Pittsburgh Pirates at Chicago Cubs MLB Picks & Predictions 9/14/2019

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Wrigley Field

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: James Marvel vs. Kyle Hendricks

Starling Marte and the Pittsburgh Pirates (65-82, 5th in NL Central) go to Wrigley Field on Saturday where they'll meet the Chicago Cubs (78-68, 2nd in NL Central). The Pirates open this game at +216 while the Cubs are coming in at -235. The over/under is set at 10.

The Pirates have been an inconsistent play for MLB bettors, having gone 65-82-0 SU. Chicago is covering 53.4% of the time, going 78-68-0 straight up.

Valuable Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Trends

The Pirates have been a terrible Under option for O/U bettors, having gone 84-57-6.

The Pirates are covering 45.3% of the time away from home, having gone 34-41-0 straight up.

Important Chicago Cubs Betting Trends

The Cubs are covering 66.2% of the time at Wrigley Field, going 47-24-0 SU.

The Cubs have been a good Over option for O/U bettors, having gone 65-74-7.

Related: Gambling 101 - MLB Betting Tips - Tony George of Doc's Sports

Key Pittsburgh Pirates Injuries

9/12/2019 Chris Archer SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 19
9/12/2019 Starling Marte CF Wrist Probable for Sep 13
9/11/2019 Kyle Crick RP Finger Out for the season
9/10/2019 Chris Stratton RP Side Expected to be out until at least Sep 14
9/8/2019 Jason Martin LF Shoulder Out for the season
9/4/2019 Gregory Polanco RF Shoulder Out for the season
8/29/2019 Nick Burdi RP Biceps Out for the season
8/14/2019 Jameson Taillon SP Elbow Out for the season
8/8/2019 Lonnie Chisenhall RF Calf Out for the season
3/28/2019 Edgar Santana RP Elbow Out for the season
3/1/2019 Chad Kuhl SP Elbow Out for the season

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

9/11/2019 Addison Russell 2B Head Probable for Sep 13
9/11/2019 Craig Kimbrel RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 16
9/10/2019 Xavier Cedeno RP Arm Expected to be out until at least Sep 19
9/9/2019 Javier Baez SS Thumb Out for the season
9/5/2019 Allen Webster RP Arm Expected to be out until at least Sep 13
8/22/2019 Brandon Morrow RP Elbow Out for the season
2/19/2019 Kendall Graveman SP Elbow Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Pirates have a 65-82 overall record this season. Starting pitcher James Marvel has a 0-1 record with an earned run average of 3.60 and a WHIP of 1.20 this season. He has 2 strikeouts over his 5 innings pitched and he's given up 4 hits. He's allowed 7.2 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 3.61. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.74 and they have given up 550 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .250 against the bullpen and they've struck out 624 hitters and walked 260 batters. As a team, Pittsburgh allows 9.3 hits per nine innings while striking out 9 batters per nine innings. They are 24th in the league in team earned run average at 5.01. The Pirates pitchers collectively have given up 1,355 base hits and 727 earned runs. They have allowed 212 home runs this season, ranking them 11th in the league. Pittsburgh as a pitching staff has walked 510 batters and struck out 1,305. They have walked 3.5 men per 9 innings while striking out 9 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.43 and their FIP as a unit is 4.66.

Related: Get MLB predictions on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Pittsburgh is hitting .266, good for 5th in the league. The Pirates hold a .428 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .324, which is good for 17th in baseball. They rank 5th in MLB with 9.3 hits per game. Starling Marte is hitting .295 with an on-base percentage of .342. He has 159 hits this season in 539 at bats with 82 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .503 and an OPS+ of 117. Josh Bell is hitting .277 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .367. He has totaled 145 hits and he has driven in 116 men in 524 at bats. His OPS+ is 140 while his slugging percentage is at .571. The Pirates have 1,364 hits, including 291 doubles and 159 home runs. Pittsburgh has walked 398 times so far this season and they have struck out 1,109 times as a unit. They have left 1,005 men on base and have a team OPS of .753. They score 4.77 runs per contest and have scored a total of 701 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Chicago has a 78-68 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 3.33, Kyle Hendricks has a 10-9 record and a 1.12 WHIP. He has 137 strikeouts over the 159.2 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 147 hits. He's allowing 8.3 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 3.77. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.02 and they have given up 431 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .234 against the Cubs bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 489 batters and walked 229 opposing hitters. As a team, Chicago allows 8.5 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.9 batters per nine innings. They are 6th in the league in team earned run average at 4.04. The Cubs pitchers as a team have surrendered 1,226 base knocks and 583 earned runs this season. They have given up 181 home runs this year, which ranks 27th in Major League Baseball. Chicago as a staff has walked 473 hitters and struck out 1,289 batters. They give up a walk 3.3 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.9 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.31 while their FIP as a staff is 4.28.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .250, good for 15th in the league. The Cubs hold a .447 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .329, which is good for 9th in baseball. They rank 20th in MLB with 8.4 hits per contest. Kyle Schwarber comes into this matchup batting .233 with an OBP of .325. He has 111 hits this year along with 82 RBI in 476 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .508 with an OPS+ of 111. Anthony Rizzo is hitting .283 this season and he has an OBP of .398. He has collected 137 hits in 484 at bats while driving in 87 runs. He has an OPS+ of 132 and a slugging percentage of .508. The Cubs as a unit have 1,226 base hits, including 238 doubles and 228 homers. Chicago has walked 524 times this year and they have struck out on 1,327 occasions. They have had 965 men left on base and have an OPS of .776. They have scored 4.9 runs per game and totaled 715 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Pirates/Cubs MLB game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Pirates (+216)

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