Chicago Cubs

Cubs Announce Spring Debuts for Hendricks, Lester

Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon has been preaching patience and taking it easy during the early stages of spring training, but on Wednesday he finally revealed when his top four starting pitchers will finally take the mound in Cactus League play.

The four starters, who haven’t thrown any in-game pitches yet this spring, will finally start making their way into the mix on Saturday afternoon, according to Maddon. Kyle Hendricks will be first up in the rotation, as he’ll pitch for the Cubs on Saturday against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Sloan Park.

After Hendricks, Jon Lester will throw on Sunday when the Cubs battle the Texas Rangers in Surprise. Jake Arrieta will get the ball on Monday against the Los Angeles Angels in Tempe, and John Lackey will round out the rotation on Tuesday when the Cubs take on Team Italy in a World Baseball Classic preliminary game at Sloan Park.

Fans shouldn’t expect to see the pitchers throw for very long, as all will likely be on very strict pitch counts after throwing so many innings during the 2016 season.

For fans looking to watch the games in question, Saturday’s game against the Dodgers will air on WGN, while Sunday and Monday’s games will air on a delay on MLB Network. Sunday’s game can be seen live on MLB.TV (a subscription service), and can also be heard on 670 the Score.

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