Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, 9/22/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: MARQ/ATPT

Odds/Point Spread: Cubs (-150) Pirates (+139)

PNC Park is the site where Jacob Stallings and the Pittsburgh Pirates (15-38, 5th in NL Central) will take on the Chicago Cubs (31-22, 1st in NL Central) on Tuesday. The line on this contest has the Cubs priced at -150 and the Pirates are at +139. The total has been set at 9. The expected starting pitchers will be Adbert Alzolay and Steven Brault.

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

9/20/2020 Rowan Wick RP Oblique Out for the season
9/20/2020 James Norwood RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 25
9/20/2020 Jose Quintana RP Lat Expected to be out until at least Sep 22
9/20/2020 Brad Wieck RP Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 25
9/15/2020 Daniel Descalso 2B Ankle Expected to be out until at least Sep 22
9/15/2020 Tyler Chatwood SP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 27

Key Pittsburgh Pirates Injuries

9/20/2020 Kevin Newman SS Knee Out for the season
9/17/2020 Cole Tucker CF Concussion Expected to be out until at least Sep 25
9/15/2020 Keone Kela RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 22
9/14/2020 Kyle Crick RP Lat Expected to be out until at least Sep 24
9/11/2020 Tyler Bashlor RP Back Expected to be out until at least Sep 21
9/9/2020 Yacksel Rios RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 25
9/6/2020 Anthony Alford CF Elbow Out for the season
8/19/2020 Phillip Evans 3B Jaw Out for the season
8/11/2020 Clay Holmes RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 21
8/6/2020 Nick Burdi RP Elbow Out for the season
8/6/2020 Michael Feliz RP Forearm Out for the season
7/23/2020 Luke Maile C Finger Out for the season
6/30/2020 Kevin Kramer RF Hip Out for the season
6/30/2020 Chris Archer SP Shoulder Out for the season
2/13/2020 Jameson Taillon SP Elbow Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Cubs have a 31-22 overall record this season. Alzolay has thrown 24 innings and has earned 27 strikeouts thus far in his career. His ERA is 5.58 (15 ER's allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.612. He has allowed 21 base knocks (7.8 hits per 9 innings) with 18 free passes. Alzolay (1-2 career mark) holds a FIP of 5.60 and he has gone up against 114 opposing hitters in the major leagues. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.26 and they have given up 137 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .190 against the bullpen and they've struck out 199 hitters and walked 87 batters. As a team, Chicago allows 7.8 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.2 batters per nine innings. They are 8th in the league in team earned run average at 3.94. The Cubs pitchers collectively have given up 397 base hits and 201 earned runs. They have allowed 63 home runs this season, ranking them 19th in the league. Chicago as a pitching staff has walked 160 batters and struck out 470. They have walked 3.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.2 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.21 and their FIP as a unit is 4.07.

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

Hitting Statistics

As a team Chicago is hitting .224, good for 27th in the league. The Cubs hold a .389 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .320, which is good for 17th in baseball. They rank 26th in MLB with 7.2 hits per game. Kyle Schwarber is hitting .190 with an on-base percentage of .306. He has 32 hits this season in 168 at bats with 21 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .393 and an OPS+ of 88. Anthony Rizzo is hitting .212 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .332. He has totaled 39 hits and he has driven in 21 men in 184 at bats. His OPS+ is 94 while his slugging percentage is at .386. The Cubs have 379 hits, including 74 doubles and 63 home runs. Chicago has walked 201 times so far this season and they have struck out 508 times as a unit. They have left 367 men on base and have a team OPS of .708. They score 4.38 runs per contest and have scored a total of 232 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Pittsburgh has a 15-38 overall mark this year. During his pro baseball career, Brault has surrendered 315 base hits while accumulating 266 strikeouts in 308 frames. He has given up a total of 164 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.541 and a FIP of 4.7. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 1.66 and he has faced 1,398 hitters so far in his career. Brault (12-15 win-loss record in his career) has earned a 4.79 earned run average while conceding 9.2 hits per nine innings. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.55 and they have given up 186 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .198 against the Pirates bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 242 batters and walked 110 opposing hitters. As a team, Pittsburgh allows 8.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.5 batters per nine innings. They are 21st in the league in team earned run average at 4.93. The Pirates pitchers as a team have surrendered 412 base knocks and 247 earned runs this season. They have given up 76 home runs this year, which ranks 7th in Major League Baseball. Pittsburgh as a staff has walked 222 hitters and struck out 478 batters. They give up a walk 4.4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.5 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.41 while their FIP as a staff is 4.93.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .216, good for 28th in the league. The Pirates hold a .341 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .281, which is good for 30th in baseball. They rank 28th in MLB with 6.9 hits per contest. Jacob Stallings comes into this matchup batting .259 with an OBP of .341. He has 28 hits this year along with 17 RBI in 108 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .380 with an OPS+ of 97. Colin Moran is hitting .240 this season and he has an OBP of .322. He has collected 37 hits in 154 at bats while driving in 18 runs. He has an OPS+ of 107 and a slugging percentage of .448. The Pirates as a unit have 367 base hits, including 64 doubles and 46 homers. Pittsburgh has walked 151 times this year and they have struck out on 463 occasions. They have had 308 men left on base and have an OPS of .622. They have scored 3.58 runs per game and totaled 190 runs this season.

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

Tony's Pick: Take the Cubs (-150)

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