The Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals are knotted at one game apiece in this National League Division Series heading into Monday afternoon. The Cubs took game one 3-0 thanks to the effort of Kyle Hendricks on the mound, and the "Bryzzo" duo is coming through with RBI hits, while the Nationals rallied late on Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman home runs late to win 6-3.
Now the series shifts to Wrigley Field for the next two games in this best of five with game three starting at 3:08 CDT. The Cubs will send Jose Quintana to the mound to face reigning Cy Young winner Max Scherzer.
This will not only be Quintana's first postseason start as a Cub, but his first ever in six years of playing in the majors.
Jose's new gig
The 28-year old lefty had spent his first five and a half years in the majors with the crosstown White Sox from 2012 through this past July. He had a lot of success with the White Sox, including an All-star nod last season, however never had a chance to pitch in the postseason. The Sox were close in 2012, but the Tigers ultimately won the division that year. With GM Rick Hahn establishing a full rebuild process in the offseason with the trades of Chris Sale and Adam Eaton, Quintana was expected to be the next chip to be traded. Not only was he good, but he also had a club-friendly deal that had him under control through 2020 with under $12 million guaranteed each year.
Though Quintana was struggling to begin the season, his resume of being a consistently good starter still gave him tremendous value. Through his first five years, he sported a 3.41 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 154 games which made him one of the more underrated assets in baseball. To the surprise of many, he was traded across town to the Cubs in exchange for top-prospects Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease during this year's all-star break.
The Cubs got what they wanted in adding another solid pitcher with years of control.
Quintana has overall done very well in a Cubs uniform so far. In 14 regular season games, he went 7-3 with a 3.74 ERA, 3.25 FIP, 1.103 WHIP and 98 strikeouts. His first start as a Cub impressed many as he pitched seven innings of shutout ball against the Baltimore Orioles, striking out 12.
Quintana finished off the season real strong in September as the Cubs won all of his five starts, pitching to a 2.51 ERA in 31.1 innings.
Big postseason challenge
It will be no easy feat for Quintana in his first postseason start as he faces a Nationals team that is filled with offensive weapons. The team as a whole had the highest on-base + slugging in the National League (.782) in 2017, even while missing Bryce Harper and Trea Turner for a chunk of the season. He also will oppose Max Scherzer who is looking to win his third-career Cy Young award after posting a 2.51 ERA, 0.902 WHIP and 268 strikeouts in 2017. Scherzer is battling a hamstring issue, which is why he is starting game three and did not start game one.
Quintana has only faced three players on Washington (Howie Kendrick, Adam Lind, and Matt Wieters), none of which as a member of the Nationals. He discussed his start Monday with the Chicago Tribune media and was quoted by Trib reporter Paul Skrbina, "I don't feel pressure. It's really good to face these guys in our house, especially at Wrigley Field, when every game is like a final."
