Pittsburgh Pirates at Chicago Cubs Betting Preview/Prop Picks

The Pittsburgh Pirates will be in Chicago on Thursday night to begin a four-game weekend series against the Cubs. This is the first meeting of the year between the NL Central rivals, and the home team will be favorites all weekend long.

Pittsburgh comes into this game having lost three straight, and they are not expected to be a playoff contender this season. The Pirates are now just 5-7 on the season, and they have gone just 1-5 away from PNC Park.

Chicago comes into this game with an overall record of 6-6, and they have actually started off better than expected. The Cubs have lost two straight games at home, but those losses came against a strong Tampa Bay Rays team. 

The Chicago Cubs are the moneyline betting favorites at -144 on Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

Pirates Need More Offense

The Pittsburgh Pirates are going to have to start scoring more runs if they are going to turn their season around. Pittsburgh has scored just 45 total runs through their first 12 games, and they have hit just eight home runs.

Daniel Vogelbach has hit a pair of home runs for the Pirates, and his big bat will be needed throughout the year. Ke’Bryan Hayes is currently hitting .326 on the year, and he has the talent to be one of the best hitters in baseball.

Bryse Wilson will be on the mound Thursday night, and he is looking for his first win. Wilson is 0-0 with a 5.40 ERA, but he has pitched decent through two starts. 

Starting Pitching Struggling For Cubs

The Chicago Cubs have not gotten good starting pitching this season, and that is the biggest reason that they have lost two straight games. Chicago has a team ERA of just 4.59, but the bullpen has done the best work. 

Mark Leiter Jr. makes his second start of the season for the Cubs, and the first start didn’t go well. The Cubs have not gotten good starts of late, and they could use five solid innings from Leiter. 

Seiya Suzuki has been on a tear to begin the year as he leads MLB with a .565 on-base percentage. This Cubs lineup has the potential to do some damage, but they will get that done by getting on base and grinding out at-bats. 

Cubs Cruise Over Division Rival

The Chicago Cubs have gotten off to a solid start to the season, especially at the plate. Pitching continues to be an issue for the Cubs at times, but they are not facing a good offensive team on Thursday.

It’s going to be another long season for the Pirates as they just don’t have a team that is competitive enough to win games. Pittsburgh just got swept in a series up in Milwaukee, and they aren’t going to be good enough to compete in this series as well. 

The Cubs should break out on offense on Thursday night as they beat the Pirates by a couple of runs. Bet the Chicago Cubs -1.5 over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the series opener on Thursday night.

Prop Picks

Chicago Cubs (-110) OVER 4.5 Runs

The Cubs are averaging 4.85 runs per 9 innings on offense, which ranks No. 8 in the league, while the Pirates are allowing 4.89 runs per 9 innings on defense, which ranks No. 25. Scores have gone OVER in 10 of Chicago’s last 11 games as a home favorite.

With Dunkel predicting a Chicago victory by the score of 7-5, take the Cubs (-110) to finish OVER their Vegas team total of 4.5 runs against the Pirates.

Chicago Cubs (-110) OVER 4.5 Runs

The Cubs are averaging 4.85 runs per 9 innings on offense, which ranks No. 8 in the league, while the Pirates are allowing 4.89 runs per 9 innings on defense, which ranks No. 25. Scores have gone OVER in 10 of Chicago’s last 11 games as a home favorite.

With Dunkel predicting a Chicago victory by the score of 7-5, take the Cubs (-110) to finish OVER their Vegas team total of 4.5 runs against the Pirates.

Jonathan Villar (-125) OVER 0.5 Runs Scored

Villar has scored 5 runs in just 8 games so far, still good for No. 3 on the team. He’s also leading the team with a .393 batting average and 2^nd with a 4.38 OBP.

With Dunkel predicting the Cubs going OVER their Vegas run total, take Villar (-125) to finish OVER 0.5 runs versus the Pirates.

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