The Cubs will need left-hander Shota Imanaga to step up to salvage their series in San Francisco before continuing on their West Coast trip.
The Cubs have still not yet been swept in a three-game series this season and look to avoid that fate after dropping the first two games against the Giants.
The stretch of 17 games in 17 days became a little more difficult for the White Sox to navigate when center fielder Luis Robert Jr. went on the 10-day injured list Wednesday with a left hamstring strain.
Every Thursday during the regular season, Tribune baseball writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead — for the Cubs and White Sox.
Want more? Sign up for our Cubs Insider and White Sox Insider.
Cubs will open the 2026 season at Wrigley Field
Fans walk outside before the Chicago Cubs play the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field on opening day Thursday, March 30, 2023, in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
The Cubs have been road warriors to begin the last two years, with the 2025 campaign memorably kicking off at the Tokyo Dome in Japan.
But the Cubs get to start the 2026 season at Wrigley Field, a first since 2023, when they welcome the Washington Nationals to the Friendly Confines on March 26 for opening day. Their interleague schedule takes the Cubs on the road to Cleveland, Tampa, Texas, Baltimore, Kansas City, Seattle, the South Side for the City Series and Boston, where they end the regular season.
They also host two home games on holidays: June 12 for Father’s Day versus the Toronto Blue Jays and July 4 against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cubs play the White Sox in a weekend set May 15-17 at Rate Field and a midweek series Aug. 17-19 at Wrigley.
Among the schedule quirks, the Cubs complete a season series against a non-division National League team within 10 days three times: the Phillies (seven games between April 13-23), the Giants (six games between June 5-14) and the Rockies (six games between June 9-17).
White Sox will have a historical start to the 2026 season
Chicago White Sox shortstop Brooks Baldwin throws to first base as Milwaukee Brewers catcher William Contreras slides in safely at second base during a game at Rate Field in Chicago on April 30, 2025. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
For the first time in franchise history, the Sox will face a National League team on opening day when they begin the 2026 season on March 26 at Milwaukee.
That is one of the highlights of the ’26 schedule, which was released Tuesday.
The Sox last spent opening day in Milwaukee in 1995 when the Brewers were still members of the American League.
It will be a chance to catch up with Andrew Vaughn. The Sox dealt the first baseman, their first-round pick in 2019, to the Brewers for pitcher Aaron Civale on June 13.
The team’s home opener is April 2 against Toronto. The Sox last hosted the Blue Jays for a home opener in 1979 at Comiskey Park.
The longest homestand of the season for the Sox runs May 8-17 with three games each against the Seattle Mariners (May 8-10), Kansas City Royals (May 12-14) and Cubs (May 15-17).
In addition to the weekend series against the Cubs at Rate Field, the Sox travel to Wrigley Field for three midweek games on Aug. 17-19.
One of the more intriguing stretches on the 2026 schedule for the Sox comes in June. They are in Philadelphia on June 5-7, return home for a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves (June 9-11) and Los Angeles Dodgers (June 12-14) and then go back on the road to face the New York Yankees (June 16-18) and Detroit Tigers (June 19-21).
The Sox close the regular season with three games at home against the Colorado Rockies (Sept. 25-27).
Number of the week: 4
Sox shortstop Colson Montgomery homered in his fourth consecutive game on Tuesday. He became the first Sox to accomplish the feat since Luis Robert Jr. had a stretch of four straight from May 12-16, 2023.
Week ahead: Cubs
Chicago Cubs designated hitter Seiya Suzuki walks to first base during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)
Thursday: at Giants, 2:45 p.m., Marquee
Friday: at Rockies, 6:40 p.m., Marquee
Saturday: at Rockies, 6:10 p.m., Marquee
Sunday: at Rockies, 2:10 p.m., Marquee
Monday: vs. Braves, 3:05 p.m., Marquee
Tuesday: vs. Braves, 6:40 p.m., Marquee
Wednesday: vs. Braves, 6:40 p.m., Marquee
The Cubs desperately need designated hitter Seiya Suzuki to get locked in again.
Since the All-Star break, Suzuki is hitting .174 with a .312 on-base percentage and .226 slugging percentage. In that 34-game stretch, he’s tallied only four extra-base hits and driven in only seven runs — a stark contrast to his 53 extra-base hits and 80 RBIs in his first 93 games.
Manager Craig Counsell believes Suzuki has been close to regaining his form at the plate.
“The pitches that he’s had to drive he’s either missed, kind of fouled back, he’s hit some like the line drive with the bases loaded the other day … and it just creates a sac fly and one run,” Counsell said. “But I think he’s missed some pitches that probably are the home runs he had earlier in the season. And you don’t get many of those pitches, and when you don’t do something with that pitch then you’re kind of battling for a single a little bit.
“I think that’s kind of what Seiya’s been going through a little bit because he’s collecting the singles but not the big swings.”
Suzuki is searching for his first home run since Aug. 6. His power outage has coincided with Kyle Tucker’s struggles, which have compounded the impact of both sluggers’ slumps.
Week ahead: White Sox
Chicago White Sox’s Kyle Teel celebrates with teammates after scoring during the first inning of a game against the Minnesota Twins in Chicago on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Thursday: vs. Yankees, 6:40 p.m.
Friday: vs. Yankees, 6:40 p.m., CHSN/The U
Saturday: vs. Yankees, 6:10 p.m., CHSN
Sunday: vs. Yankees, 1:10 p.m., CHSN
Monday: at Twins, 1:10 p.m., CHSN
Tuesday: at Twins, 6:40 p.m., CHSN
Wednesday: at Twins, 6:40 p.m., CHSN
Catcher Kyle Teel enjoyed the opportunity to bat leadoff for the Sox on Saturday against the Minnesota Twins.
“I feel like when you bat first, you get a lot of at-bats,” Teel told the Tribune on Monday. “I really value when I’m in that spot and I think it can help the team.
“I like hitting, so it’s great.”
It was Teel’s second time hitting at the top of the order this season. The other occurred on Aug. 13 when he had the designated hitter duties.
“As a leadoff, I’ve just been working on keeping the same approach as when I’m batting three, five,” Teel said. “Wherever they put me, I have my same approach and I’m just focusing on getting a good pitch to hit.”
Teel continues to have an impact wherever he is in the lineup. The rookie had three hits and two RBIs while batting third Sunday against the Twins. After a day off on Monday, he collected three more hits at the No. 3 spot on Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals. He became the first Sox player to record back-to-back three-hit games since Tim Anderson from Sept. 16-18, 2023 (also two games).
Entering Wednesday, Teel had a .294/.383/.417 slash line with eight doubles, four home runs and 22 RBIs in 52 games. He’s producing and providing an energy boost.
“The best way I could describe it right is, the genuine enthusiasm for being at the baseball field that sometimes can be lost in the daily grind of being a professional baseball player,” manager Will Venable said of Teel’s energy. “He brings that kind of energy that always reminds us how special it is to be at the ballpark playing baseball, whether it’s in the clubhouse, in the dugout, on the field.
“It’s just the genuine enthusiasm for being a baseball player, which is what it’s all about, and I think everyone feeds off of.”
What we’re reading today
Quotable
“Shota (Imanaga) has, I think, spoiled us from Day 1 in terms of how good he’s been, you know? I mean, I think he’s passed every test now.” — Cubs manager Craig Counsell