Brewers-Cubs Opening Day starting pitchers: Burnes vs. Stroman

Both the Cubs and Brewers have their eyes on contending for the National League Central crown in the upcoming season. The clubs’ respective journeys begin on Thursday, when one of baseball’s top rivalries will renew with a marquee matchup on Opening Day at Wrigley Field.

Milwaukee, which missed the playoffs last season after claiming a division title in the previous year, will send former National League Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes to the hill for the 1:20 p.m. CT tilt at the Friendly Confines. The new-look Cubs, who are trying to emerge from a two-year rebuild, will give the ball to veteran righty Marcus Stroman.

“We've all got to go out and prove it,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “We can talk it to death. I know we all want to do that. But I'm a big believer in you’ve got to go out and do it. Whether the hardware is here, the championship rings are here, the Gold Gloves, winning players all around, we still have to go out and prove it in 2023.”

Here is a look at the Opening Day starters for the Brewers and Cubs:

RHP Corbin Burnes
Previous Opening Day starts: 2022 at Cubs
2022 Season: 12-8 with a 2.94 ERA and an NL-leading 243 strikeouts in a career-high 202 innings

When Burnes won the 2021 NL Cy Young Award, the only knock was durability. His 167 innings were the fewest ever for a starter who won the award in a non-shortened season, showing how dominant Burnes was when he did pitch. In ‘22, he was dominant again, becoming the first Brewers pitcher to lead his league in strikeouts -- and this time he delivered volume. Burnes was the only Milwaukee starter to make all of his starts. His 202 innings represented a jump of better than 20 percent.

On a staff with two other All-Star starters (Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta) plus solid left-hander Eric Lauer, Burnes was a runaway choice to start a second consecutive Opening Day, continuing a remarkable turnaround for a pitcher who struggled so badly in his first year as a Major League starter in 2019 that he essentially had to remake himself as a pitcher.

“I've told him, I think we made some mistakes there,” manager Craig Counsell said. “I think we pigeonholed him a little bit too much. We didn’t give him a little more freedom to do a bunch of things. I think we got to the right answer with him by the end of it, and that was important. And I think he would tell you he had to fix some things, too.”

Burnes emerged from that process a bona fide ace.

“There's so many examples of great pitchers that have basically failed, you know? In their terms, essentially,” Counsell said. “Who have been kicked around and had to figure out a way to overcome that. I don't think Corbin uses it to define him or holds that up, necessarily. It's just kind of how Corbin is. He was going to figure something out to get better.”

RHP Marcus Stroman
Previous Opening Day starts: 2019 vs. Tigers, 2016 at Rays
2022 Season: 6-7 with a 3.50 ERA, 119 strikeouts and 36 walks in 138 2/3 innings

A year ago, when Stroman was in his first Spring Training with the Cubs, he went out of his way to lobby for veteran Kyle Hendricks to be the Opening Day starter. This year, it is Stroman’s turn to take the ball on the first game of the season against one of the North Siders’ biggest rivals.

“He's going to be the perfect guy going out there Game 1,” Hendricks said. “To set that tone for the team.”

Hendricks was the Cubs’ Opening Day starter in each of the previous three seasons, but he is currently about a month behind his fellow rotation members in a comeback from a shoulder issue. This year, the Cubs believe they have the type of starting depth that will help absorb that kind of blow with Stroman, Jameson Taillon, Drew Smyly, Justin Steele and a group of up-and-coming arms next in line.

Stroman was thrilled to get the news that he would indeed start on Opening Day for the Cubs.

“To feel that energy in Wrigley,” said Stroman, “like I’ve said, that’s kind of why you work so hard, for those moments. And I feel like I’d be the perfect one to go out there and pitch on Opening Day. Even though I feel like we have four, five aces essentially on our staff, so anybody can get the ball that day.”

Stroman -- signed to a three-year, $71 million deal prior to last season -- was limited to 25 starts last year due to health setbacks, but was dynamic in the second half. Over his last 16 turns, the right-hander turned in a 2.56 ERA in 91 1/3 innings, helping the Cubs' rotation rank third in the Majors in ERA after the All-Star break.

“Stro deserved it. He earned it last year,” Ross said. “He was probably one of our better pitchers on the back half and he's got a presence about him. And he’s a guy that we expect to pitch big innings and carry this rotation we have throughout the season.”