Cubs will benefit from June schedule filled with games against teams under .500

Source: chicago.suntimes.com · Published: 2026-06-01

<img src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6ac87d7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/902x585+0+0/resize/840x545!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F8e%2F0a5f57ef4db8b416b1dec32071b4%2Fscreenshot-2026-05-31-at-8-02-28-pm.png" alt="Cubs pitcher Jordan Wicks throws during the first inning of a game against the Cardinals on Sunday, May 31, 2026, in St. Louis. " /> &lt;p&gt;ST. LOUIS — With the Cubs’ messy month of May drawing to a close, the forecast for June couldn’t be more favorable.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The Cubs’ next 22 games will be against teams with losing records — the Athletics, Giants, Rockies, Blue Jays and Mets. The Athletics, who arrive at Wrigley Field Tuesday for a three-game set, will be coming off a game in which they gave up 13 runs to the Yankees in the third inning, the Yankees’ biggest inning since 2005 and one shy of their record set in Babe Ruth’s first year as a Bomber.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Together, the five teams stand a combined 41 games under .500.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The Cubs have home-and-home series against the Rockies and Giants, who follow the Athletics into town this week, and play the Mets in New York later in the month, just before they face the division-leading Brewers in Milwaukee.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The Cubs’ rotation should soon be rejoined by Matthew Boyd, who made a strong rehab start Sunday for Triple-A Iowa in Indianapolis. Boyd, who has been out since May 4th with torn meniscus cartilage in his left knee, allowed just one run on Rafael Flores’ triple in the second before being lifted after allowing two ground-ball singles to open the fifth.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Boyd threw 63 pitches, 41 for strikes, walking one and striking out two. Assuming the left-hander checks out OK on Monday, he could return to the rotation as soon as this weekend against the Giants. Manager Craig Counsell wasn’t prepared to go that far Sunday, saying he had yet to see a report on Boyd’s outing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Eric Collins’ day job is play-by-play broadcaster for the Charlotte Hornets of the NBA. Saturday night, he was in the Fox booth in St. Louis, doing play-by-play of the Cubs-Cardinals, part of his summer gig for the network. Here’s his call of Pete Crow-Armstrong’s 444-foot home run.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;“I think it’s bad intel, this ‘Overrated’ chant. He’s having a night. Look at this! P…C…A, right into the ‘Tarps Off’ row! Take that for ‘Overrated.’ Ha! That’s what talent does. It responds!’’&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Brown keeps it in the yard&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In the first game of the season Ben Brown gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, Jacob Young of the Nationals. That was still when he was coming out of the bullpen for Craig Counsell. That’s the only home run the right-hander has allowed this season. He has gone 51 2/3 innings without allowing a home run in 16 appearances, including the five starts he has made since replacing Boyd in the Cubs rotation.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;According to Cub historian Ed Hartig, that’s the longest homeless streak by a Cubs pitcher since Marcus Stroman went 52 2/3 innings in 2023.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Brown was the team’s best reliever in two-inning stints, and has been their best starter as well. Overall, he has a 1.92 ERA, with 53 strikeouts and 15 walks.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Wicks takes his licks&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Left-hander Jordan Wicks got the quick hook from Counsell Sunday night, lifted after allowing a leadoff single to JJ Wetherholt to open the third inning. The first three Cardinals batters of the night singled safely off Wicks and two of them came around to score. Wicks has made two starts since being called up after Edward Cabrera went on the 15-day injured list and the numbers aren’t pretty: 7 1/3 IP, 13 H, 11 R, 13.50 ERA.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Shaw to Iowa&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Third baseman Matt Shaw is expected to be sent out on a rehab assignment to Iowa beginning Tuesday. He has been out since May 20 with tightness in his back.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;table class=&quot;cf wS&quot; role=&quot;presentation&quot; style=&quot;border-collapse: collapse;&quot; id=&quot;rte-4e04e3f0-5d56-11f1-9cd6-d329f37e8395&quot;&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;td colspan=&quot;1&quot; rowspan=&quot;1&quot; class=&quot;amq&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0px; padding: 0px 16px; vertical-align: top; width: 44px; visibility: hidden;&quot;&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;td colspan=&quot;1&quot; rowspan=&quot;1&quot; class=&quot;amr&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 784px;&quot;&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;