only area in which he excels.
While his 46.6% grounder rate is also solid, Leahy is among the worst in baseball when it comes to allowing hard contact. That’s mainly due to his struggles with left-handed hitters, who are slashing .336/.416/.555 with six homers so far this season. Almost all of that damage has come on the road, though, so maybe the Tarps-Off crew has provided him with some sort of added power.
The Cubs have a .736 OPS over 32 at-bats against Leahy, but they’ve yet to homer against him. I have a feeling that’s going to change tonight, and I’ll take Busch and Happ to do some of the damage. Leahy has a high three-quarter slot, yet works east/west like someone throwing from a lower angle. He isn’t deceptive, hence the high walk rate and all the hard contact, and he tends to leave a lot of pitches right over the heart of the plate.
This is a game the Cubs should be able to use as a way to back in the win column, but it’s far from a guarantee. First pitch is at 6:15pm CT on Marquee and The Score.
