Who should Cubs root for in Wild Card Game?

The Cubs erased all uncertainty down the stretch this season, as they soared to 103 wins while locking up the National League Central title in mid-September before clinching the NL’s top seed with more than a week to go.

But there’s one thing manager Joe Maddon’s ballclub won’t know until Wednesday night. That’s when the Giants and Mets meet at Citi Field in the NL Wild Card Game (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET/7 CT), with the winner advancing to Wrigley Field for Game 1 of the best-of-five NL Division Series on Friday (FS1, 9 p.m. ET/8 CT).

While the Cubs have no control over who their opponent will be, is there an outcome they should want? If the club has an opinion on that, it isn’t sharing.

Game Date Time Matchup TV Gm 1 Oct. 7 9 p.m WC @ CHC FS1 Gm 2 Oct. 8 8 p.m. WC @ CHC MLBN Gm 3 Oct. 10 TBD CHC @ WC FS1 / MLBN *Gm 4 Oct. 11 TBD CHC @ WC FS1 *Gm 5 Oct. 13 TBD WC @ CHC FS1 *- If necessary | All times listed ETShop for postseason gear: Cubs • Complete Postseason coverage

“That has to be organic,” Maddon said. “The moment you start wishing for something, be careful what you wish for.”

As the Cubs well know, discounting a Wild Card team or putting too much stock in regular-season head-to-head results isn’t wise. In 2015, Chicago won the NL Wild Card Game and knocked off NL Central champion St. Louis in the NLDS. But then the Mets, a team the Cubs swept, 7-0, during the regular season, swept them back in the four games of the NL Championship Series.

So with that in mind, here is a deeper look at which of the Cubs’ two potential NLDS matchups sets up more favorably for them.

Starting pitching

In last year’s NLCS, the Mets started Matt Harvey in Game 1, Jacob deGrom in Game 3 and Steven Matz in Game 4. This year, all three pitchers are out with injuries, leaving the Mets with a depleted …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com