In this article we will formulate a Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates prediction for this MLB game on Monday, September 2nd at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois. Let’s take a look at the prediction for game one in the series.
Chicago Cubs Betting Preview
The Chicago Cubs are 71-66 this year and they have won six games in a row. Chicago is coming off of a series win against Washington, where they won all three games and scored 26 runs in the process. Prior to that series, the Cubs swept the Pirates, won two out of three against the Marlins, and won two out of three against the Tigers. Chicago is 9-1 in their last 10 games and they are second in the NL Central.
The Chicago pitching staff has a 3.79 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, and a .239 opponent batting average. The Cubs offense has scored 626 runs with a .240 batting average and a .316 on base percentage. Seiya Suzuki is batting .276 with 19 home runs and 64 RBI’s for the Cubs this season.
Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Preview
The Pittsburgh Pirates are 63-73 this season and they have lost five of their last six games. Pittsburgh is coming off of a series loss against Cleveland, where they lost two out of three games. Prior to that series, the Pirates lost all three against the Cubs, won three out of four against the Reds, and lost two out of three against the Rangers. Pittsburgh is 5-9 in their last 14 games and they are last in the NL Central.
The Pittsburgh pitching staff has a 4.14 ERA, a 1.31 WHIP, and a .252 opponent batting average. The Pirates offense has scored 572 runs with a .236 batting average and a .302 on base percentage. Bryan Reynolds is batting .282 with 21 home runs and 74 RBI’s for the Pirates this season.
Starting Pitchers
The projected starting pitcher for Chicago is Jameson Taillon, who is 9-8 with a 3.85 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP over 133.1 innings pitched this year. Taillon has allowed at least four earned runs in four straight starts. The projected starting pitcher for Pittsburgh is Jared Jones, who is 5-7 with a 3.88 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP over 95.0 innings pitched this season. Jones has allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of his last five starts, but did allow five earned runs to the Cubs last time out.
Why the Cubs will beat the Pirates
- The Pirates have lost each of their last 11 games against National League opponents that held a winning record.
- The Cubs have won each of their last seven night games against National League opponents.
- The Cubs have covered the run line in eight of their last nine games after playing the previous day.
- The Pirates have failed to cover the run line in seven of their last eight night games against NL Central opponents.
- The Pirates have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last four night games against National League opponents.
Why the Pirates will beat the Cubs
- The Cubs have lost eight of their last nine games as home favorites against NL Central opponents following a win.
- The Pirates have won eight of their last nine games as underdogs against NL Central opponents following a road loss.
- The Cubs have failed to cover the run line in each of their last 14 games as home favorites against National League opponents following a win.
- The road team has covered the run line in each of the last seven games between the Pirates and Cubs.
- The Cubs have trailed after 3 innings in three of their last four games as home favorites.
Total Runs Facts
- Seven of the Cubs’ last eight games against NL Central opponents have gone OVER the total runs line.
- Seven of the Pirates’ last eight road games after playing the previous day have gone UNDER the total runs line.
- The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Pirates’ last five games as underdogs against National League opponents.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Cubs’ last four home games.
Chicago Cubs Player Prop Facts
- Dansby Swanson has hit a home run in three of his last four appearances with the Cubs as favorites against the Pirates.
- Cody Bellinger has recorded at least one Double in each of the Cubs’ last five games as home favorites against the Pirates.
- Dansby Swanson has recorded at least one RBI in each of the Cubs’ last six games against opponents that held a losing record.
- Jameson Taillon has recorded a win in three of his last four appearances against former teams.
- Nico Hoerner has scored at least one run in each of the Cubs’ last eight games against NL Central opponents.
- Nick Madrigal has recorded a Single in each of his last nine appearances in night games against NL Central teams that held a losing record.
- Nick Madrigal has recorded at least one hit in each of his last 11 appearances in night games against NL Central teams that held a losing record.
- Nick Madrigal has recorded at least one total base in each of his last 11 appearances in night games against NL Central teams that held a losing record.
Pittsburgh Pirates Player Prop Facts
- Oneil Cruz has recorded a Double in three of the Pirates’ last four games against the Cubs.
- Andrew McCutchen has recorded at least one RBI in six of his last seven appearances with the Pirates as road underdogs.
- Isiah Kiner-Falefa has recorded at least one Single in each of the Pirates’ last six games as underdogs.
- Andrew McCutchen has recorded at least one hit in each of his last 11 appearances in night games against teams that held a winning record.
- Andrew McCutchen has recorded at least one total base in each of his last 11 appearances in night games against teams that held a winning record.
- Yasmani Grandal has scored a run in each of his last five appearances.
- Bryan De La Cruz has hit a home run in three of his last five appearances with his team as an underdog against the Cubs.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Chicago Cubs rank T6th in the league for steals this season (126).
- The Chicago Cubs rank 6th in the league for walks this season (461).
- The Pittsburgh Pirates rank 27th in the league for strikeouts against this season (1270).
- The Pittsburgh Pirates rank 26th in the league for home runs this season (134).
Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction
Chicago comes into this matchup looking for their seventh straight win and they just swept the Pirates last week. The Cubs are 36-29 at home this year, while the Pirates are 31-37 on the road. Pittsburgh continues to struggle over the last two weeks, but they were able to score four runs off of Taillon in his last start. Neither pitcher has impressed me recently and I think we are going to see plenty of runs scored, so I am taking the over here.