Pittsburgh Pirates vs Chicago Cubs Prediction, 4/11/2026 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pittsburgh Pirates vs Chicago Cubs

Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026

Location: Wrigley Field in Chicago, IL

TV: Marquee

Odds/Point Spread: Pittsburgh (-275) Chicago (+220)

The Pittsburgh Pirates (7-5) are en route to Wrigley Field on Saturday where they will compete against the Chicago Cubs (6-6). The moneyline on this game has the Pirates at -275 while the Cubs are opening at +220. The betting total is set at 9. The starting pitchers will be Braxton Ashcraft and Edward Cabrera.

Pittsburgh has a slugging rate of .383 and have struck out 101 times, while taking a walk on 53 occasions. They have recorded 54 runs batted in as well as 100 hits on the campaign, while their team batting average is sitting at .247. The Pirates have accumulated 19 two-baggers as a squad and have hit 12 baseballs out of the park. They have accumulated 54 runs scored while holding a team on-base percentage of .338. As a team, the Pittsburgh Pirates are earning 4.5 runs per game, which puts them at 13th in the league.

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Their strikeout to walk ratio is 2.31 and the pitching staff has earned a collective WHIP of 1.30. Pirates pitchers have yielded 9 home runs and 48 runs in total (12th in the league). Pittsburgh has yielded 88 base knocks (7.3 per 9 innings) and also 40 earned runs. The Pirates have a team earned run average of 3.33 for the year (8th in MLB), and their staff has rung up 120 batters. They have walked 52 batters and their FIP comes in at 3.60 as a team on the campaign.

The Pirates have sent 43 relievers to the mound so far this season. The relief pitchers have inherited 15 runners over the course of the season and 13.3% of those players ended up scoring. The bullpen have accumulated 9 holds so far this season (9th in the league). Pirates relief pitchers have entered the contest with runners on 11 times in addition to having 16 appearances in high leverage situations. They have 2 saves so far this season and have blown 1 out of their 3 save opportunities. The Pirates relievers have accumulated a save rate of 66.7% and stepped onto the hill in 12 save situations.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have 324 putouts this year, in addition to 88 assists and 6 errors. Their fielding percentage is holding at .986 which has them sitting 15th in pro baseball, and they have turned 9 double plays. The Pirates have turned 69.8% of balls hit into play into outs out of 972 innings, ranking them 14th in pro baseball.

Ashcraft has taken the hill for 81 frames and is sitting with 82 punch outs in his career. Ashcraft (5-5 win-loss record in his career) is the owner of a FIP of 2.62 and he has gone up against 338 hitters in the major leagues. His earned run average is 2.66 (24 ER's allowed) and his WHIP is 1.219. He has conceded 71 hits (7.9 hits per nine innings) and has had 28 walks.

Chicago has recorded 13 home runs for the year and 51 runs batted in. They have recorded 18 doubles, while taking a walk 51 times and putting up 56 runs. The Chicago Cubs have earned an OBP of .312 in addition to a team batting average of .223 for the season. The Cubs have a slugging percentage of .368 and they are recording 4.67 runs per game (10th in the league). They have struck out on 102 instances (17th in MLB) and are sitting with 87 hits.

The Chicago pitching staff have conceded 44 runs for the season while holding a team ERA of 3.43 (40 earned runs conceded). They have allowed 13 dingers and they yield 3.77 runs per 9 innings (10th in the league). The Cubs have a WHIP of 1.124 and have a FIP of 4.30 as a staff so far this season. They currently have a K/BB ratio of 7.90 (92 strikeouts against 39 free passes). They rank 4th in baseball as a pitching staff in total hits relinquished with 79.

With 6 save situations, the Cubs have compiled 1 hold in addition to 3 blown saves. Chicago has called on relief pitchers to enter the game in 5 save opportunities and they have come away with 2 saves. Chicago relievers have an inherited score percentage of 31.8% out of 22 inherited base runners. Their relief pitchers have come in 10 times in high leverage situations and also on 13 occasions with base runners. They sit at 27th in MLB with a save rate of 40.0%, and they have dispatched 36 bullpen pitchers to the mound this year.

The Chicago Cubs have turned 9 double plays and own a fielding percentage of .991 (8th in baseball). The Cubs have accrued 112 assists, 4 errors and have earned a total of 315 putouts during this campaign. Out of their 945 innings on the field, the Cubs have accumulated a defensive efficiency of 75.1% (2nd in pro baseball).

Thus far in his career, Cabrera has given up 351 base knocks while he has accumulated 487 K's in 442 frames. Cabrera (26-29 career win-loss mark) has earned a 3.97 earned run average while allowing 7.1 hits per nine innings. He has conceded a total of 195 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.295 and being the owner of a FIP of 3.9. He has a K/BB ratio of 2.19 and he has faced 1,885 hitters so far in his career.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Pittsburgh (-275)

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