Chicago Cubs vs Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Pick & Prediction 8/28/24

The forecast for Wednesday’s Cubs vs. Pirates game calls for temperatures in the mid-70s and broken clouds. First pitch from PNC Park is set for 12:35 PM ET. SN PT is carrying this game on TV.

The Pirates are favored at -166 on the money line, while the Cubs come in with a line of +141. Chicago is 2nd in the NL Central with a record of 67-66, while the Pirates are 5th at 62-70. Kyle Hendricks will start for the Cubs, and he is facing off against Paul Skens.

PITTSBURGH PIRATES VS CHICAGO CUBS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Pittsburgh Pirates Moneyline -166

This game will be played at PNC Park at 12:35 ET on Wednesday, August 28th.

HOW TO BET THE CUBS VS PIRATES:

• We have the Pirates winning by a score of 6 to 5
• However, if you’re looking for a run line pick, we like the Cubs to cover
• As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 11 runs and like the over

Chicago cruised to a 9-5 win over the Pirates in the most recent game of this series. The Cubs had a huge 4th inning, scoring five of their nine runs. As for the Pirates, they scored their final two runs in the 9th. Heading into the game, the Cubs were favored at -123 on the money line.

Pittsburgh wasted a good outing from Jared Jones, as he gave up just two earned runs in four innings of work for the Pirates. Justin Steele got the win for the Cubs, going five innings and giving up two earned runs.

Offensively, the Cubs were led by Seiya Suzuki and Dansby Swanson, as they were the only two Cubs hitters to have more than one hit. Suzuki, Miguel Amaya, and Bryan De La Cruz each had two RBIs for Chicago’s offense.

Cubs Records & Stats

With a record of 67-66, the Cubs are nine games behind the Brewers for the NL Central lead. The Cubs have gone 19-26 against other NL Central teams this year. Chicago has won two straight games, and they are 7-3 over their last 10 games overall.

Chicago has won three straight series, and their overall series record is 17-21-3 this year. As the road underdog, the Cubs are 20-27 this season, and they have won two straight on the road as the underdog. At home, the Cubs are 36-29 this season.

Chicago is 65-68 against the run line this season, but they have been better on the road, going 40-28. Their average run margin is +0.2 runs per game, and they have been a better bet as the underdog, going 45-22 against the run line. They have covered the run line in two straight games and have a +0.5 run differential at home.

The Chicago Cubs are on the road facing the Pittsburgh Pirates today, with the over/under line set at 8 runs. The Cubs and their opponents have combined to average 8.6 runs per game this season, and their over/under record is 60-68 overall. When the over/under line is set at 8 runs, the Cubs have gone over 7 times, under 16 times, and pushed once. The over has hit in 50.4% of their games this season, and they are currently on a 2-game over streak.

Kyle Hendricks gets the start for the Cubs today as he faces the Pirates on the road. This year, he has made 18 starts and has a record of 3-10 with a 6.33 ERA. Looking at his home/road splits, Hendricks is 2-5 on the road with a 7.53 ERA compared to 1-5 at home with a 5.78 ERA. In his 18 starts, he has turned in just three quality starts and is averaging 5.97 strikeouts per nine innings. Hendricks’ last outing came on August 23rd, where he finished with a no-decision, giving up three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings of work. He has not taken a loss in back-to-back outings.

Seiya Suzuki has been swinging a hot bat for the Cubs, going 15/37 in his last nine games with three homers and seven RBIs. Overall, he is hitting .276 for the season and is 2nd on the team with 19 homers. Ian Happ is the Cubs’ leader in homers with 23, but he has a batting average of just .237. Happ is also on a three-game hitting streak. Nico Hoerner has also been swinging a good bat of late, going 6/29 in his last nine games.

For the season, the Cubs are averaging 4.4 runs per game, which is 15th in the league. They are 15th in team batting average and have the 15th most home runs in the league. As a team, they are batting .238 and have an on-base percentage of .314.

Pirates Records & Stats

Pittsburgh is 62-70 overall this season, and they trail the Reds by one game for 4th place in the NL Central. The Pirates are 13.5 games behind the Brewers for the NL Central lead. The Pirates have dropped two straight games, and they are 4-6 across their last 10 games.

At home, the Pirates are 32-35 this season, and they are 30-35 on the road. This year, the Pirates are 27-23 as the favorite and 35-47 as the underdog. Pittsburgh has dropped two straight games as the favorite. So far, their overall series record is 18-18-5.

When the Pirates win, they win big, with an average run margin of 3.2 runs per game. But when they lose, they lose big, with an average run margin of -3.5 runs per game. This season, they have been a solid run line bet, going 74-58, including 40-25 on the road. They have been especially good against the run line as an underdog, going 55-27. However, they have struggled against the run line as a favorite, going just 19-31.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are at home today against the Chicago Cubs, and the over/under line for the game is set at 8 runs. The combined run average for Pirates games this season is 8.7 runs, and their over/under record is 64-66. When the over/under line is set at 8 runs, their record is 13-15. So far this season, 51.5% of their games have had over/under lines set at more than 8 runs.

Paul Skenes gets the start for the Pirates today and is coming off a strong outing vs. the Reds. In that August 22nd start, he went 6 innings, picking up the win and not giving up a run. Skenes finished the outing with 9 strikeouts, 2 hits, and 1 walk. Looking back at his last three outings, he has given up 0 or 1 earned run in each of those starts. Skenes’ record for the season is 8-2, and he has an ERA of 2.16. Out of his 17 starts, he has turned in 13 quality starts and is averaging 11.25 strikeouts per nine innings.

So far this season, the Pirates are averaging 4.2 runs per game, which is 23rd in the MLB. This is the same average they have put up at home. As a team, they are batting just .235, which is 18th in the league, and are also one of the worst teams in terms of striking out, averaging 9 per game.

Oneil Cruz has been swinging a hot bat of late, going 9/19 in his last five games. However, he has yet to hit a home run this season. Bryan Reynolds and Bryan De La Cruz are the Pirates’ top home run hitters, with 20 and 19 homers, respectively. Reynolds also leads the team with 72 RBIs.