vs.
Friday, 7:15: Rich Hill [1-0, 3.79] vs. Adam Wainwright [3-1, 2.79]
Saturday, 2:45: Ted Lilly [1-4, 6.46] vs. Kyle Lohse [3-0, 2.36]
Sunday, 7:05: Jason Marquis [1-1, 4.45] vs. Todd Wellemeyer [2-1, 4.14]
This series sets up pretty well for us: the Cardinals arguably have the advantage in all three pitching matchups (who ever would have thought that a month ago?) plus they have had an extra day of rest.
There has been a bunch of talk about the Cardinals' early season schedule being weak. But frankly, it hasn't been all that different from the Cubs' early schedule. The Cubs have played 11 road games. The Cardinals have played 11 road games. And they've played mostly the same teams, the only difference being that we have not played the Mets and Phillies, while they have not played the Giants. The Mets and Phillies are better, but they have not gotten off to especially great starts, while the Giants have ridden their good young pitching to a better-than-expected start (and Zito only pitched one of the seven games against us.) Take away the Cubs' six wins against the Pirates--one of the two worst teams in the league--and where would they be right now?
That's not to say that the Cubs don't look like the better team on paper--they do--but I'm optimistic about this weekend all the same. First place feels good, and I hope the Cards can hang onto it for a while longer.