Pittsburgh Pirates (21-25) vs. Chicago Cubs (25-21)
May 19, 2024 2:20 pm EDT
The Line: Chicago Cubs -127 / Pittsburgh Pirates +107; Over/Under: +7.5
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In this article, we will formulate a Pittsburgh Pirates vs Chicago Cubs Prediction for this MLB Game on Sunday, May 19th at Wrigley Field.
Cubs Do Just Enough on Saturday
The Cubs pitching was dominant on Saturday not giving up any runs, but the offense only scored one run and that came in the bottom of the 9th. Christopher Morel finished with one hit, one walk, and one RBI. Shota Imanaga had another strong start going seven innings giving up four hits and zero runs. On Friday the Cubs only scored three runs and they are going to need to get the offense out to a faster start. The Cubs are averaging 4.47 runs while their pitching si giving up 4.27 runs per game. The offense is ranked 14th in the league while the pitching si ranked 14th. Jameson Taillion is going to get the start for the Cubs and coming into this game he sits with a 3-1 record and an ERA of 1.61. In his last start against the Atlanta Braves, he went four innings giving up seven hits and seven runs. They are going to need him to be a whole lot better here.
Pirates Offense Looks to Bounce Back
The Pirates offense really struggled on Saturday not scoring any runs and the offense is going to look to bounce back here. On Saturday the Pirates only had four hits and failed to score a run. On Friday the Pirates scored nine runs and they are going to need to get that offense back here. If the offense struggles, this is going to be a long game. The Pirates are averaging 3.76 runs while their pitching is giving up 4.36 runs per game. The offense is ranked 25th in the league while the pitching is ranked 16th. Their run differential is -0.59 which is 22nd in the league. Getting the start for the Pirates will be Mitch Keller who sits with a 4-3 record and an ERA of 3.93. In his last start against the Milwaukee Brewers, he went six innings giving up eight hits and zero runs. The Pirates need to give him some run support because they can’t assume he’s going to pitch a shootout here.
Pittsburgh Pirates vs Chicago Cubs Prediction
The Cubs offense really struggled on Saturday and it’s not going to be any different in this game. Keller has been strong this season and in his last start he gave up zero runs. The Pirates offense isn’t exactly elite, but they are going to score at least four runs here, and that is going to be enough for the get the job done. It might not be the prettiest game but the Pirates will get the job done.
