Whichever team handles the playoff stage the best on Wednesday night when they meet in the NL wild-card game will likely determine who heads to St. Louis to face the Cardinals in the Division Series on Friday.
The Cubs will send out Cy Young candidate Jake Arrieta. The right-hander led the majors with 22 wins and posted an 0.75 ERA after the All-Star break.
Pittsburgh counters with ace Gerrit Cole, who made his first All-Star team this summer and won 19 games.
This is the third straight postseason for the Pirates and the first for the Cubs since 2008.
Chicago won 11 of the 19 meetings between the teams in the regular season, including a 6-4 mark at PNC Park.
