Houston Astros vs Chicago Cubs Picks and Prediction for Friday May 22 2026

By: Eddie Kline Published 05/22/2026, 01:05 AM ET

Astros Preview

The Friday MLB schedule will get underway with a matinee between the Houston Astros and the Chicago Cubs from historic Wrigley Field. Be ready for the baseball season with all of our MLB predictions. The Astros (20-31) have dropped 17 of their first 25 road games and are six games out of first place in the AL West Division. On Wednesday, Minnesota batters managed just five hits and were retired by strikes 15 times during a 4-1 road loss against Minnesota.

Twenty-six year old righty Spencer Arrighetti (5-1 1.50 ERA) is quietly moving into All-Star consideration for the Astros. Last time out, Arrighetti fired seven plus shutout frames and fanned five batters during a 2-0 home victory versus Texas.

Cubs Preview

The Chicago Cubs are looking to snap a five-game losing streak and are 1.5 games behind Milwaukee for the top spot in the NL Central Division. On Wednesday, Chicago OF Pete Crow-Armstrong misplayed a single in the second that led to two additional runs during a 5-0 home loss versus Milwaukee. The Cubs (29-21) committed more errors (3) than hits and fell to 18-8 at home.

Chicago skipper Craig Counsell will give the nod to veteran right-hander Jameson Taillon (2-3 4.97 ERA) in the series opener. In his last start, Taillon was roughed up for eight runs in five innings during an 8-3 road loss against the White Sox.

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Astros vs Cubs Pick

Chicago SP Matthew Boyd (knee) will throw off a mound this weekend and hopes to return the rotation next month. Through 51 games, Houston ranks 9th in OPS and 14th in runs scored. For the season, Chicago ranks 5th in OPS and 5th in runs scored. Take the Astros to win on the road against the slumping Cubs. Final Score Prediction, Houston Astros win 5-1.

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