Cubs at Mets
The Chicago Cubs haven’t won a road game in a month, a trend they hope to reverse when they begin a six-game trip on Monday with the opener of a three-game series against the New York Mets. The Cubs have lost eight straight away from home and haven’t won a series on the road since taking two of three at Pittsburgh from April 24-26.
The Cubs snapped a four-game skid with a 7-5 win over Colorado on Sunday behind four home runs, but they’ve had a hard time generating offense away from Wrigley Field. Chicago has totaled only 12 runs during its eight-game road slide, while New York’s pitching staff has been dominant of late, allowing exactly one run in each of the last three games. The Mets won the last three contests of their four-game weekend set at Atlanta and have taken over second place in the National League East, although they remain 9 1/2 games behind division-leading Washington. Veteran right-hander John Lackey takes the mound for the Cubs in hopes of continuing his strong pitching against the Mets, as he is 2-0 with a 2.14 ERA in five career meetings.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, CSN Chicago, SNY (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs RH John Lackey (4-6, 5.12 ERA) vs. Mets RH Jacob deGrom (4-3, 4.75)
Lackey is winless in his last four starts and has been tagged with the loss in three of those outings. The 38-year-old gave up five runs and seven hits over six innings in a loss to Miami on Wednesday. Lackey has surrendered 16 home runs in 12 starts this season, including eight in his last five turns.
After putting together back-to-back dominant starts, deGrom has turned in two straight clunkers. The 28-year-old has been rocked for 15 runs and 18 hits in eight innings over his last two outings, including eight and 10 in four frames Tuesday at Texas. DeGrom is 1-2 with a 5.31 ERA in four career starts against the Cubs.
WALK-OFFS
1. Chicago RHP Wade Davis has converted his first 13 save opportunities, tying Randy Myers (1993) for the longest streak to begin a season in franchise history.
2. Mets RF Jay Bruce is 12-for-36 with four homers during his eight-game hitting streak.
3. Cubs 1B Anthony Rizzo is 8-for-20 during his six-game hitting streak.