The Chicago Cubs will go for a three-game sweep when they host the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday night.
Chicago won the series opener 3-1 and stormed to a 9-4 win on Saturday. The Cubs have won five of their past six games and boast a 23-11 record at home.
“It’s a pretty good team right now,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon told reporters.
Meanwhile, St. Louis has lost three of four and will try to salvage a win at Wrigley Field, where it is 0-5 this season.
Home sweeps have defined the division rivals’ matchups this season. The Cubs swept a three-game series on their home field from May 3-5. Then the Cardinals swept a three-game set in St. Louis from May 31-June 2. Now another sweep is on the line.
Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks (6-4, 3.16 ERA) is scheduled to make his 13th start. He has posted seven quality starts, including three in a row as he heads into the series finale.
Hendricks is 3-1 with a 1.71 ERA in six starts at home this season, compared to 3-3 with a 4.89 ERA in six starts on the road. Throughout his career, he has been stellar at Wrigley Field, posting a 29-17 record with a 2.64 ERA in 73 games (72 starts).
In 15 starts against the Cardinals, Hendricks is 6-2 with a 3.05 ERA. He has walked 20 and struck out 71 in 94 1/3 innings.
St. Louis will counter with veteran right-hander Adam Wainwright (5-5, 4.34 ERA), who also will be making his 13th start. He is coming off a strong performance against the Cubs a week ago in which he pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and walking seven while striking out eight. He threw a season-high 126 pitches in the 2-1 victory.
The 37-year-old has logged 1,998 1/3 innings in his career — which has been spent entirely in St. Louis — meaning he needs only five more outs to become the sixth pitcher in Cardinals history to pitch 2,000 innings. He is tied for fourth place with 153 career victories, and another win would move him into sole possession of fourth behind only Bob Gibson (251), Jesse Haines (210) and Bob Forsch (163).
In 47 games (38 starts) against the Cubs, Wainwright is 16-11 with a 4.02 ERA. His 16 career victories against the Cubs are tied for the most against any opponent during his career. He also has 16 wins against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Cardinals manager Mike Shildt acknowledged that he and his players likely will be scoreboard watching during Sunday’s game — except their curiosity will have nothing to do with baseball. They will be rooting from afar as the St. Louis Blues try to claim their first Stanley Cup championship in team history on Sunday evening.
“We’re a really close group,” Shildt said in comments published by the Chicago Tribune. “We go to their games, they go to our games. It’s really cool. … I honestly feel like they’re going to bring it home and it’s going to be a magical day in St. Louis. But we also have to take care of our business.”