Dan Haren (8-9, 3.90 ERA) and Anthony DeSclafani (7-10, 3.84 ERA) start in the second of a three-game series between the Chicago Cubs (74-56) and the Cincinnati Reds (54-76) at Wrigley Field. The Reds won the last game 13-6 and Cincinnati leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 8:05 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sep. 1 and can be seen on WGN and FSOH.
Haren pitched 6.1 innings in his most recent start, surrendering five runs, striking out four and walking three in a 9-1 defeat to the Giants. Kris Bryant (.265, 73 Rs, 21 HRs, 80 RBIs, 12 SBs) had another good game yesterday, going 2 for 3 with one RBI. DeSclafani went 7.0 innings, surrendering one run, striking out six and walking one in a 1-0 defeat to the Dodgers in his last outing. Joey Votto (.312, 78 Rs, 25 HRs, 65 RBIs, 8 SBs) went 1 for 2 yesterday with two runs.
Chicago is a -150 favorite against Cincinnati and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is currently unavailable. The Cubs have recorded an overall money line of +837 and have shown high-level performance as a favorite this season with a record of 54-31. Chicago is an impressive 6-1 as the favorite over its last 10 games. Chicago leads the whole NL in walks, earning an average of 3.4 per game. Turning to the pitchers, opposing offenses have been stifled by the Cubs, who have a team ERA of only 3.56. The Cubs are the fifth-best team in the league at limiting hits and walks to their opponents, recording a WHIP of 1.20 so far this season.
As for their opponent, Cincinnati is coming in with an overall money line of -2,235 and a disappointing record of 25-53 as the underdog. They played poorly as the underdog over their last 10 games with a 1-6 record, and a 2-8 record SU. The Reds are an excellent base-stealing team with an MLB-best 116 stolen bases. The Reds allow 4.5 runs per game, but have damaged those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 5.7 runs per game during that span. When it comes to preventing batters from getting hits, the Reds are fourth in the NL on the road with an average of 8.2 hits allowed per away game.
The Cubs lead the season series, 9-5. The Cubs have a 58-42 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when DeSclafani takes the mound. Haren (RHP) will be on the hill against the Reds, who have a 41-57 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – ChC
Notes
Chicago earned its 15th shutout of the season in its last game. Cincinnati has been shut out 12 times this season.
Having scored zero runs in their last game, the Cubs are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Reds have an 8-0 record in games where opponents scored that many runs.
When they are outhit, the Reds are 8-54. The Cubs have a 16-41 record when opponents outhit them.
Chicago ranks in the top half of the league at 11th when it comes to home runs, hitting 134 this season. Cincinnati ranks in the top 10 at ninth with 135.
Ranking 15th, Chicago is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 8.10 per game. Cincinnati ranks in the top 10 at seventh with 8.57.
Chicago and Cincinnati both rank in the bottom half of the league for their on-base plus slugging percentage. Chicago sits at 19th with an OPS of .710 and Cincinnati ranks 18th with an OPS of .712.
The Reds are 23-59 in games where they allow one or more home runs. The Cubs are 34-36 when they allow at least one homer.
