Making the start for the visitors is 27-year-old lefty Riley Martin, a Quincy, IL native who has spent the last two-plus seasons at Triple-A Iowa. Exclusively a reliever, Martin has been used a few times as an opener over the course of his professional career. That will be the case today as Craig Counsell opts for another bullpen game.
They're a better team than people think. Look at their game, before they played us last game, they had just lost in overtime against Dallas. They're in the game every night. Before the break, they had a hell of a stretch where they were in the game all the time. They can skate, they have size, and their goaltending is really good, so they're in the game every night, so you need to be as close as possible to perfection.
Man, it's an honor. I'm so grateful to be the guy who gets the ball on that day. Obviously it's a game just like the rest of the other 162, but I'm super grateful. Opening Day, it is really something that is truly special. I understand how much it means to Chicago fans and how much it means to my own family.
Boyd joined the Cubs last season, making the All-Star Game for the first time in his career. He had a 3.21 ERA and 3.4 fWAR, both the best marks he has ever posted. One of the most impressive aspects of his 2025 campaign was Boyd's health. He had struggled to stay on the field in past years, throwing just 201.5 innings between 2021 and 2024.
