The Cubs will see a familiar face on Saturday afternoon -- former starter Ted Lilly. Lilly, a Cubs starter for four seasons, was traded to the Dodgers in 2010. He'll return with Los Angeles today and take the mound against his former team.
Lilly has gotten off to only an okay start this year with the Dodgers. He's 1-2 with a 4.09 ERA and 1.32 WHIP. He's been improving since the beginning of the season, however. In his most recent start against Atlanta, he went seven innings, giving up no runs on four hits and two walks, while striking out six. He has never pitched against the Cubs.
Going for the home team will be Ryan Dempster. Dempster too has had a bit of a rocky start to the year. He's also 1-2, but with a worse ERA and WHIP at 6.84 and 1.52. In his career against the Dodgers, Dempster is 7-3 over twelve starts with a 2.31 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. He'll have to watch out for Andre Ethier today. Ethier has a .412 average and 1.235 OPS against Dempster, with four doubles and a home run.
The weather at Wrigley is forecast to be much better than it has been recently. It will be sunny with a high of 63 degrees and virtually no chance of precipitation. First pitch is at 12:05 P.M., CDT, and the game will be televised on CSN.