Jon Lester (8-8, 3.21 ERA) and Daniel Norris (2-2, 4.24 ERA) take the hill in the second of a two-game series between the Chicago Cubs (67-50) and the Detroit Tigers (57-61) at Wrigley Field. The Tigers won the last game 10-8 and Detroit leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 8:05 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Aug. 19 and can be seen on WPWR, FSDT and ESPN.
Lester pitched 6.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering two runs, striking out 10 and walking two in a 9-2 win over the Brewers. Anthony Rizzo (.295, 66 Rs, 23 HRs, 70 RBIs, 15 SBs) went 1 for 5 yesterday with two RBIs. Norris went 6.1 innings, surrendering three runs (one unearned), striking out two and walking three in a 7-4 defeat to the Royals in his most recent start. J.D. Martinez (.288, 71 Rs, 31 HRs, 79 RBIs, 2 SBs) has been successful at the plate, going 2 for 4 yesterday with one run, one home run, and three RBIs.
This one isn’t expected to be close when Chicago, a substantial -203 favorite, takes on Detroit. The Cubs have recorded an overall money line of +899 and have shown high-level performance as a favorite this season with a record of 47-28. Chicago is unbeaten as the favorite and has a 9-1 SU record in its last ten outings. The Cubs have seen an uptick in scoring as of late, averaging 5.3 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 4.0 runs per game. The Cubs are one of the best in the MLB in terms of extra base hits with 316. Crossing over to the pitching staff, the Cubs are the second-best team in the league at limiting hits and walks to their opponents, recording a WHIP of 1.19 so far this season. Opponents have consistently been struck out by the Cubs, who lead the NL in strikeouts per game with 8.7.
In games where it is the underdog, Detroit has a 24-35 record and an overall money line of -621. Detroit has put in a lackluster performance against interleague opponents, coming in with a subpar record SU ({betdsi.at.nl.su_record}) and as the underdog (4-6). Offensively, the Tigers have really sputtered in interleague games. They have decreased their season average of 4.4 runs per game by averaging 3.6 in those contests.
The Tigers lead the season series, 2-1. The Cubs have a 15-10 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Norris takes the mound. Lester (LHP) will be on the hill against the Tigers, who have a 15-13 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – ChC
Notes
Chi Cubs 15-2-1 SU in their last 18 games.
Chi Cubs 8-0-1 SU in their last 9 games at home.
Chi Cubs are 2-10-1 SU in their last 13 games, when playing Detroit.
Chi Cubs are 1-7-1 SU in their last 9 games, when playing at home against Detroit.
The Cubs are coming off of a hot pitching game where they recorded 13 strikeouts. The Tigers have a record of 2-6 when they are struck out that many times or more.
When they are outhit, the Tigers are 7-44. The Cubs have a 15-37 record when opponents outhit them.
Chicago and Detroit both rank in the top half of the league in home runs. Chicago sits at 13th with 113 home runs this season and Detroit ranks 12th with 117.
Ranking first in hits, Detroit has earned 9.41 per game this season. Chicago ranks 14th with 8.09 hits.
Ranking 21st, Chicago is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.703). Detroit ranks in the top five at fourth with an OPS of .757.
When the Tigers allow at least one home run, they are 28-48. When the Cubs allow one or more homers, they have a 32-33 record.
