After finishing a three-game series with the Chicago White Sox on Sunday, the Tampa Bay Rays (5-5) will stay in the Windy City as they will start an interleague matchup with the Chicago Cubs (5-4) on Monday.
This game will be played at Wrigley Field, with the first pitch scheduled for 7:40 pm ET.
After dropping the first two games, the Rays salvaged the finale on Sunday by defeating the Southsiders 9-3.
Tampa Bay scored their nine runs on 12 hits, including a combined eight hits from Wander Franco, Randy Arozarena, and Manuel Margot. Kevin Kiermaier and Francisco Mejia added two runs batted in apiece.
The Cubs were able to earn a split of their four-game series with the Colorado Rockies on Sunday with a 6-4 victory. In the win, Wilson Contreras and Seiya Suzuki homered while Nick Madrigal added three hits.
The Rays are the favorites in this one despite playing on the road. They are -138 to win while the Cubs’ moneyline sits at +118. The spread features Chicago +1.5 (-154), and the over/under for total runs is 7.5.
Pitching Matchup
The Rays will turn to southpaw Shane McClanahan (0-1, 3.00 ERA) in this one. He will be making his third start of the season. Last time out, he gave up three runs in 4.2 innings in a loss to the Oakland A’s.
Kyle Hendricks (0-1, 7.00 ERA) will also be looking for his first win as he takes the ball for the Cubs. He was roughed up in his last outing, giving up six runs in 3.2 innings of work.
Rays Look For More Success On Other Side Of Chicago
After a rough series with the White Sox, the Rays are hoping their win in the finale can propel them into a strong series with the North siders starting on Monday.
Leading Kevin Cash’s offense is second baseman Brandon Lowe. Despite hitting just .211, Lowe leads the team in home runs (three) and runs scored (eight) while sitting in third with six runs batted in.
Wander Franco has also gotten off to a sizzling start. In 42 at bats, the young shortstop is hitting .381/.386/.548 with five runs batted in and eight runs scored.
Against Hendricks, Brett Philips (three for three) and Francisco Mejia (homer) have both had success, albeit in limited at bats.
Cubs Out To Show They Can Compete In Division
As we hit the 10-game mark, four of the five teams, including the Cubs, sit with five wins currently. While it is far too early to make judgments about the division’s outcome, the Cubs are out to show that they intend to compete this season despite the roster overhaul since last year’s trade deadline.
The most notable offseason acquisition for the Cubs was free-agent signee Seiya Suzuki. In 25 at bats, he certainly hasn’t disappointed. He is hitting .400/.543/.960 with four home runs, 11 runs batted in, and seven runs. He leads the team in all three of those categories (tied in runs).
Catcher Wilson Contreras has also gotten off to a strong start. Long rumored to be on the block, Contreras is currently 8 for 28 with two home runs and seven runs scored.
Take The Cubs +1.5
There are some conflicting trends at play in this one. In their last ten games, the Rays are 7-3 against the Chicago Cubs. With that in mind, they are also just 1-5 in their last six road games.
The Cubs have started 2-1 when playing at Wrigley Field this season, but stemming back to last year, they are just 3-10 in interleague play.
With neither team playing overly dominant ball right now, the best bet may be to take the runline. Given that it wouldn’t be shocking to see Kyle Hendricks have a bounce-back game from his rough start last time out, there is a lot of value in the Cubs as underdogs.
Take Chicago +1.5.
