Friday, May 19, 2017

Wrigley Field

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Paolo Espino vs. Eddie Butler

The Milwaukee Brewers visit Wrigley Field on Friday, May 19, 2017 to play the Chicago Cubs. The probable starters are Paolo Espino for the Brewers and Eddie Butler for the Cubs.

The opening line for this matchup has Milwaukee at +123 and Chicago at -133. The Brewers have a 26-14-1 over/under record and a 27-14-0 run line mark. The Cubs are 14-25-0 against the run line and have a 24-14-1 over/under record.

Valuable Milwaukee Brewers Betting Trends

The Milwaukee Brewers are 26-14-1 against the over/under

The Milwaukee Brewers are 27-14-0 against the run line

Important Chicago Cubs Betting Trends

The Chicago Cubs are 24-14-1 against the over/under

The Chicago Cubs are 14-25-0 against the run line

Key Milwaukee Brewers Injuries

05/17/17 1B Eric Thames Illness "?" Thursday vs. San Diego Padres
05/12/17 LF Ryan Braun Calf 10-day DL (5/11)
04/03/17 P Junior Guerra Calf 10-day DL (4/4)

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

05/08/17 RF Jason Heyward Hand 10-day DL (5/6)
05/07/17 P Brett Anderson Back 10-day DL (5/6)

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Brewers have a 23-18 overall record this season. Probable pitcher Paolo Espino will be making his season debut for the Brewers. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.73 and they have given up 151 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .262 against the bullpen and they've struck out 141 hitters and walked 79 batters. As a team, Milwaukee allows 9.4 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.9 batters per nine innings. They are 14th in the league in team earned run average at 4.16. The Brewers pitchers collectively have given up 385 base hits and 170 earned runs. They have allowed 44 home runs this season, ranking them 19th in the league. Milwaukee as a pitching staff has walked 151 batters and struck out 323. They have walked 3.7 men per 9 innings while striking out 7.9 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.46 and their FIP as a unit is 4.16.

For expert handicapping advice on this matchup and other MLB games check out our handicapping tips.

Hitting Statistics

As a team Milwaukee is hitting .258, good for 12th in the league. The Brewers hold a .470 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .324, which is good for 16th in baseball. They rank 12th in MLB with 8.8 hits per game. Eric Thames is hitting .315 with an on-base percentage of .435. He has 40 hits this season in 127 at bats with 25 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .693 and an OPS+ of 189. Travis Shaw is hitting .289 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .325. He has totaled 41 hits and he has driven in 32 men in 142 at bats. His OPS+ is 123 while his slugging percentage is at .549. The Brewers have 362 hits, including 82 doubles and 65 home runs. Milwaukee has walked 128 times so far this season and they have struck out 385 times as a unit. They have left 250 men on base and have a team OPS of .794. They score 5.29 runs per contest and have scored a total of 217 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Chicago has a 20-19 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 0.00, Eddie Butler has a 1-0 record and a 0.83 WHIP. He has 5 strikeouts over the 6 innings he's pitched. He's also given up 2 hits. He allows 3 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 2.87. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.08 and they have given up 111 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .207 against the Cubs bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 158 batters and walked 62 opposing hitters. As a team, Chicago allows 8.4 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.1 batters per nine innings. They are 10th in the league in team earned run average at 3.89. The Cubs pitchers as a team have surrendered 334 base knocks and 155 earned runs this season. They have given up 50 home runs this year, which ranks 12th in Major League Baseball. Chicago as a staff has walked 141 hitters and struck out 364 batters. They give up a walk 3.5 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.1 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.32 while their FIP as a staff is 4.08.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .238, good for 23rd in the league. The Cubs hold a .399 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .327, which is good for 13th in baseball. They rank 17th in MLB with 8.4 hits per contest. Kris Bryant comes into this matchup batting .299 with an OBP of .404. He has 43 hits this year along with 19 RBI in 144 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .542 with an OPS+ of 150. Anthony Rizzo is hitting .221 this season and he has an OBP of .356. He has collected 33 hits in 149 at bats while driving in 22 runs. He has an OPS+ of 103 and a slugging percentage of .403. The Cubs as a unit have 329 base hits, including 67 doubles and 46 homers. Chicago has walked 165 times this year and they have struck out on 344 occasions. They have had 305 men left on base and have an OPS of .726. They have scored 4.82 runs per game and totaled 188 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Brewers/Cubs MLB game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Brewers +123

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