Cubs Name Game 1 Starter, Dodgers Name Starting Rotation for NLCS
The NLCS kicks off on Saturday with a pitching matchup between arguably the best pitcher in baseball and a player who pitched just two days before the series opener.
Clayton Kershaw will take the mound for the Dodgers, who impressed in sweeping their division rival Diamondbacks in the NLDS. Kershaw has been incredible in the regular season and may well be the best pitcher in the league, but he's failed to replicate his regular-season dominance in the playoffs. His postseason ERA (4.63) is more than two runs above his career regular-season ERA (2.36), and Kershaw gave up four runs in 6 1/3 innings in Game 1 of the NLDS against Arizona.
The Cubs will hand the ball to Jose Quintana, who the team acquired from the crosstown rival White Sox in July. Quintana pitched 2/3 of an inning in Chicago's series-clinching Game 5 win over the Nationals, so there was talk that the Cubs might have John Lackey start Game 1. But it will be Quintana, a 28-year-old lefty who posted a 3.74 ERA with the Cubs this season. Quintana pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings in his lone start of the NLDS, a game the Cubs won 2-1.
The Dodgers also announced the rest of their pitching rotation for the series. Rich Hill will start Game 2 in Los Angeles, and he will be followed by Yu Darvish and Alex Wood when the series shifts back to Chicago.