PJ Walters will make his third start of the year and he's been pretty good in the first two against the Tigers and Blue Jays posting a 1.05 WHIP. Walters had a 2.70 ERA over 33 innings in AAA and he faces a White Sox team that has never faced him before. A Whitesox team with a losing record at home.
On the flip side the Twins will look to stay hot as they have won 4 of 5 games and 35 runs over their last 5 games. Gavin Floyd goes for the Twins and he's been terribly consistent against the Twins. As Minnesota has 157 AB .363 average and a .966 OPS vs. Floyd. Floyd in his last 3 home starts vs. the Twins posted a 10.91 ERA and a 2.23 WHIP. in all three starts gave up 6 ER or more.
I think the Cubs 7 game losing streak continues as the Cubs have to face a lefty in JA Happ. The Cubs are 30th with a .587 OPS vs. LHP and on the road this year they are hitting .186 and scoring just 1.82 runs per 9 vs. LHP. The one bright spot for the Cubs on page is Travis Wood coming up from AAA as he had a 1.02 ERA with the Reds in 3 starts last year vs. Houston. However, he only posted a 4.57 ERA in AAA last year and the Astros are scoring 5.75 runs per 9 at home. I don't expect Wood to go deep into the game which means the Cubs 4.61 ERA bullpen on the road will play a major factor.
J.A. Happ is not getting enough credit here. For one he has a 2.95 ERA over the last 3 years in April and he's coming off his best start of the year vs. the Brewers 6 IP 0 ER. He's had some tough match ups early in the year and finally gets a break facing the Cubs at home. His 3.57 BB/9 and 1.59 HR.9 have been a major issue, but the Cubs are ranked 26th in each category which should lead to another quality start for Happ today.
