Tyson Ross (2-3, 3.94 ERA) and Tsuyoshi Wada (0-0, 0.00 ERA) take the hill in the second of a three-game series between the San Diego Padres (20-20) and the Chicago Cubs (21-17) at Petco Park. The Padres won the last game 4-3 and San Diego leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 10:10 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May. 20 and can be seen on FSN-SD and CSN-CHI.
Ross pitched 5.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering two runs, striking out six and walking three in an 8-3 win over the Nationals. When pitching against the Padres, Wada is 0-1 with an 11.25 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, and four strikeouts. Anthony Rizzo (.341, 26 Rs, 8 HRs, 23 RBIs, 8 SBs) went 1 for 4 yesterday.
San Diego is a -137 favorite against Chicago and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at seven runs. Though the Padres have had a tough season in terms of their overall money line (-180), they have done fairly well as a favorite with a record of 11-6. San Diego is unbeaten as the favorite and has a 4-6 SU record in its last ten outings. The Padres have no trouble scoring as they rank fifth in the NL in home offense with 4.5 runs per game. San Diego is one of the best in the MLB in terms of steals, swiping 30 bases. San Diego’s pitching staff has been doing poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 6.2 runs per game, well above its season average of 4.9. Opponents have consistently been struck out by the Padres, who rank fourth in the NL in strikeouts per game with 8.5.
In games where it is the underdog, Chicago has a 8-7 record and an overall money line of +271. Offensively, they average 4.3 runs per game, which is good for fifth in the NL. The Cubs are an excellent base stealing team with 37 stolen bases, ranking third in the MLB. When it comes to issuing walks on the road, the Cubs have the fifth-fewest in the NL with an average of just 2.9 walks allowed per game.
The Padres lead the season series, 3-1. The Padres have a 6-4 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Wada takes the mound. Ross (RHP) will be on the hill against the Cubs, who have a 17-13 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – SD, O/U – Over
Notes
Chicago recorded at least two errors for the 10th time this season.
When the Cubs play into extra innings, they have a 5-1 record. The Padres are 1-2 when their games exceed nine innings.
The Cubs are coming into this game after allowing zero walks during their last outing. The Padres have a 1-2 record when opponents give up that many walks.
When they outhit their opponents, the Cubs are 11-3. The Padres have a 14-2 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 14th in runs, Chicago has earned 163 this season. San Diego ranks sixth with 179 runs.
Ranking 19th, San Diego is in the bottom half of the league in walks, notching 105 this season. Chicago ranks in the top five at third with 140.
The Padres are 13-7 when they hit at least one home run. The Cubs perform similarly when they hit one or more homers with a 15-6 record.
