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

• Shutting down baseball’s best, the Cubs look to sweep the Rays on Wednesday, May 31st
• Having not been swept this year, the Rays are -135 favorites to again avoid that dubious feat
• You can find the Rays vs Cubs odds for the series finale below, plus our best bet and prediction

Figuring something out that no other baseball team has so far this season, the Cubs (24-30, 15-15 home) who sit at the bottom of the National League Central, are on the verge of sweeping the league leading Rays (39-18, 13-12 away) if they notch another victory when the teams meet on Wednesday, May 31st at Wrigley Field.

Pitching has been the key to success in the first two matchups for the Cubs as they’ve basically shut down one of the most powerful MLB lineups through the first two games. Opening pitch for the series finale is at 2:20 pm ET with Bally Sports Network and Marquee Sports Network supplying the television coverage.

Below, you can see the Rays vs Cubs odds for Wednesday afternoon’s contest, plus our best bet and pick as we analyze which squad should have the upper hand.

Rays vs Cubs Odds

Despite owning the best record in baseball, Tampa is a middling road team, sitting just a game above .500 after 25 played as visitors. Still, they’ve avoided three straight losses all season, and oddsmakers pit the Rays as -135 moneyline chalk to escape the Windy City with at least one win.

Temperatures at game time are expected to hover around 74 degrees with a mix of sun and cloud expected. Gentle winds will be blowing at around 11 miles per hour on the North side of Chi-town.

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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.

Gerrit Cole on the bump today

MLB Most Starts with 5+ IP and 0-2 Runs Allowed
10 Shane McClanahan
9 Gerrit Cole
9 Marcus Stroman

MLB Best Record in Pitcher's Starts (6+ GS)
10-1 Rays/Shane McClanahan
8-1 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.

CUBS WIN!!! The #Cubs beat Tampa Bay again on Tuesday night for the series win!! pic.twitter.com/egtlhh8knS

— Chicago Cubs on SR (@InsidetheIvy) May 31, 2023

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)