After being rained out on Monday night's game, the Cubs and Nationals will once again try to open their series at Wrigley Field. The weather in Chicago on Tuesday has thus far cooperated, and it looks like the second take of the opener will proceed much better than the first.
Matt Garza, 5-8 with a 3.78 ERA and 1.30 WHIP, will take the mound for the Cubs on Tuesday night. Garza is coming off of a start on the road against Pittsburgh in which he threw 7.0 shutout innings, walking two while striking out seven. In his last game against the Nationals, however, Garza gave up seven runs (six earned) on eight hits and two walks over just two innings pitched. This year, Danny Espinosa is 2-for-3 against Garza, while Wilson Ramos is 1-for-2 with a double.
Chien-Ming Wang, 0-2 with a 6.00 ERA and 1.89 WHIP, will start for the Nationals. Wang's most recent start, his first since an extended absence, was a bit of a disaster. Against Atlanta, he gave up six runs (two earned) on seven hits and a walk over 5.0 innings pitched. In his career against the Cubs, Wang is 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA and 1.75 WHIP.
The weather in Chicago is forecast to be pleasant, with a game time temperature in the upper 70's to low 80's. First pitch is at 7:05 P.M., CDT, and the game will be televised on CSN and MASN HD.