Los Angeles Dodgers vs Chicago Cubs

Los Angeles Dodgers at Chicago Cubs (2026-08-04). Tarik Skubal vs Javier Assad at Wrigley Field.

Starters — Skubal brings a 2.79 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and 96.2 innings with elite bat-missing and command metrics: 10.8 K/9, 1.3 BB/9, and 0.93 HR/9. His last three starts were strong: 6.2 IP, 3 ER, 6 K, 1 BB; 7.1 IP, 1 ER, 12 K, 2 BB; and 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 9 K, 0 BB. The trend is up, supported by swing-and-miss stuff and very limited traffic. Assad has a 3.75 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and 69.2 innings with a different profile: 6.2 K/9, 2.33 BB/9, and 1.55 HR/9. His last three outings were 4.1 IP, 1 ER, 6 K, 2 BB; 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 K, 0 BB; and 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 K, 1 BB. The trend is flat, with decent run prevention recently but shorter workloads and more home-run risk overall.

Teams — Los Angeles enters with a .772 OPS, 577 runs, and a .262 team average, backed by a 3.70 team ERA and 1.15 WHIP. The recent form is less convincing at 4-6 over the last 10, but the season-long offensive efficiency is slightly stronger than Chicago’s. The Cubs have a .753 OPS, 580 runs, and a .248 average, with a 4.09 team ERA and 1.25 WHIP. Chicago is 6-4 in its last 10, and while the lineup has scored slightly more total runs, the overall pitching indicators are weaker than the Dodgers’ on the season.