Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati Reds preview, Monday 5/4, 6:40 CT

As you know, tonight’s game time was moved up because there is a chance of rain this evening. Here’s the local radar for you to keep handy. Monday notes… STREAKING, PART 1: The Cubs have won 11 straight games at home. It is their 19th double-digit home winning streak of the Modern Era, which began i

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What is the story about?

As you know, tonight’s game time was moved up because there is a chance of rain this evening. Here’s the local radar for you to keep handy.

Monday notes…

STREAKING, PART 1: The Cubs have won 11 straight games at home. It is their 19th double-digit home winning streak of the Modern Era, which began in 1901, and their 15th at Wrigley Field, their home since 1916. This is their first such streak since they won 14 in a row, May 18-June 22, 2008. A 13-game streak in 2001 and a 10-game streak in 1998 are their only others of the kind since 1970. Their record is 18 straight, Sept. 4-22, 1935, during a surge that lifted them to the pennant. The 2008 streak was one of five of 14 games. The 2001 streak was the only one of 13. They also had a lone streak of 12, in 1927, and of 11, in 1910, for a total now of 11 streaks of at least 11 in a row. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)

STREAKING, PART 2: The 1910 streak was the only one that ended after 11 games, with a 3-1 loss to the Cardinals in Game 2 of a Memorial Day doubleheader. The Cubs extended the 2001 streak to 12 by beating the Twins, 11-4. They hit five home runs, two of them by Sammy Sosa, who drove in five runs. The 12th win in 2012 was a 4-3 walk-off over the White Sox. Aramis Ramirez homered on the second pitch of the ninth inning. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
FIFTEEN AND THREE: The Cubs are 15-3 in their last 18 games, their best 18-game record since they also were 15-3 from Sept. 12-30, 2017. They were 15-3 in nine spans, many overlapping, in 2016, and in four spans in 2015. The last time they were better was 16-2, from July 27-Aug. 15, 2015. Their previous 16-2 stretch was May 19-June 9, 2001. The Cubs were 18-0 in four overlapping spans in 1935 and 17-1 in 23 spans, many overlapping, in 1906, 1932 and 1935. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: The Cubs swept a doubleheader from the Dodgers at Wrigley Field by scores of 7-1 and 4-3. These were scheduled seven-inning games; the nightcap went to extras and the Cubs walked it off on a David Bote single in the ninth. It happened five years ago today, Tuesday, May 4, 2021.

Cubs lineup:

Reds lineup:

Edward Cabrera, RHP vs. Chase Petty, RHP

Edward Cabrera has been pretty consistent throughout this season. His K rate has been down a bit from last year, but he’s still been getting outs, most of the time, and keeping

the ball in the yard (just three home runs allowed in 35.1 innings).

The last time he faced the Reds was April 22, 2025 in Miami. He allowed three runs in five innings with no walks and seven strikeouts. Again, that’s pretty much what he’s done with the Cubs so far. Elly De La Cruz and Spencer Steer have homered off him.

Chase Petty is being recalled to take Brandon Williamson’s spot in the Reds rotation. Williamson has shoulder issues.

Petty was the Twins’ No. 1 pick (22nd overall) in 2021 and came to the Reds the following year in the Sonny Gray trade. He made three appearances (two starts) for the Reds last year and the results were not good: 19.20 ERA, 3.667 WHIP, 14 hits and eight walks in six innings, with three home runs allowed. At Triple-A Louisville this year he has a 4.38 ERA and 1.338 WHIP in six starts covering 24.2 innings. His walk rate is still pretty high (11 walks in Triple-A this year). As you can see from the 2025 chart below, he throws hard but doesn’t always know where the ball is going.

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Here is the weather forecast for the area around Wrigley Field.

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Reds site Red Reporter. If you do go there to interact with Reds fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.