2020-09-02 19:05:00 EDT
The Chicago Cubs and the Pittsburgh Pirates meet Wednesday in MLB action from PNC Park.
This will be the second matchup in a three-game set between these teams this week. In the Tuesday opening game, we had an intense evening as the Cubs eked out an 11-inning victory 8-7. Check back all season long for free MLB picks and MLB predictions at Sports Chat Place.
The Cubs were able to out-hit Pittsburgh 12-10 on Tuesday in the opener, and they needed every bit of offense. Ian Happ led the team on three hits, two RBI and a solo home run. Starting pitcher Jon Lester got into some trouble with 5.1 innings, eight hits, five earned, three walks and three strikeouts.
For the Wednesday starting pitcher role, the Cubs are going with Kyle Hendricks. In his seven starts this season, Hendricks is 3-4 with a 4.09 ERA and 34 strikeouts in 44.0 innings. On his MLB career, Hendricks is 66-47 with a 3.18 ERA and 852 Ks in 1010.0 innings of work.
Over on the Pirates’ side, Tuesday’s troubles started with opening pitcher Chad Kuhl, who went 4.0 innings with six hits, three earned, two walks and three strikeouts. The Pittsburgh offense just wasn’t there outside of a four-run sixth inning.
In the starting pitcher job on Wednesday, Pittsburgh will turn to Derek Holland. This season in six games (five starts), Holland is 1-2 with a 7.62 ERA and 31 Ks in 28.1 innings. Holland is a career 4.60 pitcher with a 79-80 record and 1176 Ks in 1404.0 innings total.
The Cubs are 6-2 in the last eight games versus a left-handed starter and 14-6 in their last 20 games versus a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30. the under is 18-7-1 in the Cubs’ last 26 games versus a left-handed starter and the over is 20-8 in their last 28 games versus a left-handed starter.
Meanwhile, the Pirates are 29-60 in their last 89 games as an underdog and 17-36 in their last 63 games overall. Pittsburgh is 4-14 in their last 18 during game two of a series and 11-40 in their last 51 games versus a team with a winning record.
Pick: I’m going to lean Cubs here, mostly due to their superior offensive capabilities. Both pitchers are in need of good showings in this game, though. Holland had eight strikeouts over five innings in his last outing, but coughed up eight runs and three homers in a loss to the Brewers. As for Hendricks, he gave up five runs and two homers on 10 hits in six innings versus the Reds on Friday. Holland gave up 22 runs in 22.2 innings in August, and Hendricks is 0-3 with a 5.60 ERA in his past three starts. Yikes.
