Pirates vs. Cubs prediction, pick, how to watch
The Pittsburgh Pirates are on the road to take on the Chicago Cubs in game one of their three-game series Tuesday night at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois. So let's check out our MLB odds series, which includes our Pirates-Cubs prediction and pick.
Pittsburgh (34-30) has been one of the surprising teams during the first of the season sitting atop the NL Central. The Pirates are coming off a series win against the New York Mets and are looking to keep the momentum going as they take on their division rivals the Chicago Cubs this Tuesday night.
Chicago (28-37) is looking to make up some ground in the NL Central when they take on their division rivals. They were able to take two of three games from the Giants in their last series and with the Cubs being only 6.5 GB from first, a series sweep of the Pirates can put them in a position to make a run for the division title.
Here are the Pirates-Cubs MLB odds,
MLB Odds: Pirates-Cubs Odds
Pittsburgh Pirates: +114
Chicago Cubs: -134
Over: 8.5 (-122)
Under: 8.5 (+100)
How To Watch Pirates vs. Cubs
TV: Marquee Sports Network and AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 8:05 PM ET/5:05 PM PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Pirates Will Win
The Pirates were able to come into this away series taking two of three from the New York Mets at home which should give them a ton of confidence against the lowly Chicago Cubs. After a 14-run outburst three games ago, their bats cooled off a bit as they just mustered up 3 runs over their last two.
The Pirates are still hitting .249 on the season and .280 in their last three games while averaging 4.42 runs per 9 innings. They get to take on former Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon (1-4 7.02 ERA) who's been absolutely dreadful during the first half of the season. He is coming off an outing against the Angels where he gave up 4 earned on 5 hits as well as 2 home runs and 4 walks.
He has struggled mightily at Wrigley Field this year as he is winless (0-2) with an awful 8.27 ERA. His metrics are just bad across the board from his low swinging strike rate of 9.7% as well as yielding 3.2 BB/9 and 1.5 HR/9. A matchup against Taillon is just what the doctor ordered for the Pirates to get their bats back on track.
Why The Cubs Will Win
Even though the Cubs are second to last in the NL Central, they are just 6.5 GB of the first-place Pirates. That means if they are able to sweep this series they cut that deficit in half and could make a run at the division title. For them to do that they will need to keep the same success they had going against the Giants in this series against the Pirates.
It was the Cubs' pitching that held the Giants' offense in check for two of the three games in San Francisco. They need more of that to keep their winning ways going the Pirates in this series, but the Cubs bats need to get hot as well. They have been lacking as they have only scored 4 runs once in their last 5 games.
Luckily for them, they get to take on Luis Ortiz (1-2 4.23 ERA) who's split time between starting and coming out of relief throughout the start of this season. Coming out of the bullpen in the last game that he pitched, he gave up 2 earned runs on 10 runs with 1 home run, 2 walks, and only 1 strikeout in 5 innings pitched. Ortiz gives up a ton of hard contact (35% of Balls hit 95+ MPH) and has a low strikeout rate (5.2 K/9) which bodes well for the Cubs to get their bats going early in this matchup.
Final Pirates-Cubs Prediction & Pick
Neither one of these teams are in their best form right now. If I had to trust either one of these teams right now it would have to be the Pittsburgh Pirates, they just have more to give and have been more consistent so far this season. Laying your money on Luis Ortiz isn't for the faint at heart but he is someone when he is on, he can limit runs and induce a ton of groundballs. As long as the Pirates can muster up some runs in this contest against Taillon they should be able to limit the Cubs offense and get a hard-fought victory this Tuesday night.
Final Pirates-Cubs Prediction & Pick: Pittsburgh Pirates (+114), Under 8.5 (+100)
