Wrigley gets game 2 of this three-game set Wednesday with first pitch at 7:05 PM CT, and Chicago hands the ball to Colin Rea (5-3, 4.70) against Athletics lefty Jeffrey Springs (3-6, 4.07). Rea's coming off a workmanlike win in Pittsburgh — 5.1 innings, 2 earned, 5 punchouts — which was a nice cap to a shaky May where he ran a 4.78 ERA across six starts. Springs took the loss in his last outing against Seattle, going 5 innings of 2-run ball with 7 K's.
The bigger picture is ugly for both sides. The Cubs limped out of May at 13-16 with a 10-game losing streak buried in there, and Tuesday's 2-1 loss to the A's was exactly the kind of opener they couldn't afford with seven straight series against losing teams on the docket. The Athletics, meanwhile, are in their worst slump of the season — so naturally they walked into Wrigley and stole one. Baseball.
Both clubs are also patching pitching staffs together with duct tape. The Cubs are still without Justin Steele (elbow, out until after the All-Star break), Cade Horton, and Matthew Boyd, who's headed for a rehab start at Triple-A Iowa on Saturday. Edward Cabrera is targeted to start Saturday against the Giants, which would at least give the rotation a reinforcement. The A's are dealing with their own rotation hits — Luis Severino landed on the 15-day IL with right arm soreness, joining Aaron Civale (shoulder) and Gunnar Hoglund (done for the year).
- Day-To-DayLeo De Vries SS — De Vries went 3-for-5 with two solo home runs Sunday for Double-A Midland.
- 10-Day-ILMax Muncy 3B — Muncy (hand) will serve as the designated hitter for Triple-A Las Vegas on Saturday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJacob Wilson SS — Wilson (shoulder) has been ramping up his baseball activities and could begin a rehab assignment next week, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILLuis Severino SP — Severino was removed from Friday's game against the Yankees with right arm soreness, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILAaron Civale SP — The Athletics placed Civale on the 15-day injured list Tuesday due to right shoulder tendinitis.
- 60-Day-ILBrooks Kriske RP — Kriske (shoulder) will be shut down from throwing for at least three weeks, Jason Burke of SI.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILDenzel Clarke CF — Clarke (hamstring) will receive a platelet-rich plasma injection Tuesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILGunnar Hoglund SP — Hoglund (knee/back) will be sidelined for the rest of the 2026 season after undergoing surgery on his left hip Monday.
- Day-To-DayBrandon Birdsell RP — Birdsell (elbow) will miss the entire 2026 season, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports.
- Day-To-DayJeff Brigham RP — Brigham was placed on the 7-day injured list at Triple-A St. Paul, retroactive to April 6, with a left oblique strain, TwinsDaily.com reports.
- Day-To-DayJaxon Wiggins SP — Cubs manager Craig Counsell said that Wiggins was placed on Triple-A Iowa's 7-day injured list Wednesday due to right elbow inflammation, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
- 10-Day-ILMatt Shaw RF — Shaw went 3-for-4 with a double, a solo home run and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Padres.
- 15-Day-ILEdward Cabrera SP — Cabrera (finger) will start Saturday's game against the Giants, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- 15-Day-ILMatthew Boyd SP — Boyd (knee) will make a rehab start with Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- 15-Day-ILRiley Martin RP — Martin has been diagnosed with flexor strain in his left elbow and is expected to miss eight weeks, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- 60-Day-ILHunter Harvey RP — The Cubs moved Harvey (triceps) from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL on Sunday.
Market has the Cubs as moderate home chalk at -124 on the moneyline, with the total parked at 8.5. That feels right — two middling starters, two offenses that have shown they can put up crooked numbers and also vanish for a week. Springs has historically been better than the line suggests when his command is on, but he's been mortal lately, and Rea has the kind of profile that either eats 6 innings of 3-run ball or gets ambushed in the third. Pick your poison.
The pitch for the Cubs is simple: this is the soft part of the schedule. You can't drop a series at home to an Athletics team missing Jacob Wilson (shoulder) and Max Muncy (hand) and then turn around and complain about being out of the race in August. Wednesday isn't must-win in June, but in the context of how this team has played, it kind of is.