Cubs vs. Brewers Lineup: Why is Matt Shaw Not Starting? Edward Cabrera Blues, More

Vibes are low on the North Side.

While every baseball season has its ups and downs, the Chicago Cubs' latest downswing is about as discouraging as it gets. Not only has their offense been a shell of their early-season self, but it's resulted in back-to-back series losses to heated rivals. The first was an embarrassing thud against the White Sox, only for the Milwaukee Brewers to grab two straight at Wrigley. Oh, and they stole the NL Central in the process!

It's by no means time to press the panic button, but the Cubbies need a boost in morale ASAP. The good news is that the schedule eases up significantly over the next couple of weeks. The bad news is they haven't given us much of a reason to believe this will make a big difference. Perhaps picking up their first 2026 win over the Brewers will change that.

Game Info

Who: Milwaukee Brewers (27-18) at Chicago Cubs (29-20)
Where: Wrigley Field
When: 6:40 PM CT
Watch: Marquee Sports Network
Listen: 104.3 The Score

Chicago Cubs Lineup

1. Nico Hoerner, 2B
2. Alex Bregman, 3B
3. Ian Happ, LF
4. Seiya Suzuki, RF
5. Carson Kelly, C
6. Michael Busch, 1B
7. Dansby Swanson, SS
8. Miguel Amaya, DH
9. Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF

Craig Counsell is sticking with the status quo. Tonight's lineup at Wrigley will be nearly identical to the last time this group faced a lefty on May 14th. The only difference is that Matt Shaw will not enter the fold. It's certainly a surprising choice considering Shaw's success against lefties this season. He's batted .292 against southpaws so far compared to his .191 against righties.

Instead, Counsell is deciding to go with both of his catchers. Carson Kelly will be in the backstop after sitting on Tuesday, while Miguel Amaya will bat DH in the 8th spot. This will be only Amaya's fifth start as the DH this season. An odd choice, but perhaps we see Shaw subbed in if Amaya comes up blank in back-to-back at-bats.

For what it's worth, the two catchers have been two of the Cubs' more consistent sources of offense during this dreadful run. Amaya has five hits in the team's last five games, which included a double against the Brewers yesterday. Kelly has hit an awesome .438 over the team's last five contests, compiling seven hits and 4 RBIs. At the end of the day, when things have been this rough, you simply can't take him out of the lineup.

Milwaukee Brewers Lineup

1. Jackson Chourio, CF
2. Brice Turang, 2B
3. William Contreras, C
4. Christian Yelich, DH
5. Garrett Mitchell, CF
6. Jake Bauers, LF
7. Sam Frelick, RF
8. Joey Ortiz, SS
9. David Hamilton, 3B

The Milwaukee Brewers continue to make Cubs fans go bald. They have combined for 24 hits over the last two games and have been significantly better than Chicago with runners in scoring position. Tuesday's 5-2 victory saw everyone in the starting lineup but Luis Rengifo record at least one hit. Can Edward Cabrera put a stop to this?

On the Mound ...

May 9, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Edward Cabrera (30) pitches against the Texas Rangers during the first inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Cubs – Edward Cabrera, RHP

Edward Cabrera has watched his ERA move past 4.00 due to back-to-back ugly performances. The marquee offseason acquisition allowed five earned runs against the Rangers before giving up three earned runs to the White Sox with three walks. The outing on the South Side was also his shortest of the year, as the former Marlins ace went only 4.2 innings.

Cabrera has now given up at least three runs in seven consecutive starts. He's allowed a home run in five straight games, and he's given up multiple in three of those contests. Look, giving up hard contact has always been an issue for Cabrera, but he was always able to get enough ground balls and force enough whiffs with his off-speed stuff to make up for it. That's not happening right now, and it's a big problem.

Brewers – Kyle Harrison, LHP

Kyle Harrison is another young Brewers pitcher who is seemingly putting it all together. The lefty has been excellent through his eight starts with a 1.19 WHIP and 2.09 ERA. He's bumped his strikeout rate up to 30.0 percent this year, forcing opponents to chase with his mid-90s fastball placement and a dynamic slurve.

The good news for the Cubs is that Harrison should give them a fair share of pitches to hit, considering he relies nearly 60.0 percent of the time on his heater. They should also keep a close eye out for his change up, which has really struggled to dip effectively. While he only uses it roughly 13.0 percent of the time, batters have hit .273 against it so far.

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