Both the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets are starting to look towards the roster for next season as both teams sit far out from the playoff race at this point in the season. The focus begins for 2015 and Chicago is feeling pretty confident in rookie Kyle Hendricks who has surged in his past six starts, giving Cubs fans something to cheer. The New York Mets will try and slow him down as the team aims to win the four-game series.
Hendricks is looking to win his fourth straight start as the Cubs have won five of his last six starts total. The pitcher may have allowed four runs in six innings in his debut against the Cincinnati Reds, but since then he has posted a 1.01 ERA over five starts, pitching well into the seventh innings in each of them. In his most recent start against the Milwaukee Brewers, he gave up six hits over seven innings to get the 3-0 win. The Cubs are hopeful the rookie can keep things going.
Getting help behind the plate will be key to getting another win for Hendricks. Things are picking up for the Cubs behind the plate. Louis Valubuena ending his drought, getting an RBI on Sunday after going 1 for 32. Starlin Castro is also looking strong, batting .400 over his last 16 games.
The Mets are in need of a little momentum. The team has dropped four of the last six games, all at home. They wrap up against Chicago before heading out West for series against the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. Bartolo Colon was meant to pitch in the Cubs' finale, but he has gone home for a family emergency and Carlos Torres will start in his place. Given the short notice, the Mets were not able to call someone up for help so Torres will come after pitching on Sunday out of the bullpen. Colon will likely be placed on bereavement while Daisuke Matsuzaka could be called off the disabled list for some relief work to help with depth.
