Baseball has seen a few days of strange happenings around the league. In the AL, the White Sox endured a night game in Texas that featured a three hour rain delay and concluded around 1:30 A.M. the next morning. And just yesterday, the Cubs' central division foes the Cincinnati Reds were involved in a 19 inning, 6 hour affair against the Phillies that also ended after the calendar had flipped. Could the Cubs possibly be next in line for a supersized game?
Though anything is possible, given the current weather situation in Chicago it would seem more likely that Thursday afternoon's rubber match against the Mets will be shortened, as was the case with Wednesday evening's game, rather than stretched out. The 1:20 P.M. start will feature Carlos Zambrano taking on knuckleballer R.A. Dickey.
Zambrano is looking to get his starts back on track after a few rough trips to the mound. On the season he's 4-2 with a 4.88 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. In his last start, against Boston, he gave up three runs on seven innings of work, but earned a no decision as the Cubs won the game in the later innings. In his career against the Mets, Big Z is 5-3 with a 3.52 ERA and 1.36 WHIP. Jason Bay holds a .341 average against Zambrano, with four doubles, a triple, and five home runs in just 41 at-bats.
Pitching for the Mets will be R.A. Dickey. Dickey has had a few spectacular starts on the season, but also several mediocre ones. So far he's 2-5 with a 4.71 ERA and 1.55 WHIP. In his career against the Cubs, Dickey is 0-1 with a 10.50 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. Starlin Castro is 2-for-3 against Dickey, while Reed Johnson is 1-for-3 with a double.
The weather in Chicago is forecast to be cloudy and windy, with temperatures in the upper-40s and a strong chance of rain. First pitch is at 1:20 P.M., and the game will be televised on WGN and SNY.