First pitch is 6:20 PM CT on Peacock, and the pitching matchup is the whole story. Jordan Wicks (0-1, 16.62) draws Matthew Liberatore (2-3, 4.76) in the rubber match, with the Cubs sitting on a 32-27 record and the Cardinals at 30-26 after dropping 4 of their last 5.
Wicks is essentially an emergency body. He's filling the rotation spot vacated by Edward Cabrera's blister IL stint, and his last outing in Pittsburgh was a disaster — 4.1 IP, 9 hits, 8 earned runs. The silver lining: he was dominant at Triple-A Iowa right before the call-up (15 IP, 1 ER, 12 K across his last 3 starts), so somewhere in there is a usable lefty. Liberatore, on the other hand, struck out 10 Brewers in his last start and still lost, which kind of sums up the Cardinals' month.
St. Louis has been in a free-fall — they got swept in Milwaukee, lost the series opener to the Cubs, took Friday's game 6-5, then got bullied 6-1 on Saturday. Chicago's offense punched out 7 runs on Wednesday in Pittsburgh and 6 more last night, so the bats are warm heading into a start where they'll need every one of them.
The market is treating this like a coin flip. Pinnacle has the Cubs at -107 with a 7.5/8.5 total split between books, which tells you bookmakers don't fully trust Wicks's line to be Wicks's actual stuff. If Liberatore's strikeout version shows up and Wicks is the Pittsburgh version, the under doesn't matter — the Cubs lose. If Iowa-Wicks shows up, this is a steal at near pick'em.
- 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-ILMatthew Boyd SP — Boyd (knee) will make a rehab start with Triple-A Iowa on Sunday, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILEdward Cabrera SP — Cabrera was removed from Wednesday's game against the Brewers with a blister on his right middle finger, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com 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.
- Day-To-DayPacky Naughton RP — Naughton will undergo surgery next month to repair the damaged UCL in his left elbow, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DaySem Robberse SP — Robberse (elbow) signed a minor-league contract with the Cardinals on Monday, which includes an invitation to spring training, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DayVictor Santos RP — The Red Sox traded Santos (undisclosed) and Nick Robertson to the Cardinals on Friday in exchange for Tyler O'Neill (foot), Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.
- Day-To-DayIxan Henderson SP — Henderson (elbow) is starting the season on the 60-day injured list at Triple-A Memphis.
- Day-To-DayZack Thompson RP — The Cardinals reassigned Thompson (shoulder) to minor-league camp Monday.
- 10-Day-ILNathan Church LF — Church (shoulder) received clearance from a specialist Tuesday to start a plyometric and strengthening program, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- 10-Day-ILRamon Urias 3B — Urias' (elbow) resumption of a throwing program is considered imminent, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- 60-Day-ILLars Nootbaar LF — The Cardinals are eyeing June 1 as a target date for Nootbaar's (heels) activation from the 60-day injured list, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
The Cubs IL is brutal — Justin Steele, Cade Horton, Matthew Boyd, Cabrera — basically half a rotation. It's why Wicks is even on this mound. The Cardinals are eyeing Lars Nootbaar's return from the 60-day IL as soon as June 1, which would be a real shot in the arm for a lineup that's been getting smothered. Just not in time for tonight.