Chicago Cubs vs Cleveland Guardians Prediction, 4/5/2026 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Chicago Cubs vs Cleveland Guardians

Date: Sunday, April 5, 2026

Location: Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH

TV: MLB.TV

Odds/Point Spread: Chicago (+172) Cleveland (-210)

The Chicago Cubs (3-3) are on their way to Progressive Field on Sunday where they will compete against the Cleveland Guardians (4-3). The odds on this game have Chicago at +172 and Cleveland is sitting at -210. The total comes in at 8. The pitchers taking the mound are Edward Cabrera and Parker Messick.

The Cubs have hit 7 two-baggers as a squad and have hit 6 balls out of the stadium. Chicago has a slugging percentage of .361 and have been called out on strikes 49 times, while drawing a walk on 30 occasions. As a team, the Chicago Cubs are putting up 5.0 runs per contest, which is 7th in baseball. They have tallied 28 RBI's in addition to 45 base knocks for the season, while their batting average comes in at .232. They have accumulated 30 runs while holding a team OBP of .330.

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They have accrued a K/BB ratio of 3.21 and their pitching staff sits with a WHIP of 1.09. Cubs pitchers have conceded 7 home runs and also 24 runs in total (7th in baseball). Chicago has allowed 40 base knocks (6.7 per 9 innings) as well as 21 earned runs. The Cubs hold a team ERA of 3.50 on the year (9th in the league), and their staff has rung up 61 hitters. They have walked 19 players from the other team and their FIP comes in at 3.74 as a squad over the course of the season.

The Cubs have sent 17 relief pitchers to the mound on the season. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 10 runners on the campaign with 40.0% of them ended up scoring. The relievers have accumulated 1 hold for the season (29th in MLB). Cubs relief pitchers have come into the game with opponents on base 6 times as well as having 2 appearances in high leverage situations.

The Boston Red Sox have 162 putouts on the year, as well as 56 assists and 2 errors. Their fielding percentage is holding at .991 which has them ranked 8th in MLB, and have a total of 5 double plays. The Cubs have turned 73.0% of balls in play into outs in their 486 innings on the diamond, which ranks them 6th in baseball.

Cabrera has taken the ball for 437 frames and has accumulated 483 punch outs in his pro baseball career. His ERA is 4.01 (195 earned runs allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.297. He has surrendered 350 base hits (7.2 hits per nine innings) and has 217 walks. Cabrera (26-29 career mark) has a FIP of 3.95 while facing 1,863 opposing hitters in the majors.

The Cleveland Guardians have accounted for a team on-base percentage of .273 and a batting average of .189 this year. They have been called out on strikes on 70 occasions (5th in MLB) and have 43 base knocks. Cleveland has accounted for 6 home runs on the campaign to go along with 20 runs batted in. The Guardians hold a team SLG% of .322 and they are scoring 3.14 runs per contest (26th in baseball). They have tallied 12 doubles, while taking a walk 20 times and putting up 22 runs.

The Guardians have a team WHIP of 1.279 in addition to having a FIP of 4.36 as a squad for the year. They sit at 20th in the league as a pitching staff in total hits relinquished with 51. The Cleveland pitching staff have given up 29 runs on the year and come in with a team ERA of 3.98 (27 earned runs surrendered). Their strikeout to walk ratio sits at 10.80 (73 strikeouts against 27 walks). They have allowed 10 HR's and they surrender 4.28 runs per 9 innings (12th in baseball).

They sit at 16th in the league with a save percentage of 66.7%, and they have dispatched 22 bullpen pitchers to the hill on the season. Their relief pitchers have stepped onto the mound 6 times in high leverage situations and on 7 occasions with base runners.

The Cleveland Guardians have gotten 7 double plays and hold a fielding percentage of .996 (4th in professional baseball). The Guardians have accrued 45 assists, 1 error and have a total of 183 putouts so far this year. Out of their 549 innings played, the Guardians have earned a defensive efficiency of 71.0% (14th in baseball).

So far in his MLB career, Messick has surrendered 51 base knocks while totaling 43 strikeouts in 45 innings. Messick (4-1 career mark) has earned a 2.39 ERA while giving up 10.2 hits per 9 innings. He has given up a total of 12 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.261 and having a FIP of 2.4. He has a K/BB ratio of 7.17 and he has faced 185 hitters in his career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Chicago (+172)

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