Chicago Cubs Lineup (8/14/25): Caissie at DH, Boyd Facing Scherzer

I’m feeling a little down because I just had to RSVP to my cousin’s wedding in Aspen with a regretful decline. The bright side is that I don’t have to figure out how to get there, whether it’s driving over from Denver or flying in at an additional cost. Still leaving open the possibility of going full Dumb & Dumber and showing up in an orange tux, an image that makes me smile.

The Cubs had a similar bad-to-good swing last night, when Miguel Amaya‘s injury exit was followed by news of Owen Caissie‘s promotion. Then came word that Amaya merely suffered a sprained ankle, which is much better than most of us feared after seeing the mechanism of his injury. Caissie will provide the typical emotional boost that comes with any MLB debut, especially that of a top prospect, plus he can spell more than one of the team’s struggling sluggers.

And hey, maybe seeing him in live action will help fans spell his name correctly.

Cade Horton has been the Cubs’ best pitcher over the last several weeks, and he helped them tie this series with another masterful performance last night. Matthew Boyd has been the ace all season, so he’s the best option to capture the rubber game. Even if he didn’t pitch again in 2025, this has been the best season of Boyd’s career. He’s walking fewer batters than ever, giving up fewer home runs, and posting a better ERA than in any full campaign.

With the exception of a stinker against the Brewers at the end of July, the lefty has been downright dominant since late May. His splits have been pretty even, though right-handed hitters have accounted for all 11 homers he’s allowed so far. Most of that power has come at Wrigley, with opponents carrying much higher averages when Boyd pitches away from home. He needs to limit damage and hope the offense finds the spark it’s been seeking.

Michael Busch leads off at first, Ian Happ is in left, Kyle Tucker is in right, and Carson Kelly is behind the dish. Caissie serves as the DH, Nico Hoerner is at second, Willi Castro — who really needs to get going as a Cub — is in center, Dansby Swanson is at short, and Matt Shaw is at third.

On the bump for the Jays is venerable righty Max Scherzer, who is making his 10th start for his seventh team. A bulldog of a starter who gives off vibes of a dude who throws 100 despite never averaging as much as 95 mph on his fastball, Scherzer hasn’t changed his repertoire much as a 40-year-old. He’ll still throw his 94 mph four-seam nearly half the time with his 87 mph slider making up nearly a quarter of his pitches.

It’s still early, but he’s throwing his slider harder than ever, which is wild given his age. The changeup is likewise being thrown as hard as or harder than before at just a little above 85 mph, then the 77 mph curve is used at a 13% clip. Scherzer will flash the occasional cutter, typically as a show-me pitch to left-handed batters.

His fastball sees pretty even usage against batters on both sides, but his slider is more of a weapon against right-handed hitters. The change and curve are a little more heavily weighted toward lefties, and the tendency to hang them more often than in the past may be driving their poor results. The real bugaboo for Scherzer has been a lack of grounders.

Always a fly-ball pitcher, he’s allowing more contact in the air than ever before. So even though he’s done a good job of limiting hard contact, his high barrel rate leads to more balls leaving the yard. With 10 homers allowed in nine previous starts this season, Scherzer leaves himself open to big innings. His saving grace is that he’s not afraid to attack the zone, which leads to very few walks. Over the seven games in which he’s allowed homers, Scherzer has given up just 17 earned runs.

In order to get out of Canada with a much-needed series win, the Cubs are going ot have to pick their spots and make their baserunners count. That’s true in any game, but we’re talking about a Hall of Famer who can still carve up an opposing lineup even at this late stage in his career.

First pitch from Toronto is at 3:07pm CT on Marquee and 670 The Score.

Caissie Debut Day.

Watch the game live on the Marquee Sports Network App. pic.twitter.com/SDWSdfipcD

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 14, 2025