Chicago Cubs vs New York Mets – Series Preview (May 23-25): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
The Cubs (20-26) limped back into Chicago for nine home games after a very disappointing 2-7 road trip to Minneapolis, Houston, and Philadelphia. Overall, it’s been a very difficult month on the North Side and the squad needs to turn things around at Wrigley this week before they fall completely out of the race.
First up is a three-game series with the Mets (25-23) starting Tuesday night. After dominating the offseason, it’s been an uneven beginning for New York. It appears they are shaking it off, however, winning five in a row to move above the .500 mark.
Pete Alonso is having a huge year with 17 home runs to lead all of baseball. The Mets’ .718 team OPS puts them right in the middle of the pack in MLB, but the offense has come to life during the recent winning streak. They are averaging 5.6 runs per game in that period and show no signs of slowing.
Pitching was expected to be a strong suit for New York coming into 2023, but a 4.68 ERA is just 24th in the league. Injuries to new addition Justin Verlander and a combination of injuries and a suspension for Max Scherzer have definitely hurt. The rest of the staff has been disappointing as well, so the balance just isn’t there.
Buck Showalter‘s bullpen has been better with big help from former Cub David Robertson, who has eight saves so far this season. It appears like Chicago is facing the Mets at the wrong time, which is par for the course with their current run of bad luck.
The Cubs are overdue for some good fortune of their own, so maybe a return to the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field will do the trick. It sure would be nice to see a few wins after such a tough stretch. Let’s bring the good April vibes back, folks.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Tuesday, May 23 at 6:40pm CT on Marquee.
- Wednesday, May 24 at 6:40pm CT on MLB Network (out of market only) and Marquee.
- Thursday, May 25 at 6:40pm CT on MLB Network (out of market only) and Marquee.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 5/23 | Drew Smyly | 33 | L | 2.86 | 4-1 | 3.47 | 4.60 |
| Kodai Senga | 30 | R | 3.77 | 4-2 | 4.36 | 2.12 | |
| 5/24 | Marcus Stroman | 32 | R | 3.05 | 3-4 | 3.58 | 2.43 |
| Tylor Megill | 27 | R | 3.88 | 5-2 | 5.15 | 1.52 | |
| 5/25 | Jameson Taillon | 31 | R | 8.10 | 0-3 | 4.94 | 2.70 |
| Carlos Carrasco | 36 | R | 8.68 | 0-2 | 6.99 | 1.10 |
What to Watch For
- Christopher Morel is the first Cubs player ever to hit eight home runs in his first 11 games of the season.
- Matt Mervis is struggling a bit to adjust to the major leagues and had just one hit against the Phillies.
- Nico Hoerner had three hits in his first game back from his hamstring injury on Friday but went hitless the next two games.
- Taillon has been really struggling his last few starts and his ERA is up to 8.10 on the season.
