Dodgers vs. Cubs series opener postponed by rain

The opener of a three-game series between the Dodgers and Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago was rained out on Friday, with the two teams expected instead to play a split doubleheader on Saturday.

Saturday’s games will start at 10:05 a.m. PT and 4:40 p.m. PT.

The Dodgers will use the same starting pitchers as previously planned, just in a different order. Clayton Kershaw starts the first game, while Tyler Anderson is set to pitch the nightcap. Chicago originally planned to start left-hander Justin Steele on Saturday, but changed things up a bit with Friday’s rainout.

It’s the first rainout for the Dodgers since almost exactly one years ago, May 3, 2021, when a series opener against the Cubs at Wrigley Field was postponed. The doubleheader played the next day included two games scheduled for seven innings, though under the new collective bargaining agreement, doubleheader games are back to nine innings.

The Dodgers did have a long rain delay earlier this season, when the eighth inning featured an 88-minute weather break in a 7-2 win over the Twins at Target Field in Minnesota.

For the doubleheader on Saturday, both the Dodgers and Cubs will be allowed to carry a 27th player on the active roster, with that one extra player available for the second game. That player is not subject to the normal waiting period if it was a player who was optioned (10 days for position players, 15 days for pitchers). The one day up in the majors would still count as part of his optional assignment for purposes of counting days, and getting sent back to the minors would not count against the five-option limit this season.

The extra player can, and almost certainly will, be a pitcher, with teams allowed to carry 15 pitchers on the 27-man roster for one game rather than the current 14-pitcher limit.

The Dodgers and Cubs also play a four-game weekend series this season on July 7-10 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, followed by a shared off day for both teams on Monday, July 11.