Texas @ Chicago preview
Wrigley Field
Last Meeting ( Apr 7, 2025 ) Texas 0, Chi. Cubs 7
Two pitchers with plenty to prove will be on the mound when the Chicago Cubs host the Texas Rangers on Tuesday night in the second game of a three-game interleague series.
Reclamation project left-hander Patrick Corbin (0-0, 0.00 ERA) will start for Texas while right-hander Jameson Taillon (1-1, 6.97) will oppose him.
Game 1 of the series went to the Cubs 7-0 on Monday night in frigid, windy conditions. Michael Busch, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki had two hits each for Chicago, and Justin Steele allowed just three hits over seven innings to improve to 3-1.
Steele allowed just three singles, as no Texas player advanced past second base in the game.
The Cubs had 10 hits, including a double and a triple by Busch, and chased Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi from the game with two outs in the fifth. Eovaldi had pitched a 1-0 complete game against the Cincinnati Reds in his previous start.
Kyle Higashioka had two of the three hits for the Rangers, who had a five-game winning streak snapped.
Corbin, a two-time All-Star, was called up from Triple-A Round Rock to take the place of the injured Jack Leiter, who was shelved with a blister on his right middle finger. Corbin went 6-13 with a 5.62 ERA in 32 starts with Washington last season.
Corbin signed a one-year deal with the Rangers in March and did not pitch in spring training, preferring to ramp up for the season in the minors. He said he feels like he is ready to compete even with the short prep time.
"I've been telling them I feel pretty good," Corbin said Sunday, "This is kind of similar to my first year there in D.C., when there were some veteran guys in that rotation at the top. That's why you wanted to be a part of a team like that, and like this -- to be in those games."
Taillon on Tuesday will start his third game of the season, racking up 10 1/3 total innings while striking out eight over his first two outings. His most recent appearance was his best as he surrendered two runs, four hits and three walks over six innings while striking out seven in the Cubs' 10-2 win over the Athletics on Wednesday.
Taillon has been working on adding a changeup to his arsenal and was successful enough with it to get four strikeouts with the pitch in the win over the A's.
"It's no secret other teams stack lineups with lefties against me," Taillon said after the win in Sacramento. "It's on me to find a way to punch back and show that I can get lefties out and limit slug and all of that. So the changeup for me could be a really good pitch. It's just having the ability to not be so predictable."
Taillon is 1-1 with a 6.23 ERA in his career against the Rangers, while Corbin is 5-2 with a 4.48 ERA vs. the Cubs.
Snow was expected overnight and cold temperatures are again on the menu for both Tuesday's night game and the afternoon series closer on Wednesday.
--Field Level Media