CHICAGO — After a wild weekend in Cincinnati, the first-place Cubs return home to take on the worst team in baseball.
And, to this point, the worst team in modern MLB history.
The Cubs open a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Wrigley Field on Monday with a 1:20 p.m. Memorial Day matinee.
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The Cubs enter Memorial Day, traditionally viewed as a good marker to start really looking at the standings, with a 32-21 record and a two-game lead over the white-hot St. Louis Cardinals for first place in the NL Central.
The Cubs are coming off a crazy three-game series in Cincinnati, rallying twice from big deficits in the final innings to take two of three, including Sunday’s 11-8 come-from-behind win — with two homers from a most unlikely source.
Chicago leads all of baseball with 321 runs scored behind an offense that’s generated some of the highest production in Cubs history through a season’s first two months.
The Rockies? Well, they’re on the completely opposite end of the spectrum.
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Colorado enters the series a dismal 9-44, on pace for a worse record than even last season’s White Sox, who set a Modern Era MLB record with 121 losses in a season. The Rockies were 8-42 through their first 50 games, the worst 50-game start in MLB’s Modern Era (since 1900). They’ve allowed the most runs in MLB so far this season and scored the second-least.
So, on paper, this is a series the Cubs should win easily and probably sweep. But it is baseball, so anything can happen.
Here’s a look at the teams going into Monday’s Memorial Day matchup:
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Colorado Rockies (9-44, fifth in the NL West) vs. Chicago Cubs (32-21, first in the NL Central)
MONDAY’S PITCHING PROBABLES: Rockies: Carson Palmquist (0-2, 11.88 ERA, 2.52 WHIP, two strikeouts); Cubs: Jameson Taillon (3-3, 4.13 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 44 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Cubs -345, Rockies +274; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: Chicago is 32-21 overall and 15-10 at home. The Cubs have the second-best team slugging percentage in the majors at .459.
Colorado has gone 3-22 on the road and 9-44 overall. The Rockies have a 2-10 record in games when they hit two or more home runs.
The teams meet Monday for the first time this season.
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TOP PERFORMERS: Kyle Tucker has 12 home runs, 36 walks and 37 RBI, while hitting .279 for the Cubs. Seiya Suzuki is 16-for-39 with seven doubles, four home runs and 15 RBI over the last 10 games.
Jordan Beck leads the Rockies with eight home runs while slugging .536. Ezequiel Tovar is 16-for-35 with two home runs and five RBI over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Cubs: 7-3, .316 batting average, 4.18 ERA, outscored opponents by 37 runs; Rockies: 2-8, .237 batting average, 5.73 ERA, outscored by 34 runs
INJURIES: Cubs: Carson Kelly: day-to-day (illness), Miguel Amaya: 10-Day IL (oblique), Porter Hodge: 15-Day IL (oblique), Tyson Miller: 60-Day IL (hip), Eli Morgan: 60-Day IL (elbow), Shota Imanaga: 15-Day IL (leg), Javier Assad: 60-Day IL (oblique), Justin Steele: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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Rockies: Chase Dollander: 15-Day IL (forearm), Kris Bryant: 60-Day IL (lumbar), Ryan Feltner: 15-Day IL (back), Thairo Estrada: 60-Day IL (wrist), Victor Vodnik: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Austin Gomber: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jeff Criswell: 60-Day IL (elbow)
UP NEXT: This series begins a six-game homestand for the Cubs. They’ll have a day off at home on Thursday before hosting the Reds for a weekend series.
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