Cubs vs. Reds Lineup: No Dansby Swanson, Who's the Starter? Pedro Ramírez, More

The Chicago Cubs entered the day with a TBA at starting pitcher, so who did they land on before the series finale?

Sep 12, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs second baseman Pedro Ramirez (75) gestures after hitting a home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the third inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Chicago Cubs had a much-needed bounce-back effort against the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday, which included a quartet of Cubbies finishing the day with multiple hits. They also got some major help from the New York Mets, who took down the Philadelphia Phillies in blowout fashion 10-2. Chicago now has a full-game lead over them for the top NL Wild Card spot.

The only problem? The San Diego Padres continued their late-season surge and have now tied the Cubs with an 86-69 record. In other words, they still have a lot of work to do before they lock-in home field advantage.

Game Info

Who: Chicago Cubs (86-69) at Cincinnati Reds (72-83)
Where: Great American Ball Park
When: 12:40 CT
Watch: Marquee Sports Network
Listen: 104.3 The Score

Chicago Cubs Lineup

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

The Chicago Cubs will look to wrap up their third-to-last series of the year with a pretty familiar look. Facing off against a righty, Alex Bregman will move back into the cleanup spot after hitting second on Saturday. He has had a rough series thus far, failing to record a hit and only registering one walk in nine at-bats.

Ian Happ also returns after sitting for Tyrone Taylor, which has become Craig Counsell's typical move when confronted with a lefty. Happ hit a homer in the series opener on Friday, and the Cubs would love to see that power surge continue as this regular season wraps up.

Michael Conforto and Pedro Ramírez are back in the mix at DH and 2B, respectively. While Conforto appeared in the opener, Ramírez hasn't seen the field since their September 16 win over the Atlanta Braves.

The most notable lineup change, however, comes at shortstop. Nico Hoerner will man the position again in place of Dansby Swanson, who appears to be getting a day off after returning from his oblique strain on Friday. Aside from an error on Saturday, Swanson has looked healthy, even hitting a big home run in the Cubs' weekend victory. He now has three hits in his first two games back.

With that said, Swanson never appeared in a rehab game due to inclement weather. The lack of a ramp-up time is likely why we see the Cubs practicing an abundance of caution. Not to mention, the infield duo of Hoerner and Ramírez proved pretty solid in his absence.

Cincinnati Reds Lineup

1. Dane Myers, CF
2. Elly De La Cruz, SS
3. Sal Stewart, 1B
4. Tyler Stephenson, DH
5. Eugenio Suarez, DH
6. Juan Brito, RF
7. JJ Bleday, LF
8. Matt McLain, 2B
9. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B

On the Mound ...

Sep 14, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs pitcher David Peterson (19) throws the ball against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Cubs – David Peterson, LHP

The Chicago Cubs came into the day without a starter listed. It left the door open for a potential spot start as they try to give their rotation some rest ahead of the playoffs. However, Craig Counsell has decided to go with his typical order, meaning David Peterson will give things a go this afternoon.

Peterson has continued to be fantastic for the Cubs. He allowed only a single run on three hits against a talented Braves lineup in his last outing. And he even recorded seven strikeouts, which landed just below his season high!

Reds – Rhett Lowder, RHP

The Chicago Cubs will look to clinch their final series with the Reds against struggling starter Rhett Lowder. Holding a 5.79 ERA this season, the righty has been good for at least 3 earned runs in each of his last six outings. Heck, Lowder has even given up double that in two of his last three performances.

To his credit, Lowder has a pretty diverse grouping of pitches. While he's leaned most on a mid-90s sinker this season, he also sprinkles in a slider, four-seamer, and changeup consistently. Nevertheless, all four pitches have been hit hard at times, especially his slider with a .514 slugging percentage. The Cubs should be able to do some damage this afternoon.

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