The Cubs and White Sox are gearing up for another installment of the Cross-town Classic. The Cubs beat the Sox in the first two games of the series at Wrigley last May, with the Sox winning the third game. The series will resume this year from September 21 through 23 at Guaranteed Rate Field.

The two teams are at different places in their development. The Cubs have many good players from past years such as Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Ben Zobrist, and this year have added new players such as David Bote, Brandon Morrow, and National League Silver Slugger Daniel Murphy. Murphy came over recently in a trade with the Nationals, and has contributed a lot already, batting over .300 for the Cubs.

While the Cubs have added new players to their roster, the Sox most notable addition has been Michael Kopech, a pitcher they promoted recently from the minor league Charlotte Knights. Michael Kopech was dominating in his first few games in the majors, giving up just one run in the first three games he pitched. However, in his fourth game he pitched three innings and gave up nine runs. Kopech is now out until 2020 because he needs Tommy John surgery.

The Cubs have been great in recent years, with a  World Series victory in 2016 and record well over .500.  The Sox are the complete opposite, and haven’t finished over .500 in the past six years. Anything can happen in a baseball game, though. A great team can lose to a horrible team, such as the Sox beating the Cubs back in May. The overall record in the Cross-town Classic favors the Sox,  63-58. 

While the team remains in 1st place, some Cubs, such as Kris Bryant, have been in a slump lately. Following a lengthy stay on the injured list, Bryant has only two hits in the past eight games. Still, the Cubs defense is always spot on, with Albert Almora Jr. in center field making great plays.

Despite their losing record, the Sox ‘s season has offered some exciting moments both on defense and offense, and this annual series always proves to be interesting. September 21 through 23 are going to be fun days for Chicago baseball.