Thursday, March 9, 2017

Sloan Park

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Probable Pitchers: James Paxton vs. Mike Montgomery

The Seattle Mariners visit Sloan Park on Thursday, March 9, 2017 to play the Chicago Cubs in a Spring Training matchup. The probable starters are James Paxton for the Mariners and Mike Montgomery for the Cubs.

The opening line for this matchup has Seattle at +120 and Chicago at -140. The Mariners had a 80-76-6 over/under record and a 80-82-0 run line mark last season, meaning they covered 49% of the time. The Cubs were 87-75-0 against the run line and had a 75-79-8 over/under record. They covered the spread 54% of the time.

The Mariners are coming off a 86-76 record in 2016, including 42-39 on the road. Starting pitcher James Paxton had a 6-7 record with an earned run average of 3.79 and a WHIP of 1.31. He had 117 strikeouts over his 121 innings pitched and he gave up 134 hits last season. He allowed 10 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 2.8. The bullpen last year had an earned run average of 3.60 and they gave up 463 base hits on the year. Teams hit .231 against the bullpen while being struck out 552 times and walking 182 times last season. As a team, Seattle allowed 8.71 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.14 batters per nine innings. They were 8th in the league in team earned run average at 4.00. The Mariners pitchers collectively gave up 1,410 base hits and 647 earned runs. They allowed 213 home runs last season and they allowed 1.3 homers per nine innings as a staff. Seattle as a pitching staff walked 460 batters and struck out 1,318. They walked 2.8 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.1 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.28 and their FIP as a unit was 4.30.

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As a team Seattle batted .259, good for 10th in the league while putting together a .262 average away from home. The Mariners held a .430 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .326 which was good for 9th in baseball. They ranked 7th in baseball with 8.93 hits per game. Kyle Seager is coming off a 2016 season in which he hit .278 with an on-base percentage of .359. He had 166 hits last season along with 89 runs scored and 99 runs batted in. He struck out 108 times and walked 69 times. Robinson Cano hit .298 last year and he had an on-base percentage of .350. He totaled 195 hits while scoring 107 runs and he drove in 103. He walked 47 times and struck out on 100 occasions. The Mariners had 1,446 hits, including 251 doubles and 223 home runs. They stole 56 bases and were thrown out stealing 28 times. Seattle walked 506 times last season and they struck out 1,288 times as a unit. They left 1,099 men on base and had a team OPS of .756. They scored 4.74 runs per contest and scored a total of 768 runs last year.

Chicago had a 57-24 home record and a 103-58 overall mark in 2016. With an earned run average of 2.52, Mike Montgomery had a 4-5 record and a 1.17 WHIP last season. He had 92 strikeouts over the 100 innings he pitched during which he gave up 79 hits. He allowed 7.1 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 3.79. Last season the bullpen had an earned run average of 3.50 and they gave up 365 base hits on the year. Teams hit .208 against the Cubs bullpen while being struck out 519 times and walking 199 times last season. As a team, Chicago allowed 6.92 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.88 batters per nine innings. They were 1st in the league in team earned run average at 3.13. The Cubs pitchers as a team surrendered 1,125 base knocks and 511 earned runs last season. They gave up 163 home runs last year and they gave up 1.1 home runs per nine innings as a staff. Chicago as a staff walked 495 hitters and struck out 1,441. They gave up a walk 3.1 times per 9 innings while they struck out 8.9 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.11 while their FIP as a staff was 3.77.

As a team, they batted .256, good for 14th in the league while putting together a .254 average at home. The Cubs held a .429 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .343 which was good for 2nd in baseball. They ranked 18th in baseball with 8.7 hits per contest. Kris Bryant comes into this matchup after batting .292 with an OBP of .385. He had 176 hits last year along with 121 runs scored and 102 RBI. He struck out 154 times and walked on 75 occasions. Anthony Rizzo hit .292 in 2016 and he had an OBP of .385. He collected 170 hits while scoring 94 runs and driving in 109. He earned a walk 74 times and punched out 108 times. The Cubs as a unit had 1,409 base hits, including 293 doubles and 199 homers. They had 66 stolen bases and were thrown out 34 times. Chicago as a team walked 656 times last year and they struck out 1,339 times. They had 1,217 men left on base and had an OPS of .772. They scored 4.99 runs per game and totaled 808 runs last season.

Seattle Mariners Betting Trends

The Seattle Mariners were 80-76-6 against the over/under last season

The Seattle Mariners were 80-82-0 against the run line last season

Chicago Cubs Betting Trends

The Chicago Cubs were 75-79-8 against the over/under last season

The Chicago Cubs were 87-75-0 against the run line last season

Injuries to Watch

Seattle Mariners

No key injuries to report

Chicago Cubs

No key injuries to report

Guy's Pick: Take the Mariners +120

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