Chicago Cubs vs Cincinnati Reds Prediction, 8/28/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Chicago Cubs vs Cincinnati Reds

Date: Friday, August 28, 2020

Location: Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, OH

TV: MARQ/FSOH

Odds/Point Spread: Cubs (-125) Reds (+115)

Great American Ball Park is the venue where Jesse Winker and the Cincinnati Reds (11-17, 4th in NL Central) will take on the Chicago Cubs (18-12, 1st in NL Central) on Friday. The odds on this matchup have the Cubs coming in at -125 and the Reds are at +115. The total has been set at 9. The pitchers taking the mound will be Kyle Hendricks and Tyler Mahle.

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

8/26/2020 Jason Heyward RF Not Injury Related Expected to be out until at least Aug 28
8/23/2020 James Norwood RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 18
8/22/2020 Kris Bryant 3B Finger Expected to be out until at least Aug 29
8/18/2020 Brad Wieck RP Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 15
8/18/2020 Steven Souza RF Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Aug 28
7/23/2020 Daniel Descalso 2B Ankle Expected to be out until at least Sep 5

Key Cincinnati Reds Injuries

8/27/2020 Nick Senzel CF Undisclosed Expected to be out until at least Aug 28
8/24/2020 Matt Bowman RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 6

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Cubs have a 18-12 overall record this season. Hendricks has thrown 1,004 innings and has racked up 846 strikeouts in his career. His earned run average is 3.16 (352 ER's allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 1.110. He has given up 892 base hits (8.0 hits per 9 innings) with 222 free passes. Hendricks (66-46 career mark) holds a FIP of 3.57 while he has faced 4,067 opposing hitters in the majors. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.79 and they have given up 93 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .212 against the bullpen and they've struck out 113 hitters and walked 54 batters. As a team, Chicago allows 8.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 9 batters per nine innings. They are 17th in the league in team earned run average at 4.55. The Cubs pitchers collectively have given up 239 base hits and 132 earned runs. They have allowed 39 home runs this season, ranking them 16th in the league. Chicago as a pitching staff has walked 91 batters and struck out 260. They have walked 3.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 9 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.26 and their FIP as a unit is 4.30.

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Hitting Statistics

As a team Chicago is hitting .228, good for 24th in the league. The Cubs hold a .403 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .334, which is good for 6th in baseball. They rank 26th in MLB with 7.2 hits per game. Ian Happ is hitting .287 with an on-base percentage of .422. He has 27 hits this season in 94 at bats with 15 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .564 and an OPS+ of 167. Javier Baez is hitting .221 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .262. He has totaled 25 hits and he has driven in 14 men in 113 at bats. His OPS+ is 79 while his slugging percentage is at .407. The Cubs have 216 hits, including 47 doubles and 37 home runs. Chicago has walked 126 times so far this season and they have struck out 291 times as a unit. They have left 206 men on base and have a team OPS of .737. They score 4.6 runs per contest and have scored a total of 138 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Mahle (11-24 career mark) holds a 4.86 ERA while conceding 9.5 hits per nine innings. His SO/W ratio is 2.58 and he has gone up against 1,227 opposing hitters so far in his career. During his MLB career, Mahle has given up 294 hits and he has 274 strikeouts in 278 innings pitched. He has allowed 150 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.439 and a FIP of 4.8. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.36 and they have given up 68 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .173 against the Reds bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 120 batters and walked 46 opposing hitters. As a team, Cincinnati allows 7 hits per nine innings while striking out 11.6 batters per nine innings. They are 9th in the league in team earned run average at 4.02. The Reds pitchers as a team have surrendered 184 base knocks and 105 earned runs this season. They have given up 30 home runs this year, which ranks 29th in Major League Baseball. Cincinnati as a staff has walked 105 hitters and struck out 303 batters. They give up a walk 4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 11.6 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.23 while their FIP as a staff is 3.80.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .203, good for 30th in the league. The Reds hold a .393 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .306, which is good for 24th in baseball. They rank 30th in MLB with 6.3 hits per contest. Jesse Winker comes into this matchup batting .299 with an OBP of .426. He has 23 hits this year along with 10 RBI in 77 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .584 with an OPS+ of 164. Nicholas Castellanos is hitting .245 this season and he has an OBP of .336. He has collected 25 hits in 102 at bats while driving in 20 runs. He has an OPS+ of 138 and a slugging percentage of .588. The Reds as a unit have 176 base hits, including 35 doubles and 42 homers. Cincinnati has walked 111 times this year and they have struck out on 229 occasions. They have had 171 men left on base and have an OPS of .699. They have scored 3.93 runs per game and totaled 110 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Reds (+115)

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