Ryan Dempster, the 34-year old righty who acts as the de facto ace of the Chicago Cubs, is off the 15-day DL and will start for the North Siders on Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds. Dempster will try to follow in the footsteps of Jeff Samardzija, who schooled the Cincinnati offense on Wednesday during a 3-1 Chicago victory.
Dempster missed his last couple of starts with a quad injury but did not need a rehab assignment. He enters 0-1 on the young season with a 1.33 ERA and 0.93 WHIP.
Cincinnati will send out 25-year old righty Homer Bailey. Bailey is 1-2 with a 3.60 ERA and 1.36 WHIP.
Chicago returns home for a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday.
Game date/time: Thursday, May 3, 11:35 a.m.
Location: Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati, Ohio
TV: Comcast SportsNet
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