Guy Boston Sports said bettors should back the Cubs on the money line and play their team-total over in Friday’s opener with Pittsburgh. He pointed out that Colin Rea has delivered consecutive quality starts, including six scoreless innings versus St. Louis, and has limited the Pirates to exactly two earned runs over six frames in both prior 2025 meetings. Meanwhile Pittsburgh is opting for a bullpen day with Braxton Ashcraft acting as an opener, exposing a relief corps that has already been worked hard during the club’s 3-7 slide. With the Pirates ranking near the bottom of the league in wRC+ and Chicago returning home where their offense has been far better, he is comfortable laying the current −178 and even prefers the alternative −1 run line plus a Cubs team-total over, expecting Chicago’s bats to ‘pick apart’ the pen all afternoon.

Drew Martin recommended backing the Chicago Cubs on the moneyline (or a −1 run alternative) with Colin Rea on the hill. Rea sits at 8-5 and still carried his usual velocity even while getting tagged in two tough recent spots—wind howling out at Wrigley versus Kansas City and a red-hot Milwaukee lineup. Baltimore is expected to recall a starter from AA Chesapeake who sports a 6.50 ERA, has surrendered 19 hits over his last three MLB outings, averages fewer than five innings per start, and owns an 0-5 record. Martin also pointed out Chicago’s bullpen rates better than Baltimore’s, strengthening the late-game edge.

Jay Yang advised fading Colin Rea in any betting or DFS context, laying out five red-flag metrics. Rea owns a strikeout rate under 7.0 K/9, dangerous against a Milwaukee order ranking top-5 in hard-contact rate the last two weeks. His WHIP spikes to 1.27–1.35 with runners on, exposing him to blow-up innings. Both his swinging-strike percentage and chase rate sit in the bottom 25 % of qualified pitchers, and a 4.50 FIP marks him as a regression candidate. Finally, Rea has struggled historically against NL Central foes, including Milwaukee and St. Louis. Yang called him "risky" and a pitcher to fade Tuesday.

Looking ahead to Friday, Maher labeled Colin Rea a serviceable stream because the matchup is at pitcher-friendly American Family Field rather than Great American Ball Park. Rea has been far better at home (3.28 ERA, .286 wOBA allowed) and the Reds rank 29th in OPS and 28th in wRC+ on the road. Maher ranks Rea ahead of fallback options Justin Verlander (road start in Miami) and Jose Soriano (in Cleveland) for managers chasing a weekend win in H2H formats.

Drew Martin recommended laying the modest –120 with the Cubs in Cincinnati because the matchup favors Chicago on several fronts. Starter Colin Rea, a steady 34-year-old, owns a sub-2.50 ERA and a 3-0 record. The Cubs back him with the league’s No. 2 offense versus left-handed pitching by weighted runs created plus and an overall +83 run differential. Reds southpaw Andrew Abbott has strong surface numbers, yet Martin noted they haven’t translated into cashing tickets against him this season. Chicago’s potent lineup against lefties plus better road form led Martin to call the Cubs the side.

Although Morgan believes Rea’s 2.48 ERA won’t stick, he still recommends the $7,200 right-hander because even a 4.29 ERA version suffices against the White Sox, who sit last in OPS and just 28th in runs. Rea’s cutter/curve mix held opponents to a .214 average so far, and with the South Siders striking out 24.9% of the time, Morgan expects Rea to pay off as a salary saver that lets gamers jam in premium bats.

Razzle likes Colin Rea as a cheaper SP2. The Cubs are massive –258 favorites over a weak Miami lineup, giving Rea +125 win odds (third best on slate). Wind is blowing in at Wrigley, further suppressing run scoring. While Rea’s strikeout ceiling is limited (4.5 K-prop), the park factors and matchup provide a solid path to 15–20 DK points at moderate ownership. Razzle will roster Rea in builds that pay up for expensive bats.

Calling it his “lock of the day,” Kenny G endorsed laying the –250 with Chicago because the matchup is lopsided everywhere except the bullpen. Colin Rea (2-0, 2.43 ERA) had strung together four straight quality outings before a hiccup in San Francisco and now gets a bottom-five Marlins offense that sits 20th in slugging and has produced 2.2 runs per game over its last five. Meanwhile Cal Quantrill’s 7.11 ERA is no fluke—he’s been rocked for 15 earned in the three starts prior to his Dodgers surprise—and will turn things over to a Miami pen sporting a 5.05 ERA (25th). Even with Chicago’s own relief issues, Kenny trusts the league’s highest-scoring lineup (top-10 AVG, 3rd SLG) led by Kyle Tucker and Nico Hoerner to give Rea plenty of cushion. He said the Cubs could cover the entire 8.5-run total themselves and views the hefty juice as justified given the talent gap.

Mike Maher said Colin Rea is the ideal add-and-start in weekly leagues because he draws two bottom-five offenses: Monday at home against Miami and Sunday versus the White Sox. Maher likes that both outings are in Wrigley, notes Miami’s MLB-worst .613 OPS and Chicago’s South Side rivals ranking 29th in runs. Rea’s walk rate (6.3%) and ground-ball tilt make him relatively safe in those parks, and he is rostered in fewer than 15 % of Yahoo leagues, giving streamers an easy path to volume without many replacement-level alternatives on the slate.

Drew Martin backed the Cubs as +115 underdogs at PNC Park, stressing how quietly dominant Colin Rea has been. Rea owns a 0.95 ERA through three starts versus the Phillies, Dodgers, and Diamondbacks and has allowed only two earned runs in 19 innings with a sparkling 19-to-3 K/BB ratio. Chicago brings a +50 run-differential and the more complete lineup against Paul Skenes, whose prospect buzz is inflating the price. Martin argued the market move from Pirates –150 to –120 is justified and that the Cubs’ superior bats and Rea’s current form make them the side to bet.