How about some National League action at Wrigley Field for your Thursday evening? Kick off your shoes and relax to this matchup between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Chicago Cubs. Join us for our MLB odds series, where our Diamondbacks-Cubs prediction and pick will be revealed.
Eager to end a dreadful losing streak that has reached six games and has seen Arizona be outscored 36-20 over the past week of play. After getting swept by the Dodgers in Los Angeles, the D-Backs will call upon one of their most productive pitchers of 2022 to end the winning drought in RHP Zac Gallen, who has a 2-0 record and 1.05 ERA in his five starts this season.
On the bump for the Cubs will be the former Blue Jay and Met in right-handed hurler Marcus Stroman. The 31 year-0ld has seen his fair share of struggles thus far with a 1-3 record and 5.13 ERA.
Why The Diamondbacks Could Cover the Spread
There’s the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to Las Vegas Raiders Jerseys the marathon of the MLB season. While each team in the majors usually experiences the highs and lows of what the 162 game season has to offer, the Diamondbacks must feel like they are sinking in quicksand.
Arizona’s lengthy losing streak has now reached a season-high six games after getting swept by the Dodgers in Los Angeles, as it seems like a lifetime ago that Arizona was rolling with seven wins in eight matchups at one point a few weeks ago. That was then and this is now, however, as something needs to change before their season falls apart at the seams.
While the Diamondbacks have been pretty dreadful in the first month and a half of the season at the plate, there are runs to be scored when they step inside the batter’s box and look upon the ivy-covered batter’s eye at Wrigley.
As a team collectively, the D-Backs are hitting only .207, but have been carried by players like first baseman Christian Walker, who has swatted nine homers and has 18 RBIs to lead Arizona. Be on the lookout for Daulton Varsho as well, as he has been a thorn in Chicago’s side over the past six games they have faced him. Varsho has gone 9-24 with three doubles, two home runs, and eight RBIs during that stretch.
The D-Backs could cover the spread simply in large part thanks to Boston Red Sox Jerseys Zac Gallen’s domination to begin the 2022 season. In 34 1/3 innings pitched, the masterful arm of Gallen has given up only four runs on 18 hits and has struck out an absurd 35 hitters.
Why The Cubs Could Cover the Spread
While the baseball world does not have high expectations for the Cubbies this season, Chicago has still won six of their previous nine ballgames and is trending positively as the MLB season inches closer to June. Chicago has the clear advantage in this one not only being in front of their home crowd faithful but also entering the competition playing much better baseball than the Diamondbacks. Chicago may be only 6-12 at home this season, but Cubbies fans always seem to pack Wrigley to the brim.
In order to cover the spread, it will be vital for the Cubs to get the offense going early by putting up runs in the opening frames of the game. Making Gallen feel uncomfortable on the rubber and putting pressure on him to get out of jams will be a winning formula for Chicago this evening.
On paper, the Cubs do have a more efficient offensive attack than the Diamondbacks as well. Chicago ranks in the upper half of the league in on-base percentage at .312, and also has a knack for numerous players stepping up in crunch time when the game is on the line. Whether it’s Ian Happ, Patrick Wisdom, Seiya Suzuki, or Wilson Contreras to name a few, the Cubbies have a decent amount of depth in their lineup to ensue damage at any given time.
Can Stroman deliver when he is needed most? This has yet to be seen, Boston Red Sox Jersey as his lofty 5.13 ERA leaves much to be desired. Luckily, Stroman has pitched quite well against Arizona in his career with a 2-1 record and a 3.81 in four career starts. The Cubs contain the 17th best ERA in the majors at 3.80.
Final Diamondbacks-Cubs Prediction & Pick
This Thursday night matchup in the Windy City will simply come down to the pitching matchup. It has been a tale of two different stores for the expected starters out on the rubber in this National League matchup, as Gallen has easily been one of the best twirlers in baseball and Stroman has yet to find his groove. Rejoice D-Backs fans! The suffering is over, as Gallen leads his troops to the victory and Arizona covers the +1.5 spread out on the road.