It's a rubber game in the Crosstown after the Sox punched the Cubs 8-3 on Saturday behind a Munetaka Murakami 2-homer day. The North Siders walk into Rate Field at 29-17, still the better team on paper, but the team that's currently playing better baseball is wearing the wrong colors for Cubs fans.
Will Venable's group is 11 of its last 15 and crossed .500 this late in a season for the first time since 2022, which by South Side standards lately is basically a parade. The roster still looks like a rebuild, but the manager has been pushing the right buttons and the bullpen additions of Hicks and Dominguez are doing real work in late innings.
Pitching-wise, this is a quietly weird matchup. Rea slid into the rotation full-time after Cade Horton's season-ender and has been a perfectly fine 5th/4th starter type. Fedde is 0-4 with a 3.77 ERA, which tells you the Sox offense hasn't exactly been showering him with runs — his peripherals are uglier than the ERA (FIP north of 5, 8 homers allowed already), so the Cubs lineup has something to attack if PCA and Tucker want to do damage.
The market still likes the Cubs as moderate road favorites, but the public is leaning Sox on the moneyline at the discount — and the EV on every side here is negative, which is the market's way of telling you to chill. The total sits at 8.5 with the over juiced, which tracks given how often Fedde has been leaving balls over the plate.
- 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.
- 15-Day-ILMatthew Boyd SP — Boyd (knee) is scheduled to throw off a mound Saturday and is on track for a full bullpen session next week, Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- 15-Day-ILHunter Harvey RP — Harvey was diagnosed with a stress reaction in his right triceps Friday, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune 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.
- 15-Day-ILCaleb Thielbar RP — The Cubs placed Thielbar on the 15-day injured list Friday with a left hamstring strain.
- 60-Day-ILJustin Steele SP — Manager Craig Counsell said Tuesday that Steele's (elbow) setback will keep him sidelined until after the All-Star break, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- Day-To-DayMason Adams RP — The White Sox announced that Adams underwent successful Tommy John surgery Wednesday, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILKyle Teel C — Teel (hamstring) will report to Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday to begin a rehab assignment, LaMond Pope of the Chicago Tribune reports.
- 10-Day-ILAustin Hays LF — Manager Will Venable said Saturday that Hays (calf) has resumed taking live batting practice and could begin running the bases next week, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILEverson Pereira RF — The White Sox placed Pereira on the 10-day injured list Wednesday due to a right pectoral strain.
- 60-Day-ILPrelander Berroa RP — Berroa (elbow) was pulled from his rehab outing with the ACL White Sox after only four pitches Wednesday, MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILMike Vasil RP — The White Sox transferred Vasil (elbow) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday.
- 60-Day-ILTanner Murray LF — The White Sox transferred Murray (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Monday.
- 60-Day-ILBrooks Baldwin LF — The White Sox transferred Baldwin (elbow) from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Wednesday.
Injury report is doing some heavy lifting for the storyline. The Cubs are running a bullpen held together by tape — Steele, Hodge, Miller, Harvey, Thielbar, Martin all on the shelf — and Matthew Boyd is still working back from his knee with a mound session this weekend. The Sox aren't exactly whole either with Teel on a rehab assignment and Hays still ramping back. Sunday afternoon, 1:10 first pitch, and the Cubs really don't want to fly home having lost a series to their crosstown roommate.