First pitch: Wednesday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Line: N/A, Total: N/A

The Cubs will be hoping to prevent a 3-1 series deficit when they take on the Dodgers in Game 4 of the NLCS on Wednesday.

The Cubs were the most dominant team in the league during the regular season, but they have got to be panicking right now. Chicago has not faced this type of adversity all season long and there has to be some thoughts of, “here we go again”. The Dodgers, meanwhile, have absolutely no pressure on them. They’re playing with house money against a Cubs team that everybody felt would win the World Series once the regular season ended. If Los Angeles can keep pitching the way it has been then Chicago will be looking at a long offseason. The starters in this pivotal Game 4 are set to be RHP John Lackey (0-0, 6.75 ERA, 4 K in one postseason start) for the Cubs and LHP Julio Urias (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 K in two innings this postseason) for the Dodgers. It’s worth noting that John Lackey is 8-1 versus teams that averaged 2.75 or less extra base hits per game during the second half of the season this year. Chicago is also 7-1 after two straight games with one or fewer extra base hits this season.

The Cubs have their backs against the wall and John Lackey is the guy that is going to need to help them even up this series. Lackey was brought in for situations like these this offseason, and his experience should really help Chicago on Wednesday. Over the course of his career, Lackey has really enjoyed seeing the Dodgers on the other side of the field. He is 6-3 with a 1.75 ERA in 12 appearances versus Los Angeles and the Cubs could really use a quality start from him in this one. Offensively, 1B Anthony Rizzo (.077, 0 HR, 0 RBI in postseason) must break out of his slump on Wednesday. Rizzo has only two hits in the postseason and both of them were unimpressive singles. Chicago needs its superstar to play like he did during the regular season or the team will likely be heading home. 3B Kris Bryant (.357, 1 HR, 4 RBI in postseason), meanwhile, must keep up the good work for Chicago. He had two hits in the loss on Tuesday night and should be able to stay hot on Wednesday. He’s facing a young left and will need to find a way to take advantage of his inexperience.

The Dodgers have a golden opportunity to take complete control of this series on Wednesday and Julio Urias will be looking forward to getting out there for Los Angeles. One thing working in Urias’ favor is the fact that the Cubs do not hit lefties very well, as they have already failed to score runs against both Clayton Kershaw and Rich Hill in this seires. Urias can be wild with his pitches, though, and must find a way to stay calm in the biggest game of his life. Offensively, both SS Corey Seager (.206, 2 HR, 4 RBI in postseason) and 3B Justin Turner (.320, 2 HR, 6 RBI) can be counted on to produce in this game. Seager snapped out of a slump with a three-hit performance on Wednesday night and should be able to get after the right-handed Lackey in this one. Turner, meanwhile, has been hot all postseason and homered off of Jake Arrieta in Game 3.