Chicago Cubs vs Cleveland Indians Predictions, MLB Picks, Betting Tips 8/12/2020

Game: Chicago Cubs vs Cleveland Indians

Date: Wednesday, August 12, 2020

Location: Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH

TV: MARQ/STOh

Odds/Point Spread: Cubs (+120) Indians (-130)

Jose Ramirez and the Cleveland Indians (10-7, 3rd in AL Central) host the Chicago Cubs (10-3, 1st in NL Central) at Progressive Field on Wednesday. The Indians open this game at -130 while the Cubs are priced at +120. The total has been set at 8. The pitchers who are expected to start are Kyle Hendricks and Carlos Carrasco.

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

8/10/2020 Jose Quintana SP Thumb Expected to be out until at least Aug 16
8/8/2020 Brad Wieck RP Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Aug 11
8/2/2020 James Norwood RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Aug 11
7/23/2020 Daniel Descalso 2B Ankle Expected to be out until at least Sep 5

Key Cleveland Indians Injuries

8/11/2020 Mike Clevinger SP Not Injury Related Expected to be out until at least Aug 18
8/10/2020 Zach Plesac SP Not Injury Related Expected to be out until at least Aug 13
8/8/2020 Tyler Naquin RF Toe Expected to be out until at least Aug 14
7/29/2020 Roberto Perez C Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Aug 11

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Cubs have a 10-3 overall record this season. Hendricks has taken the hill for 986 frames and has totaled 833 punchouts in his career. His earned run average is 3.15 (345 ER's allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.110. He has given up 875 base knocks (8.0 hits per nine innings) and has had 220 walks. Hendricks (65-44 win-loss mark in his career) is the owner of a FIP of 3.55 while facing 3,995 opposing batters during his time in the majors. The bullpen has an earned run average of 7.30 and they have given up 40 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .212 against the bullpen and they've struck out 42 hitters and walked 27 batters. As a team, Chicago allows 7.4 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.3 batters per nine innings. They are 19th in the league in team earned run average at 4.38. The Cubs pitchers collectively have given up 96 base hits and 57 earned runs. They have allowed 16 home runs this season, ranking them 24th in the league. Chicago as a pitching staff has walked 42 batters and struck out 108. They have walked 3.2 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.3 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.18 and their FIP as a unit is 4.19.

Related: Get MLB predictions on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Chicago is hitting .238, good for 12th in the league. The Cubs hold a .425 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .332, which is good for 5th in baseball. They rank 12th in MLB with 7.8 hits per game. Anthony Rizzo is hitting .238 with an on-base percentage of .418. He has 10 hits this season in 42 at bats with 5 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .452 and an OPS+ of 144. Ian Happ is hitting .297 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .409. He has totaled 11 hits and he has driven in 6 men in 37 at bats. His OPS+ is 183 while his slugging percentage is at .622. The Cubs have 102 hits, including 21 doubles and 19 home runs. Chicago has walked 47 times so far this season and they have struck out 132 times as a unit. They have left 89 men on base and have a team OPS of .757. They score 5 runs per contest and have scored a total of 65 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Cleveland has a 10-7 overall mark this year. Carrasco (87-70 career win-loss record) has earned a 3.80 ERA and has conceded 8.5 hits per 9 innings. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 4.15 and he has gone up against 4,906 hitters during his career. So far in his pro baseball career, Carrasco has given up 1,122 base knocks and he has 1,246 strikeouts in 1,192 frames. He has surrendered a total of 503 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.193 and a FIP of 3.5. The bullpen has an earned run average of 1.51 and they have given up 25 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .153 against the Indians bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 52 batters and walked 10 opposing hitters. As a team, Cleveland allows 5.9 hits per nine innings while striking out 11 batters per nine innings. They are 1st in the league in team earned run average at 2.04. The Indians pitchers as a team have surrendered 99 base knocks and 34 earned runs this season. They have given up 19 home runs this year, which ranks 12th in Major League Baseball. Cleveland as a staff has walked 35 hitters and struck out 184 batters. They give up a walk 2.1 times per 9 innings while they strike out 11 per 9. Their team WHIP is 0.89 while their FIP as a staff is 3.08.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .196, good for 30th in the league. The Indians hold a .300 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .309, which is good for 18th in baseball. They rank 30th in MLB with 6.1 hits per contest. Jose Ramirez comes into this matchup batting .273 with an OBP of .351. He has 18 hits this year along with 12 RBI in 66 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .515 with an OPS+ of 136. Cesar Hernandez is hitting .305 this season and he has an OBP of .414. He has collected 18 hits in 59 at bats while driving in 7 runs. He has an OPS+ of 125 and a slugging percentage of .390. The Indians as a unit have 103 base hits, including 14 doubles and 13 homers. Cleveland has walked 76 times this year and they have struck out on 159 occasions. They have had 110 men left on base and have an OPS of .610. They have scored 3.47 runs per game and totaled 59 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Indians (-130)

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