Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, 9/24/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Thursday, September 24, 2020

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: MARQ/ATPT

Odds/Point Spread: Cubs (-182) Pirates (+167)

Jason Heyward and the Chicago Cubs (32-23, 1st in NL Central) head to PNC Park on Thursday where they'll take on the Pittsburgh Pirates (16-39, 5th in NL Central). The moneyline on this game has the Cubs priced at -182 and the Pirates are at +167. The over/under has been set at 9. The pitchers taking the mound will be Alec Mills and Chad Kuhl.

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

9/23/2020 Daniel Descalso 2B Ankle Expected to be out until at least Sep 23
9/22/2020 Kris Bryant 3B Oblique Probable for Sep 23
9/21/2020 Ildemaro Vargas 2B Hamstring Out for the season
9/21/2020 Tyler Chatwood SP Forearm Out for the season
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 Brad Wieck RP Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 25

Key Pittsburgh Pirates Injuries

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

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Cubs have a 32-23 overall record this season. Mills (6-5 career record) sits with a FIP of 4.37 and he has gone up against 476 opposing hitters in the major leagues. His ERA is 3.98 (51 ER's allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 1.136. He has given up 90 base hits (7.0 hits per nine innings) and has had 41 free passes. Mills has taken the mound for 115 frames and has accumulated 113 strikeouts during his pro baseball career. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.14 and they have given up 140 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .186 against the bullpen and they've struck out 212 hitters and walked 91 batters. As a team, Chicago allows 7.7 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 3.85. The Cubs pitchers collectively have given up 406 base hits and 204 earned runs. They have allowed 64 home runs this season, ranking them 19th in the league. Chicago as a pitching staff has walked 165 batters and struck out 485. They have walked 3.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.2 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.20 and their FIP as a unit is 4.03.

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

Hitting Statistics

As a team Chicago is hitting .223, good for 27th in the league. The Cubs hold a .386 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .319, which is good for 17th in baseball. They rank 26th in MLB with 7.1 hits per game. Jason Heyward is hitting .291 with an on-base percentage of .412. He has 39 hits this season in 134 at bats with 22 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .500 and an OPS+ of 147. Ian Happ is hitting .258 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .364. He has totaled 48 hits and he has driven in 28 men in 186 at bats. His OPS+ is 137 while his slugging percentage is at .522. The Cubs have 392 hits, including 77 doubles and 64 home runs. Chicago has walked 206 times so far this season and they have struck out 527 times as a unit. They have left 377 men on base and have a team OPS of .705. They score 4.35 runs per contest and have scored a total of 239 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Pittsburgh has a 16-39 overall mark this year. Kuhl (19-23 career record) has a 4.45 ERA while allowing 9.0 hits per 9 innings. His SO/W ratio is 2.10 and he has faced 1,525 batters during his career. During his MLB career, Kuhl has allowed 354 base knocks and he has 315 strikeouts in 352 innings. He has given up a total of 174 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.431 and a FIP of 4.5. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.67 and they have given up 193 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .201 against the Pirates bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 246 batters and walked 111 opposing hitters. As a team, Pittsburgh allows 8.1 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 4.87. The Pirates pitchers as a team have surrendered 425 base knocks and 254 earned runs this season. They have given up 77 home runs this year, which ranks 9th in Major League Baseball. Pittsburgh as a staff has walked 227 hitters and struck out 497 batters. They give up a walk 4.4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.5 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.39 while their FIP as a staff is 4.86.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .214, good for 28th in the league. The Pirates hold a .338 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .279, which is good for 30th in baseball. They rank 29th in MLB with 6.8 hits per contest. Josh Bell comes into this matchup batting .221 with an OBP of .296. He has 40 hits this year along with 19 RBI in 181 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .354 with an OPS+ of 77. Adam Frazier is hitting .214 this season and he has an OBP of .286. He has collected 40 hits in 187 at bats while driving in 18 runs. He has an OPS+ of 64 and a slugging percentage of .316. The Pirates as a unit have 376 base hits, including 66 doubles and 47 homers. Pittsburgh has walked 156 times this year and they have struck out on 478 occasions. They have had 316 men left on base and have an OPS of .617. They have scored 3.51 runs per game and totaled 193 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Cubs (-182)

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