Chicago Cubs lineup vs. Rangers: Kris Bryant to leadoff, Schwarber at cleanup

by Tony Crumpton - Senior Editor - Thursday, March 5, 2020, 10:09 AM

Steve Mitchell - USA Today Sports

The Chicago Cubs (5-7) will face off against the Texas Rangers (8-4) on Thursday at 2:05 p.m. CT inside Sloan Park at Mesa, Arizona.

The game can be seen on Marquee Sports Network and MLB.TV.

Cubs lineup vs. Rangers:

1. Kris Bryant 3B

2. Anthony Rizzo 1B

3. Javy Baez SS

4. Kyle Schwarber DH

5. Willson Contreras C

6. Jason Heyward RF

7. Steven Souza Jr. LF

8. Ian Happ CF

9. Jason Kipnis 2B

The Cubs will have Yu Darvish (0-1, 4.50 ERA) on the mound against righty Jonathan Hernandez (0-0, 6.75 ERA).

Update: Darvish and Kipnis are out with the flu today. They will be replaced by James Norwood and Nico Hoerner respectively. Rizzo is also out with a blister.

Third Cubs lineup of the day:

Bryant 5
Happ 8
Baez 6
Schwarber DH
Contreras 2
Heyward 9
Souza Jr 7
Hoerner 4
Joseph 3

Norwood 1
— Jesse Rogers (@ESPNChiCubs) March 5, 2020

Cubs pitchers scheduled to throw today after Darvish include Jeremy Jeffress, Dillon Maples, Jason Adam, James Norwood, Wyatt Short, and Oscar De La Cruz.

Rangers lineup vs. Cubs:

1. Leody Taveras RF

2. Nick Solak CF

3. Willie Calhoun LF

4. Ronald Guzman 1B

5. Sam Travis DH

6. Isiah Kiner-Falefa SS

7. Sherten Apostel 3B

8. Sam Huff C

9. Anderson Tejeda 2B

Pre-game Notes:

Umpires for #Rangers (8-4) at #Cubs (5-7):
HP: Scott Barry
1B: Bill Miller
2B: Kerwin Danley
3B: Adrian Johnson.

First Pitch: 3:05 pm
Venue: Sloan Park
— Umpire Crew (@UmpCrew) March 5, 2020

Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks with @Bernstein_McK: "There's just a new energy in camp this year. Honestly, a lot of it has to do with David Ross. Just what he's brought already, his energy, his passion, his focus on the details. ... Guys have really been taking it to heart."
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) March 5, 2020