Chicago Cubs vs. Atlanta Braves Preview, Wednesday, 5/15, 6:20 a.m. CT

Today’s roster change: here

Wednesday notes:

• THE BRAVES EXCLUDE THE CUBS: Last night’s game was the Cubs’ 1,968th game against the Braves since 1901, the first season of the modern era. It was the 141st time the Cubs had been shut out, or about 1 in 14. But Monday and yesterday marked just the 12th time they failed to score against the Braves in consecutive games. This is only the second time since the beginning of 1993. The previous pair took place on April 27 and 28, 2021. They only scored three times in a row: on 27 and 29 April 1992, in Atlanta, where they lost 5-0. , 1-0 and 8-0. In the first game, Tom Glavine threw a complete game two-hitter, walking one and striking out six. In Game 2, Charlie Leibrandt allowed one hit in seven innings and struck out four. A pair of relievers gave up two more hits and fanned two more. The Cubs received no walks. In the finale, John Smoltz went the distance, working around seven hits and three walks while striking out 9. The Cubs finished the series with no runs, 12 hits, 4 walks and 21 strikeouts . So far in this series, they have no runs, eight hits, three walks and 19 strikeouts. (Courtesy of JohnW53 of BCB)
• STARTING PITCHING, GOOD: Cubs starters have a 3.17 ERA through 43 games, the third-best starting ERA in MLB, behind only the Red Sox and Phillies.
• Backup pitching, not so much: Cubs relievers have a 4.50 ERA through 43 games. That ranks 24th in MLB, ahead of only the Rays, Marlins, Giants, Blue Jays, Rangers and Angels.

Here are the details for the day.

Composition of the Cubs:

Braves lineup:

Javier Assad, RHP vs. Charlie Morton, RHP

Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Javier Assad had a bit of a rough outing in his last start, on May 10 against the Pirates, failing to complete five innings. He allowed two runs (one earned) and has not allowed more than two runs in his eight starts this year.

Last year, he made one start and two relief appearances against the Braves, with a 6.75 ERA and 1.650 WHIP, with two home runs allowed in just 6⅔ innings (Ozzie Albies, Ronald Acuña Jr.) . He will have to be better than that tonight.

Charlie Morton, wow. He’s 40 years old and still going strong. Among his teammates during his first year in Atlanta (2008) were Chipper Jones and Mike Hampton.

Regardless, this year Morton has made seven starts and five of them have been very good. Last year, the Cubs got five runs (four earned) in less than five innings on Aug. 6 at Wrigley Field. Historically, Cody Bellinger has hit it well – 6 for 17 (.353) with two doubles, a triple and two walks.

Statistics

Statistics

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. You can find out if Marquee is available through a provider in your area here.

Here’s MLB.com’s full live stream page for today.

Game Day MLB.com

Game Overview Baseball-reference.com

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The procedure for the 2024 Game Thread will be similar to last year, similar to what we used for spring training.

You will find the game preview published separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games after evening games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also be posted on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of the week/date).” It will contain all articles related to that particular game, including the first thread and the overflow thread, as well as the recap when it is published. The recap will also be published on the front page in a separate article.

You can also find the preview, the First Pitch Thread and the overflow thread in the “Chicago Cubs Game Threads” box at the bottom of the first page (you can also find them in this link section). The StoryStream for each game can also be found in this section.

The First Pitch thread will be posted five minutes before game time, followed by an overflow thread 90 minutes after scheduled game time.

Discuss it among yourselves.