Houston, meanwhile, is 21-31 and held together with athletic tape, but they keep punching. Altuve (oblique), Correa (ankle surgery), Yainer Diaz, Hader, Hunter Brown, McCullers — the IL reads like a full Opening Day roster. And yet here they are stealing series openers on the road.
- Day-To-DayWalker Janek (C) — Double-A Corpus Christi placed Janek on its 7-day injured list Sunday due to an unspecified injury.05/08
- 10-Day-ILTaylor Trammell (CF) — Trammell (groin) began a rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi on Tuesday, going 1-for-4 with a double.05/20
- 10-Day-ILJose Altuve (2B) — The Astros placed Altuve on the 10-day injured list Monday with a left oblique strain.05/18
- 10-Day-ILCarlos Correa (SS) — Correa is scheduled to undergo surgery Monday in Houston to repair the tendon in his left ankle, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.05/10
- 10-Day-ILJoey Loperfido (LF) — The Astros announced Monday that Loperfido (quadriceps) has started light running and light baseball activity, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILYainer Diaz (C) — The Astros placed Diaz (oblique) on the 10-day injured list Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.05/08
- 15-Day-ILLance McCullers Jr. (SP) — McCullers was scratched from his scheduled start against the Twins on Tuesday due to shoulder inflammation, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.05/19
- 15-Day-ILBennett Sousa (RP) — The Astros placed Sousa on the 15-day injured list Saturday with left elbow inflammation, retroactive to Wednesday, Julia Morales of Space City Home Network reports.05/09
- 60-Day-ILHunter Brown (SP) — Brown (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi on Sunday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.05/22
- 60-Day-ILJosh Hader (RP) — Astros manager Joe Espada said Saturday that Hader (biceps) will log at least five more rehab appearances before he's activated from the 60-day injured list, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.05/16
- 60-Day-ILHayden Wesneski (SP) — The Astros announced Monday that Wesneski (elbow) is continuing to complete regular bullpen sessions as part of his throwing progression, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILRonel Blanco (SP) — The Astros announced Monday that Blanco (elbow) is continuing to complete regular bullpen sessions as part of his throwing progression, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILBrandon Walter (SP) — The Astros placed Walter (elbow) on the 60-day injured list.05/08
- 60-Day-ILCristian Javier (SP) — The Astros announced Monday that Javier (shoulder) will begin a throwing progression this week, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayEdward Cabrera (SP) — Cabrera didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 10-5 victory over the White Sox, giving up three earned runs on three hits and three walks while striking out two batters in 4.2 innings.05/21
- Day-To-DayBrandon Birdsell (RP) — Birdsell (elbow) will miss the entire 2026 season, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports.05/08
- 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.05/08
- 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.05/08
- 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.05/22
- 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.05/15
- 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.05/08
- 60-Day-ILHunter Harvey (RP) — The Cubs moved Harvey (triceps) from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL on Sunday.05/17
- 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.05/08
- 60-Day-ILPorter Hodge (RP) — The Cubs transferred Hodge (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Friday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILShelby Miller (RP) — The Cubs placed Miller (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Sunday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILCade Horton (SP) — The Cubs transferred Horton (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Saturday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILTyler Austin (1B) — The Cubs placed Austin (knee) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
The matchup card above tells the story. Kai-Wei Teng (2-3, 2.61) is the guy nobody outside Houston was talking about a month ago, and he just spun 5 scoreless against the Rangers with 7 punchouts. Joe Espada has officially folded him into a 6-man rotation. Colin Rea (4-2, 4.98) is what he is — a strike-throwing veteran who lets you put it in play and hopes the Wrigley wind cooperates. With a Cubs lineup ice-cold and an Astros pitcher trending up, the under at 7 (DK) / 7.5 (Pinnacle) makes some sense on paper.
The market still likes the Cubs as a healthy -148 home favorite, and the DK splits show 71% of bets on Chicago — public is buying the bounce-back. EV is negative across the board though, so the sharps aren't exactly running to the window.
First pitch is 1:20 PM CT at Wrigley. If PCA and Busch can't get something going against a guy throwing 63-pitch outings a couple weeks ago, the skid hits 7 and the questions about this Cubs offense get a lot louder.