There’s a decent chance that the scheduled starter for the Cincinnati Reds today will actually be on the Milwaukee Brewers by the time the Reds take on the Chicago Cubs this afternoon. The Beers put in a waiver claim on Matt Harvey almost two days ago, and the two teams have until 1:30 ET to agree to a deal, or Harvey ends up sticking with the Reds - and, presumably, makes his scheduled start in Wrigley.
Nothing like a bit of uncertainty in big league baseball, eh?
Should Harvey be unable to go, Luis Castillo is actually on what would be termed ‘regular rest’ were the Reds not currently employing a six-man rotation, so conceivably there’s a chance he could be ready to pitch today, too. Or, more likely, we’ll see Cody Reed on the mound to get a start, seeing as he’s only thrown 2.1 IP and 44 total pitches across a trio of relief outings in the last week.
The Cubs will turn to Alec Mills, who’ll be making his first career big league start. He’s had a handful of big league appearances in his career both with the Cubs and the Kansas City Royals, but the 26 year old will start for the first time thanks largely to injuries to both Yu Darvish and Tyler Chatwood thinning the Chicago rotation.
Also, it’s officially Players’ Weekend, so everyone’s going to be wearing jerseys with nicknames and their own, individual pieces of flair throughout.
First pitch is set for 2:20 ET.
Queen City Lineup
#PlayersWeekend begins today!#Reds lineup presented by @PNCBank. pic.twitter.com/8k8UI6DV9L
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) August 24, 2018
Windy City Lineup
Here is today's #Cubs lineup as we begin #PlayersWeekend! #EverybodyIn
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 24, 2018
Stream on @YouTubeTV: https://t.co/t4Xvcd6DkC pic.twitter.com/NXHC2RVIcQ