When Pope Leo XIV’s election was announced Thursday, ABC News reported Robert Prevost of Dolton was a Cubs fan. The jokes were flying on social media, many of them suggesting Pope Leo XIV was a perfect choice to heal the world’s suffering, thanks to his allegiance to the Cubs.

John Prevost, Pope Leo's older brother, confirmed his MLB allegiance in multiple interviews, putting to rest the debate between the North and South Side.

"He's Sox, and then the radio announced Cubs, and that's not true," the pope's older brother, John Prevost, told CBS News Chicago.

The Chicago Cubs (22-16) and the New York Mets (24-14) open a 3-game set Friday. First pitch from Citi Field in Queens is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET (MLB Network). Let's analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's MLB odds around the Cubs vs. Mets odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.

Doc’s Sports offers MLB expert picks for every game on our baseball predictions page.

Chicago Cubs (22-16, first in the NL Central) vs. New York Mets (24-14, first in the NL East) New York; Friday, 6:10 p.m. CDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Cubs: Jameson Taillon (2-1, 3.86 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 31 strikeouts);

Francisco Lindor led off with the first of New York’s four solo homers and the Mets rolled to a 7-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series. Brett Baty and Jeff McNeil went deep in the second while Juan Soto homered in the fourth to help the Mets improve to 14-3 at Citi Field.

Francisco Lindor led off with the first of New York’s four solo homers and the Mets rolled to a 7-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series