Pittsburgh Pirates vs Chicago Cubs 9/24/22 MLB Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Chicago Cubs and the Pittsburgh Pirates meet in an NL Central division matchup in MLB action from PNC Park on Saturday.

The Chicago Cubs will push for another win after a 6-5 win over the Pirates in Friday’s matchup. Willson Contreras has 97 hits, 21 home runs and a .246 batting average while Patrick Wisdom also has 24 home runs, 62 RBIs and 25 doubles on the year. Ian Happ also has a team-high 144 hits with 40 doubles of his own, 69 RBIs and a .269 batting average while Nico Hoerner has a .291 batting average and 129 hits as well on the year. Wade Miley will start here and is 1-1 with a 3.48 ERA and 25 strikeouts this season.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will hope to bounce back after their loss to the Cubs on Friday. Ke’Bryan Hayes has 115 hits and 23 doubles with a .243 batting average as well as 40 RBIs. Ben Gamel also has 42 RBIs while Michael Chavis also has 49 RBIs this season. Bryan Reynolds also has a team-high 25 home runs with 59 RBIs of his own and Jack Suwinski also has 17 homers this season. Johan Oviedo will start here and is 3-2 with a 3.69 ERA and 40 strikeouts this season.

Chicago is 3-7 in their last 10 division games and 6-1 in their last 7 games following a win while the under is 10-2 in their last 12 games against a team with a right-handed starter. Pittsburgh is 19-48 in their last 67 games following a loss and 42-94 in their last 136 games against a team with a left-handed starter while the over is 9-2-1 in their last 12 games against a team with a left-handed starter.

I get the reasoning for backing (or fading) either side in this one, but I’m still sticking with the Cubs here. Miley struggled in his last start, but he’s still the better and more trustworthy option here and the Cubs have had a lot of success recently against the Pirates for whatever reason. I think there are definitely better options on the board, but I’d lean towards the Cubs and a bounce back start from Miley here.