Rays vs Cubs Predictions, Odds & Probable Pitchers (May 31)

Odds as of May 30th at Bet365. Check out SBD’s Bet365 review before signing up.

Tampa Bay Rays vs Chicago Cubs Probable Pitchers

Judging by the statistics of the starters scheduled to throw on Wednesday afternoon, it should be a doozy of a pitching matchup. Nowhere to be seen in the current Cy Young odds, Tampa’s Zach Eflin has the second most wins amongst pitchers this year with only teammate Shane McClanahan posting more victories so far.

MLB Best Record in Pitcher's Starts (6+ GS)10-1 Rays/Shane McClanahan8-1 Rays/Zach Eflin

9-2 Yankees/Gerrit Cole

— James Smyth (@JamesSmyth621) May 28, 2023

In his last start, he surprisingly didn’t whiff a single batter after punching out 31 in his previous four starts. No matter, he went seven innings in that previous outing against a powerful Blue Jays lineup, giving up just one run.

That was the fifth start in a row where Eflin threw at least six innings, an important factor for Tampa given the struggles of their bullpen.

Eflin vs Steele Stats

For the Cubbies, Justin Steele appears to have taken another step in his progression to becoming a lock in the rotation with the potential to be an ace sooner rather than later.

The Cubs lefty is tied for the National League lead with six wins and ranks fourth in the senior circuit in ERA. There are two factors working against him when he faces the Rays on Wednesday though.

One is that he’s coming off his worst appearance of the year, giving up five earned and not even completing four innings. The other is that the Rays have absolutely raked off southpaws this season in the MLB odds, averaging 8.65 runs per nine innings and a .306 team batting average.

Rays Recent Road Struggles

Contrary to popular belief, it all hasn’t been rainbows and roses for the Rays this season. Getting wins on the road and the bullpen are two areas where there is noticeable room for improvement.

Rays’ Recent Road Results

Suffering four losses in a row on the road, Tampa’s devastating offense has fallen completely silent against the Cubs, pushing just a single run across the plate in their first two games.

The Rays bullpen has actually fared well in this series, not allowing a single run in four and two-third innings.
Tampa’s relievers generate fewer strikeouts than any other in the league, posting a 17.5% strikeout rate compared to an MLB relief average of 23.9% and is amongst the bottom third in ERA in all of baseball.

Rays vs Cubs Pick

These two teams are on complete opposite sides of the table when looking at the current World Series odds, so a Cubbies sweep would be nothing short of shocking.

Our prediction is that Tampa’s bats wake up as they get set to feast on a lefty after facing two righthanders. The Rays have been much more successful against southpaws this season and own an 8-1 mark in games started by Eflin this campaign, so there’s too many high percentage trends to ignore. Pick Tampa on the moneyline.

Pick: Tampa Bay Rays Moneyline (-135)